Random funnies

We're starting the girls in swimming lessons this Saturday, Jenna has already told me that she won't be going in the water, but instead sitting on the edge of the pool, watching the rest of the kids.

I was so excited that Nate got me a toaster oven for my birthday--our old one was gross. A friend told me that a sign of getting old is being excited about corded items for gifts.

We had guests coming over and I was in a rush to get the house clean. I was upstairs vacuuming and left the girls in the play room. When I got done, I came downstairs to an entire roll of toilet paper ripped into small pieces on the floor. So much for cleaning.

Jenna looked at the tops of my hands the other day and told me that I was a grandma now since my hands had big lines on them. (I think she was referring to the veins.)

I have specific instructions from Jenna on how to give her a "surprise" party for her birthday. She told me that she was going to wait outside while her friends crouched down inside. Then when she walks in, everyone will jump up and yell, "surprise!" Not sure that's a surprise party!

Abby just came up to me with a package of wipes in one hand and a diaper in the other and asked me if I was poopy.

I think I might be a democrat . . . .

I have been a registered republican since I was 18. No wait, I think I orginially registered as a democrat when I was 18 and didn't even know the difference between the two. Then I learned more about the parties and what my own beliefs were and have been a republican ever since.

For a while, I was a one issue voter. Abortion was it for me. I couldn't vote for anyone who would be in support of killing babies. Faith was a huge issue for me as well. To have leaders with lives based in Christ was important to me. That still is. But, I've realized that I can't only vote for people because they support or reject abortion. That's an issue that is great fun and important to debate about, but when it comes down to it, I don't see that as an issue being resolved in the political world anytime soon. I choose to focus on my own family and concentrating on how we choose to teach the girls about the sancitity of life instead of putting all my eggs in one basket on election day.

I've come a long way. I am trying to learn about all the presidential candidates and vote based on faith as well as important issues that must be addressed: health care, the environment, and security--to name a few.

When I thought about the issues that were important to me, I realized that I don't seem to fit into either party very well. So, I took this online evaluation. I had to go through a list of issues, rank their importance and indicate whether or not I supported the idea. The end result was that I am most closely matched (71%) with Bill Richardson, a democrat. And most of my other close matches were democrats. So, I'm afraid that I might be a democrat.

Now, I am probably not going to vote for Bill Richardson because he doesn't have much chance of winning, but I am open to considering others--in all parties.

I might just have to be an independent. We'll see.

If you are my dad or my uncle Wayne and you are reading this, you are probably falling off your chair--both for different reasons.

Most of my posts are about funny things that happen with the girls and I've learned that finding the humor in motherhood and telling you all about it is a positive thing for me. I'm not exactly sure why, but when I laugh about the things that make me crazy sometimes, the craziness doesn't take such a toll on me.

This post, however, is not about a funny thing that happened with the girls. My heart breaks for two families at our vicarage church as well as the people surrounding them.

I love God. I know that everything that happens is in His plan and that everything ultimately glorifies Him. I trust Him and I understand the sacrifice He made for me. I'm having a hard time understanding how two families can be hurting so much as a result of two deaths that were so shocking and hard.

A little girl, just a few months older than Abby, died two weeks ago from an aggressive brain tumor. Her parents, as well as their friends and family, watched her slowly and painfully slip away. An admirable man with a beautiful, Godly family including six children suddenly died yesterday. He will never walk his daughters down the aisle and his family is left in a heap of disbelief and grief that is unimaginable.

Seeing these horrible things doesn't make me doubt God. In the awful things, I see His comfort, healing, and great love, but why them and why now?

My heart breaks for these families and for the people who love them. But I still love God and trust that He will take care of them.

Nate is disqualified

Apparently, having hairy arms disqualifies you from rubbing Jenna's back.

Every night after prayers, I stay with Jenna for a few extra minutes and rub her back. I started that one evening when she was sick and she has asked for it ever since.

The other night, Nate asked Jenna if he could stay and rub her back. She said, "No Daddy, you have hairy arms."
:)

"Clothes Haaaaaaa"

"Clothes haaaaa" is the best way I know how to phonetically spell a new phenonmenon in our house. The word "haaaa" is Abby's word for "off." And there's not way to phonetically spell "haaaa" that does justice to the way Abby says it. But she says it a lot these days.

This morning, I went into her room to find her completely naked. She got her blanket sleeper off as well as her diaper. Thank goodness it wasn't a poopy diaper, but I have that those unfortunate situations this week. Yuck.

Anyway . . .Abby likes to take all her clothes off several times a day. I think it's a challenge for her and she likes to see if she can get out of every outfit that I think is too tricky for her. For example, after the first few times she did this, I started putting a Onesie on her, thinking that she couldn't get that off, therefore, she couldn't get to her diaper.

Wrong.

She got her arms out of the Onesie, pulled the Onesie down to her tummy and proceeded to undo her diaper by reaching in the stretched out neck that was now around her stomach. I thought that was a surefire way to keep her from getting everything off, but I now realize that I have nothing. No defenses against our 21 month old who does not want to keep her clothes on.

So now every time I drop her off at the nursery at church or leave her with friends not only do I have to warn them that she will probably climb on anything she can find, but that she will probably strip as well--and not just the clothes--the diaper too.

On one hand, this is hilarious to me. She is just so amusing and really is a riot most of the day. However . . . when I am trying to get everyone out the door for church or preschool or something important that I am stressing out about, the last thing I want to see is a naked baby running around with her clothes in a pile.

Jenna never did this. In fact, I was worried about her dressing skills when I heard my friends tell me that their kids were always dressing and undressing themselves. Not to fear though, Jenna is an expert dresser . . . she has taken to picking out her own outfits. Needless to say, I only let her wear the yellow tank top over the blue long sleeve shirt with bright pink tights with hearts all over them and her denim skirt when we aren't going anywhere important. Yes, I get stares, but you know . . . she is very proud of herself and learning some independence.

As you can see, getting dressed and staying dressed are issues in our house right now. And while it is a minor inconvenience at times, this is the stuff of life and parenthood that we will always remember.

A New Kind of Moisturizer

Abby is into everything. She thinks that emptying all the toy bins in the middle of the room is great fun and doesn't think that any of Jenna's clothes belong in their drawers. I recently had to put a child safety lock on the pantry door handle so that she couldn't get in the pantry. She had been emptying the bottom two rows and carrying stuff around the house. The last thing I needed was to have vegetable oil spilled all over the family room carpet.

The girls stayed with some good friends of ours while Nate and I went to a meeting last night. They are well aware of Abby's adventurous and curious side, but weren't prepared for her latest antic. Apparently, Abby got into the diaper bag, and rubbed diaper rash cream all over her face. By the time our friend, Matt, discovered all of this, her entire face was white. When we picked the girls up, Matt was afraid to tell us what had happened, thinking that we would be upset. However, we laughed out loud at the thought of her getting into the diaper rash cream. I just wish I could have seen her!

I went out this morning with a friend and came home to find out that she had done the same thing again while Nate was home with her. Only this time, Nate said that she kept saying, "Mommy, mommy, mommy" while rubbing the diaper rash cream all over her face. It seems as if she was trying to put moisturizer on like I do each morning. How funny!

I have not witnessed either of these hilarious incidents, and Nate didn't get a chance to take a picture. If we do get a picture of Abby putting "moisturizer" on, I'll be sure to post it.

A Phone Call to Santa Claus

A few days ago, we were in Kohls doing some Christmas shopping. I wandered into the kids' clothes section (which was not what we were there for, but I can never resist) which is next to the toy section. As I was browsing, Jenna found a Barbie, the Island Princess doll. Jenna loves the Island Princess. She was Barbie, the Island Princess for Halloween, loves the movie, and wants every toy that is related to this particular Barbie. Little did she know that I had bought the same exact doll for her for Christmas the day before.

I tried to tell her that she just couldn't have it. We weren't there to shop for her. That line usually works and she agrees to not whine about everything in the store that she wants. But, this was different. This was Barbie, the Island Princess. Out of desperation to get us out of the store with as little crying and carrying on as possible, I told her that Santa called me earlier in the day and told me that he had that same doll for her in his bag. He was saving it for Christmas and he would bring it then.

This was so great, because she bought it! She happily returned the doll to the toy section and smiled the whole way out of the store, knowing that Santa was going to bring her the Island Princess doll.

She's a smart cookie though, and I should have seen this coming. She then asked me if she could talk to Santa since he had just talked to me earlier in the day. She had some more things to ask him for. So, I thought quickly. I was trying to think of every guy who would be available, be willing to pretend to be Santa, and wouldn't be a voice she would recognize. Chuck. Our good friend Chuck.

I called him, explained the situation, and while he was in the middle of a Sam's Club shopping trip, pretended to be Santa on the phone to Jenna. She bought it hook, line, and sinker and was so excited that she talked to Santa. (Thank you Chuck.) Then in the car, she asked me what Santa's phone number was. Thinking quickly again, I said, 555-CHRISTMAS.

So, Jenna now thinks that Santa is a cell phone call away to 555-CHRISTMAS and that anyone can talk to him any time of the day.

Luckily, she hasn't asked again to talk to Santa. When she does, we might be making another phone call to Santa. :)

Injured On The Job--Doing Laundry

Injured doing laundry? Yes, I am clumsy. I always have been. When I was younger, I often had trouble going up and down stairs. As a teacher, I always tripped over the feet of the kids who were sitting in the front row. When I was a papergirl in elementary school, I actually ran into a telephone pole while delivering papers. I vividly remember the emergency room doctor laughing at me when I told him how I got the cut above my eyebrow. So my clumsiness haunts me again, and this time I have a nickel-sized little goose egg between my eyes to show for it.

Our laundry room is wide enough to fit just the washer and dryer. The dryer is on the left and the washer is on the right. I finished folding the laundry in the dryer, and left the door open, which swings open to the right. As I was getting the laundry out of the washer and putting it into the dryer, I somehow bent down low enough to whack my forehead right on the top of the dryer door that was open. It was a hard smack--I'm not sure how or why I had such a large amount of momentum going from the washer to the dryer, but I did. I hit my forehead so hard that I was dizzy and actually thought I might pass out. I walked to our bedroom and grabbed the phone in case I had to call Nate to come help me.

I didn't pass out, but have this embarrassing goose egg right in between my eyes. When I picked up Jenna from preschool right after this happened, no one said anything, so hopefully it'll stay that way. If not, I've got another clumsy and embarrassing story to tell.

Funny Random Stuff

Jenna has learned to match her clothes. The other day, she was standing on the stool in her bathroom and I was doing her hair. I picked out a green hair clip that didn't match her outfit, and as I was about to put it in her hair she looked up at me out of the top corner of her eyes and said, "Now Mommy, do you see any green in my outfit?" I couldn't believe that she was calling me out on not matching! She said, "There's no green in my outfit today, maybe you should put a pink clip in my hair." I guess she told me!

Jenna is in preschool, and instead of bringing backpacks or having cubbies, the kids are required to bring buckets. We bought a purple sand bucket and decorated it with stickers for Jenna. From day one of preschool, Abby thought she should be in the class too. She would sit in the book corner, reading all the books, or color a page with the big kids while I signed Jenna in. One day as we were walking out the door to go to preschool, Abby grabbed her hot pick princess Halloween candy bucket that I had recently bought for trick or treating. She took it in the car, and as soon as she got out of her carseat, she picked it up and took it in to the classroom, just like big sister, Jenna! She even put it right next to Jenna's on the shelves where they go during class. Everyday now, both girls walk into preschool with their buckets, ready for class. Mrs. Dennis, Jenna's teacher, noticed this bucket thing with Abby and now is ready with some "homework" (a coloring page) for Abby. After we say goodbye to Jenna, I grab Abby's bucket from the shelves and put it in the car for a few hours later when we pick Jenna up and do the same routine all over again!

I was getting ready this morning and Nate was watching the girls so I could get ready in peace. When I was out of the shower, I heard Nate yelling,"No Abby, no Abby!" I thought to myself . . . "Oh, he's experiencing Abby this morning!" Then I heard a crash, which was the candle holders falling over on the dining room table. Then I heard, "Weeeeee! Weeee" While Nate was flipping out because Abby was sitting on top of the table knocking things over, Abby was enjoying every second of it:)

Productivity vs. Fruitfulness

God seems to give me just what I need when I need it.

I lead a women's Bible study on Tuesday mornings at our church, and this particular study is on stress. Each week is broken down into a different subtopics, and this week was "fruitfulness." When I think about the word, "fruitfulness" I often think of it in spiritual terms, I think about the fruit of our labor or the fruit of the Spirit or the fruit that comes from being in a relationship with God.

I never thought about pitting productivity against it though.

There's this pressure all around to be productive. Get more work done, get more stuff, have your kids in all the important activities, volunteer at church, make sure the laundry is done, and the house is always clean and tidy. That is a lot of pressure!

I work part time from home and I was stressing myself out by trying to take care of the girls, the house, and try to work all at the same time. I would fail every time resulting in yelling at the girls and worrying about what I wasn't getting done. I finally realized that trying to get all that done, trying to be too productive, was not good for me. I have been getting one to two migraines a week for a while now, and came up with every excuse in the book like-we live kinda close to the highway so that's what's causing my migraines. Or, it must be hormones. But, I am willing to admit that I was trying to do too much at once and that stress was making life hard.

So as I was going through my Bible study this morning, I realized that God has been teaching me that although being productive is good, trying to be too productive is not. Instead, I should be focusing on being fruitful and living in His will. love, and grace. Doing that will guide my life and result in happiness that I cannot achieve by filling my life with too many tasks.

Being in a hurry and filling my life with too many things is not good for me when it is done for the wrong reasons. So, I am choosing to work towards being fruitful instead of productive. I want to create a happy and balanced home for my family, work from home when the girls aren't awake, and choose activities for the right reasons and not because everyone else is doing it.

I would love to have every piece of laundry clean at any given moment, never have dishes sitting around, have a clean house that is ready for visitors at all times, but I"m pretty sure that God is calling me to create a balanced home and family and raise children that love Him. So, I am trying to do that. No more six way multitasking and thinking about whether Jenna should be in dance, swimming lessons, and preschool. We take one thing at a time and stop to play a game of hide-and-go seek with the girls without worrying about what I'm not getting done.

We are official!

We've lived in California for over two years now and have never experiences any earthquakes worth mentioning. When we lived in our rental house, we often felt minor shaking, but since we've been in our house we haven't felt anything. We used to live closer to the fault lines and in a zone called a "liquification zone." Apparently if there was a major earthquake, the ground beneath us would likely turn to liquid.

I'm glad we moved.

Anyway . . . I was getting the girls ready for bed last night when everything started shaking. Everything on Jenna's walls was rattling and the entire house was shaking back and forth. I grabbed the girls and stood in the doorway, which is the safest place during an earthquake. It ended just as fast as it started-only lasting about 15 seconds. When it was over, all of our pictures were crooked, a few things were toppled over on our dresser, and the big light hanging in our doorway was swaying back and forth. The earthquake was a 5.6 and the biggest one since the Loma Prieta quake that collapsed the Bay Bridge in 1989.

Many of our neighbors were outside making sure everyone was okay. I called Nate, who was at a meeting at church, and he was so excited about what had just happened! The church sits directly on top of the Calaveras fault which, is the one that erupted last night. My friend, Julie said she swore that the top floor of her house was swaying and said that she had things broken in her kitchen while my boss, Arlene said she felt a strong jolt right before the rumbling. I didn't experience any of those things, which goes to show that everyone has a different experience based on where you are in relation to the epicenter.

We are thankful that the earthquake didn't do any damage to the house and wasn't too scary. Jenna keeps asking when we are going to have another earthquake!

But, we are official Californians now. We have experiences our first significant earthquake!

Faker Pumpkin Patches

I searched the Internet for a picture of the twisted thing that pumpkin patches have become in California. Of course, I cannot find one so I'll do my best to recreate this atrocity with words.

When I think of a pumpkin patch, I think of a little farm with pumpkins lining the fields. Some pumpkins are still in the vine, while others are detached, waiting for a little one to choose it to take home. There is dirt and hay and often a barn. The pumpkin patch is in a refreshing place where kids run around excited to select the perfect one.

This is not very common where we live. Please don't hear me dissing all of California, but where we live, there are not many REAL pumpkin patches.

In the parking lot of our Target, there is a big silver chain-linked fence sectioning off a large portion of the lot. In that fence, there are two big jumpy houses, hay lining the pavement (which has worn off due to all the kids in there), more hay bales stacked, and hundreds of pumpkins lined up in rows, ready to be bought.

THEY CALL THIS A PUMPKIN PATCH!

This is a sneaky trick to get kids to buy pumpkins. They lure families into the jumpy houses and then sell pumpkins on the side. We pass one of thise monstrocities on the way home from church, and Jenna asks me all the time if we can stop to play on the jumpy house.

Of course, I tell her no and that I will take her to a real pumpkin patch, wich happens to be tomorrow. Her preschool class is going and I am going on my first fieldtrip! Pictures will come soon!

Pictures from Josh and Annie's Wedding

These are pictures from Nate's brother, Josh's wedding a few weekends ago. Jenna was a flower girl along with her cousin Allie. There's a picture of Jenna and Allie, one of the Nate Hartke family, and one of the Hartke grandchildren: Timmy, Joey, Allie, Jenna, and Abby.

The wedding was great, although I ended up walking Jenna down the aisle!

A Sweet Sound

Nate and I sing this song to our girls. I don't know the name of it, but I think it came from some musical. It goes like this:

I love you Abby, oh yes I do
I love you Abby, it's true
When you're not near me, I'm blue --hoooo (make a high pitched hooo noise there)
Oh, Abby I love you, hoooo!! (another high pitched noise)

Abby can be replaced by anything . . . Jenna, Daddy, Mommy, Kiki (Binky) DeeDee (Petals, the bear) or Blankie. I usually sing this song to Abby in the morning after she wakes up, before her nap, and before bed. It's kind of our thing and she loves it.

For so long, she never sang, but then one day a few weeks ago, she started to sing bits and pieces. First, she started saying the "hooooos" at the end of the two lines, but the absolute sweetest sound came all in one day.

First, she started to sing the words, "Abby," "it's true," "I'm blue," and "love you." My heart melted when I heard those sweet words come from her little voice. But then, we were sitting in the rocking chair singing, and I had finished singing. I was ready to put her to bed, when she started singing on her own. She sang,

I love you Mommy, oh yes I do
I love you Mommy, it's true
When you're not near me, I'm blue--hoooo
Oh Mommy, I love you--hooooo!

Now, the song was very fragmented because she couldn't sing the whole song yet, but I heard the "Mommy" in there, and I turned to mush. She put my name in there all by herself and it was just the sweetest sound.

Lately, she's been demanding certain people/things to be in the song. She will often want to sing to Kiki (Binky), DeeDee (Petals, the bear) and Blankie. If I start singing to Jenna or Daddy, she will often say "Abby, Abby, Abby!" She doesn't want me to sing to anyone else but her.

We will sing this song as long as they let us. When they get married, don't be surprised it Nate breaks out this song for his girls!

Home

We just got home from a ten day extravaganza of visiting family, friends and attending Nate's brother, Josh's wedding. We flew to Pittsburgh, drove to Indianapolis to visit Nate's brother Tim and his family, then drove to Ft. Wayne for the wedding. Next we were off to Detroit for the day to catch up with old friends, then to Toledo for a visit with Nate's parents, and finally back to Pittsburgh to return the car my parents to graciously let us use and on the plane back to California.

I love going home. Everything about the Midwest is familiar to me. I love the reds and oranges in the changing trees. I love driving through rain on a hazy afternoon. I love the hills of Pittsburgh and the green all around. I love driving through endless corn fields and through the little towns of Indiana and Ohio. All of these things are things that we don't really have here in California and and being home makes me miss being there with all it has to offer.

I wish I could call a Grandma to come babysit every once in a while, without having to fly them out. I wish I didn't obsess about the education system that I am so uneasy about here. I wish our kids could play with their cousins, jump in leaves, and ride sleds down a snowy hill.

When I was at my parents' house, we went to my old elementary school so that the girls could play on the playground. As so many memories came back like playing football with Mr. Jedinak in the field or Graham Kendrick breaking Stephen Lenick's arm during dodgeball or lining up for fire drills outside, I realized that I want for our girls exactly what my parents gave me. We lived in a great neighborhood with great schools. I had every opportunity and am thankful for those more and more.

We are content with our life here in California and know that God has called us here to do His work. I have never doubted that or thought of living outside His will. I just sometimes miss being close to our family and friends and appreciate the foundation that got us where we are today.

Frozen Peas Anyone?

Getting my girls to eat green vegetables has been a huge struggle. The both like corn, but haven't eaten the green veggies well since they(the vegetables) were mashed in a jar and spoon fed.

We had cheesy rice with broccoli tonight and Nate and I brought out every trick in the book to try to get Jenna to eat the broccoli. We only asked her to eat one bite, and she usually does, but not tonight.

So, I told her that I'd make her some other green vegetables. She suggested frozen peas. I was a little confused, wondering where she had eaten frozen peas before. Apparently, one of our sitters got her to eat peas if they were frozen!

She ate more frozen peas tonight than all the peas she's ever eaten, I think. Abby apparently likes them too. She asked for some and ate an entire bowl as well.

So if any of you are moms out there who have trouble getting their kids to eat green veggies . . .try frozen peas. My kids eat them like candy ! Who knew?

It's Jenna!

Jenna has brought home many colored pictures and projects from preschool already, but this one is, by far, my favorite. Her teachers cut the people, clothes, and hair out and the kids got to choose the colors and buttons to go with the outfit.

Purple is Jenna's favorite color, so she picked the purple dress, but the hair has to be my favorite! Such cute red hair!

This is a keeper:)

First Day of Preschool

Last Wednesday was Jenna's first day of preschool, and it was a day that we all have been looking forward to for a long time!
A friend asked me if I thought I was going to cry when I dropped her off at preschool. I really was so excited for her to start this part of her life that I could only think of being happy and proud and anxious to watch her learn.

And that is exactly what Wednesday was. A happy day! She walked right in and played with the toys and waved to us as we left. I came home, put Abby to bed, and then happily mopped my floor in peace without any little feet trying to get in the way. The house was so quiet and it was nice to have a few hours to myself.

So, I love preschool, Jenna loves preschool, and we're looking forward to a wonderful year.

Preschool Parent Drama!

Jenna starts preschool this coming Wednesday (Sept.5th) for the first time. She's going to Milpitas Christian School, Monday/Wednesday/Friday in the afternoons. I am thoroughy excited for her--first because she will just love learning new things and meeting new friends. Second because it gives me individual time with Abby and time during her nap to get some work done around here!

This past Friday, was "Meet the Teacher" day. All the kids and their families piled into the classroom to play with toys, meet each other and the teachers. Jenna has two wonderful teachers--Mrs. Dennis, who is an experienced, wonderful lady (from what I can tell) and Miss Fought, an education student who will serve as her aide. I left on Friday feeling really good about Jenna's teachers and feeling confident that they are experienced, quality, I know what I'm doing and how to handle all you crazy parents type of a teacher.

One of the parents in the class somehow got the email addresses of all the parents. I'm not sure how it happened, but the only thing I can think of is that she copied the email addresses from the sign-in sheet. She must be a sneaky mommy.

So, I get this invitation to join a Yahoo Group for our preschool class. I use Yahoo groups a lot and actually really love them. For those of you who don't know what a Yahoo Group is--your group, for example all the parents in our preschool class, has their own webpage, a database, a calendar, and most importantly a forum to discuss issues. If i type in the email address for our group, it will go to all the parents who have signed up. It's pretty cool.

One of the mothers sent out an email today asking to revise the snacks for the preschool class. On Friday, we received a calendar with specific snacks to bring and the child assigned for that day. They are healthy snacks, and to be honest, I am excited for Jenna to eat some things that I don't normally offer--like guava juice! (It'll be interesting to see how that one goes over!) This particular mother wanted to scrap all the snacks and only offer fruit, water, and Cheerios every day for the whole year.

NO WAY! Is this lady crazy? I am not going to ask my child to eat the same thing every day of prechool for a whole year, but most importantly, I am not going to interfere with what the teacher has already set up. I am sure that she has experience in this area of snack planning, and I, as a parent, am not going to question her judgment or try to change things that Mrs. Dennis is doing. The last thing she wants is for parents to try to interfere with what she has put time and effort into.

So, I wrote a message to the group, explaining that interfering with Mrs. Dennis's snack schedule isn't a good idea in my eyes and that I am excited for some food variety for Jenna. Also know, that I took great care in being nice, positive, and non-judgmental. I am always the pastor's wife, and I don't need to go ticking off all the parents in the preschool class. (Good thing some other mothers agreed with me.)

Any thoughts on this craziness?

And preschool hasn't even started yet. It might be a long year being a parent in this classroom:)

At Least We Didn't Lose To Appalachian State

As many of you know, Nate is a huge Notre Dame fan. Jenna and I have become ones too. Last year was an exciting season, and I really have come to enjoy watching the games. Jenna knows the fight song and several of last year's players. She doesn't understand why Brady Quinn isn't playing for Notre Dame anymore. I figured that we would hold off on trying to explain the NFL draft and that he's playing for the Browns now.

So today was Notre Dame's first game. They played at home against Georgia Tech, who smoked them. The game was full of fumbles, sacks, and disappointing plays by our team. The final score was 33-3, which is awlful, but I guess we should be happy that they didn't get completely shut out. They played a little bit better in the middle of the game, but that didn't last long.

The only thing that makes these Notre Dame fans feel a little bit better is that the University of Michigan lost to a Division IAA team, Appalachian State.

We're disappointed in Charlie Weis's boys today, but AT LEAST WE DIDN'T LOSE TO APPALACHIAN STATE!

Kohl's Was A Bad Idea Today

I should have known not to even step foot in Kohl's today after I had to get the kids back in their carseats when I realized that Abby had a full poopy diaper (which I had changed right before we left) and I had forgotten to put diapers in my bag before we left. I really just should have known that the whole Kohl's experience was going to be a nightmare.

Kohl's was having one of their great sales today. In fact, it was the "everything's on sale" sale and we do a lot of shopping there. I like their home section and their kids clothes. I have been looking for a mirror for our dining room, and I knew that if they had one there, it would be 50% off. I am also on this photo album kick. I have 5000 + pictures on my computer and have decided that even though I REALLY want to be a scrapbooker, that it just isn't for me. I'm not crafty and I do not have the time or patience to do it. And do I really think that I can catch up on 5000 pictures while keeping up with my current ones? So, I am working on printing my pictures out and organizing them into albums. Albums were 50% off today too, so I was on a mission.

After returning home and changing Abby's diaper, the kids and I strolled into Kohls. Abby was in the stroller (buckled of course because she climbs out) and Jenna decided that she wanted to push her princess Bible in a Kohl's cart. Thinking that would keep her busy, I agreed. Wrong decision. Jenna kept running the cart into my heels which really, really hurt. After three times, I told her that if she kept ramming my ankles, that we would have to put the cart away. She burst out into tears upset that she was hurting me and upset that I threatened to take her cart away. Then I felt horrible because I shouldn't have expected her to be able to push a cart that was taller than her.

After she calmed down and put the cart away, we made our way through the clothing. Abby grabs at all the clothes as we pass and manages to get about a fourth of them on the floor. So, I finally just went really fast through the aisles, making sure to keep moving so that Abby coudln't get a hold of the clothes.

Our next adventure happened in the picture frames. Abby decided that being in the stroller was no good, so she screamed, "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!" over and over as loudly as she could. After trying to tune it out so I could pick out picture albums, I got her out and held her. So, I'm holding Abby and then Jenna starts crying because she wants these princess picture frames that are ridiculously expensive. And not that I think about it, weren't onl sale which means that Kohls lied about the "everything on sale" thing. Anyway . . . Jenna cried for a while and once I got my albums, we started to leave. Then I spotted the perfect mirror for my dining room that was 50% off! I grabbed it! So, I have a crying 3 year old, a crying 1 year old in the stroller, and me trying to push the stroller, carry the big mirror and keep Jenna with me all that the same time.

By the time we got to the checkout, I was thoroughy exhausted.

I should have known that when I had to turn around and go home to get diapers for Abby that staying there would have been the best choice. But the Kohls sale was calling me.

At least I got what I went there for!

Ole Blue

While on vacation in northern Wisconsin, we encountered a bear for the first time at the cabins in Eagle River. For years, my grandpa always told us that bears hung out at the town dump, so we always thought that that's the only place bears were in that area. Apparently, the dumps are closed and the bears have discovered campgrounds and cabins.

Here's what happened! On the second night of our vacation, my cousin, Stephanie was in her cabin working in the kitchen around 9:30pm. She heard some rustling outside, but thought nothing of it. Raccoons often get into the garbage, but leave only a mess to clean up. She looked outside and saw a large black figure. Since it was close to being dark, she wasn't entirely sure.

Nate drove in late that night, since he had to preach on Sunday. I was waiting for him at our cabin. When we got in, we went over to my cousins' cabin. Not five minutes later, Ole Blue appeared. (Ole Blue is the name we gave our bear friend). We heard this loud crashing,which was Ole Blue knocking down the garbage cans. After waking up all the adults in the cabin and peering at the bear out the window who was literally 5 feet from us, my cousin, Sean grabbed his gun and went outside with Nate. They Ole Blue was about ten feet away by this time eating some of the garbage. He didn't seem to be bothered by them at all and just sat there eating his meal. Sean hollered to try to get him to go away, but nothing worked. He finally ran into the woods after a few gunshots in the ground.

Of course, we were nervous about the bear the whole week. We constantly were running to the window, looking for Ole Blue. We didn't want him to come back, but at the same time, it was exciting to see a 500 lb black bear standing in front of you.

He made one more appearance late in the week. He was walking by the lake by our cabin when some boys spotted him and started yelling. Ole Blue didn't harm anyone, but those boys stayed in their boat on the lake until he was gone.

We were pretty freaked out by seeing a black bear, but we came to learn that they are common where we were. It seems that they are used to people and are only interested in old trash.

Ole Blue sure gave us some excitement in Eagle River!

Vacation in Eagle River

We have just returned from an almost two week vacation in the Midwest. We spent a week in northern Wisconsin with my side of the family in Eagle River, a family gathering spot for many, many years.

My grandpa and his parents and siblings ran a resort on Big Bass Lake in Eagle River, WI. The resort included log cabins and a lodge that were built in 1923. My grandpa lived there for several years before having to leave due to the crash. My great-grandparents owned the property even though the resort was not in operation. When my great-grandma died, she gave Camp Balsams, as it is called, to her church to use as a retreat place. In the original agreement, she asked that the family be allowed to use the camp as well. My mom spent summers at the Balsams with her cousins and then brought us there as well. We all have many good memories of being at the Balsams with our family.

This summer, we all made it up to the Balsams for the first time in five years. Nate, the girls, and I spent the week with my parents, my cousins and their families as well as my brother and aunt and uncle. Some others came for a few days as well.

It was a great week. Some family wounds were healed and some were undoubtedly were created. Isn't that how it goes in families, though? I don't have many cousins or much extended family that we see regularly. But we were always close to my cousins in Illinois growing up. Now that we are all adults, we still enjoy being together and Eagle River is the place where we can all gather.

I haven't stayed up until 2 or 3 in the morning all week since college, but we had a great time playing games until the wee hours of the morning. It was wonderful to have our girls up there too and for them to meet their cousins ( I think they are 2nd cousins) and spend time with Grandma and Grandpa. Since we live far away from all of our family, we cherish the time we get to spend with family.

After Eagle River, we spent a few days at Nate's parents house as well. Glad to be home, but thankful for the time with our families!

A Bedtime Ritual

Nate has been playing this one particular game with the girls for a very long time. He pretends to fall asleep and they have to give him a kiss to wake him up. He snores and blows air and really makes a huge scene. The girls and I flew home from Houston a few months ago, and Nate was in the terminal waiting to help us with all our stuff. He saw us from a distance and by the time we reached him, he was plastered against the wall pretending to be asleep. Of course, the girls giggled with delight and ran up to Nate to "wake him up" with kisses.

This little game took a dramatic turn last week. We play this game with Jenna before bed. Jenna and I go upstairs to put jammies on, brush teeth, etc, and then we crawl in her bed and hide in her covers, pretending to be asleep. Last week, I heard Nate coming (he always clears his throat on the stairs so we know he's close) and I peeked my head out of the covers and busted out laughing. I saw something very similar to the picture above! Nate has taken to dressing up every night before he comes to "wake Jenna up." Parts of his outfit often include a princess tiara, sunglasses, a Cinderella or Snow White dress tied around his waist, a jump rope, a wand, and any of the girls' play jewelry. He really is a sight!

Just thought I'd share a little of Nate with you all. I hope Nate doesn't do this when the girls are 12, but I have a feeling the embarrassment is just starting.

Prayers and Heaven

During our bedtime prayers tonight, Jenna added on one of her own that was too cute not to share. It went something like this, "Thank you for Jesus. Thank you that Jesus loves us. When you say nasty words, Jesus doesn't like it very much and you have to go to your room and apologize. But Jesus loves us always. Jesus loves when we sing to him. He dances and sings too when we sing. Thank you for Jesus and his heart. Be blessed."

While we are on the subject of Jesus, Jenna constantly tells me that she is sad that we can't go to heaven to see Jesus. She knows that Great-grandpa Chase is there and thinks that it would be a cool place to go. I just tell her that He wants us to stay here and tell other people about how much He loves us, but she still doesn't get the heaven thing. She doesn't understand why we can't see Jesus either, but there's plenty of time to work on her theology!

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to Tamara, Happy Birthday to you!

Today is my dear friend, Tamara's 30th birthday, and I just wanted to give her a shout out on her special day. She's a little apprehensive about being 30, but I've been telling her that it's coo1 to be 30! What more could we ask for? We have great families, jobs, and a God who loves us unconditionally! So what if she drives around in her SUV playing either Veggie Tales or Bon Jovi? Both are awesome and so is being 30!

I'll watch Bon Jovi unplugged tonight and think of you:)

A Star in our Midst

We are privileged to have a young man in our congregation who has a God given gift and uses it to glorify God. Manuel Romero is 18 years old and already has a Latin Grammy nomination under his belt. Currently, he is busy on the show, America's Got Talent, and is on his way to the Las Vegas callbacks.

This past Sunday, Nate interviewed him in church and we really got to see how much he loves the Lord, music, and sharing his gifts with others. We are so excited to see Manuel do well on the show (even though Sharon Osbourne criticized his microphone technique--whatever!) and are supporting him all the way! We pray that he will be a light in a world that is often known for darkness.

Check out his website. www.manuel-romero.com and watch him on America's Got Talent next week as he competes in Las Vegas! Now, of course, Manuel already knows what happened, but he's under contract and can't talk, even though we keep trying to find out!

Oh--one other thing to mention. Jenna might be Manuel's biggest fan. She loves to talk to him at church, but then gets all shy when she gets near him. We are listening to one of two cds in our car these days, the VBS cd-Avalance Ranch, or Manuel's new cd, Santa Maria. Part of the cd is in Spanish, and if you've read a previous post about Jenna and Spanish, you'll understand partly why she loves his cd!

Pretty As A Princess

This picture is hilarious.

A week or so ago, I had my camera out and was taking pictures of the girls. All of the sudden, Jenna strikes this pose and busts out with "pretty as a princess!" I had never seen her do anything like that and knew that someone must have taught her how to do the pose and say the phrase at the same time. Sure enough--her wonderful Sunday School teacher did! Now, every time I get out the camera, Jenna strikes the pose and says, "pretty as a princess!"

She has even insisted that I do it too, but I'll spare you those pictures:)

Our Little Wrecking Ball

As I look around my house today, I can't figure out what I accomplished. I was really, really busy today, but the same pile of papers that need to be filed are still in the same place, the laundry pile is still growing, and the pictures that I need to arrange on my walls are still piled in my front hall closet. These are all things that need to be taken care of soon, but none of them got any attention today.

Sure, I fed the kids, cleaned up after them, took them to the park, played beauty salon with Jenna, and argued with the insurance company over a claim that got denied. But, that is all pretty normal stuff. I really want to get PROJECTS done, and if any of you know me, you know that I have this ongoing mental list that never goes away and keeps nagging at me. Having children does not help the mental list.

Anyway, the point of this post is to tell you all a little bit about our little Abby. The only way I can think to describe her today is a wrecking ball. The reason I feel like I don't get much done is because I spend a lot of time picking up after her or cleaning her messes.

Just a few minutes ago, I was trying to fold a load of laundry (and I've learned to not do it on the floor, or else Abby knocks the piles down). In the five minutes that I was doing that, she was in her room getting into all sorts of trouble. She pulled almost half of the wipes out of the container, dumped all the socks out of her little basket, and got into her diaper pail and pulled out a nasty diaper. So, I brought her in the room with me, and she "helped" me do the laundry by throwing all the clothes that were in the dryer on the floor. She then proceeded to the bathroom--which is her favorite place. She loves the toilet paper roll. Specifically, she loves to either unravel the whole thing or pick at it until there are tiny pieces all over the floor. But to be honest, I am very willing to sacrifice a roll of toilet paper in order to fold a load of laundry.

Abby also loves the dishwasher. She climbs in and tries to hurl anything she can out--which can be danagerous. Last week, I was on the phone with someone for work and Abby got into the Cheerios and spilled them all over the floor. When I came back in the room, both girls were swimming in Cheerios, happily crushing them so that it would make for a more difficult cleanup.

Abby is a delightful, spirited, sweet little girl. However, she's at the age where she's curious about everything and is the more mischieveous of the two. I am always keeping my eye on her!

So when I think about what I do all day, I think about my little Abby and how busy she keeps me!

New Names

Lately, when Jenna has been getting angry at us, she calls me the bad witch and Nate the sneaky fox. She gets the sneaky fox from Dora, but I'm pretty sure she's never seen the Wizard of Oz. Someone must have taken her to McDonalds when the Oz toys were out. Hmmmm . . .

Silly Spanish

Spanish (the language that is) has become a fascinating thing in our house.

It all started when I flew home from Houston with the girls. I had my laptop with me to that Jenna could watch movies. She was watching a Barney movie (surprise, surprise) and somehow figured out how to watch the movie in Spanish. We were sitting on the plane, and all of the sudden, she was laughing hysterically. I coulldn't hear the movie because she had her earphones on. She was listening to Barney in Spanish! Now, she always asks to listen to the silly Barney, which means to watch the movie in Spanish. Sometimes I let her:)

For Mother's Day, I received a Strawberry Shortcake card in Spanish that Jenna apparently picked out. I was not aware that she could read Spanish! Nate said it was her favorite card and that she thought that I would love Strawberrry Shortcake!

The best came last night when Jenna told me that Abby was speaking in Spanish! Abby says lots of words--many that only I can understand-but she tries. She babbles and tries so hard to communicate. After a long babble, Jenna looked at me and said, "Mommy, Abby is talking Spanish! Isn't she so funny?"

What do you say to that? It's all so funny to me, so I just laughed and agreed.

So, the Spanish language is a silly sound to Jenna, but I'm hoping that it sticks and she learns the language someday down the road.

I could write more . . . but Abby is smashing peas ito her hair, so I think I should quit now. Bathtime for at least one redhead tonight!

Maui Vacation

Last week, we had the opportunity to vacation in Maui and here are a few pictures from our trip! Grandma and Grandpa Pingel came out and stayed with the girls while we were gone and it was a good experience for all. I slept ALL night every night and even got to sleep in until 10am one morning! It's been three and a half years since I've done that!

We did a lot of relaxing, but also got to do fun things like go to a luau, drive through the rainforest, and swim in the waterfalls. Maui is beautiful!

Poverty All Around

I love American Idol. It's a clean show that Jenna and I watch together and a weekly indulgence that we look forward to. Jenna calls it "The Singing Show" and was pretty upset when Haley was kicked off.

Tonight was "Idol Gives Back" night, and I really try to not get suckered into giving money to every charity that solicits money from us. If I did, we'd be giving to the motorcycle police people, the jr. motorcycle police people, and every other law enforcement group who tries to get our money every week. As I watched the footage of the poverty in our own country and in others, I was reminded of a time a few years ago when I encountered such poverty that was in my own backyard.

When we lived in Houston, I volunteered for the crisis pregnancy center in a very poor part of town. One day, two young mothers came in asking for money for milk for their babies. Their WIC had run out and they had no place to turn and no milk for their babies. That is something that has never been in my world. We know what it's like to live below the poverty line, but I've never not had a few dollars for a gallon of milk. That experience reminded me that poverty is real and an issue that God calls us to give our attention to.

It's so easy to not think about it and worry about our own lives and problems, which seem so small next to people who struggle to pay for things that we take for granted like food and medical care. God tells us to take care of the poor and I struggle to know how to do that effectively. Giving money to charity is good, but seems too easy. I wish my schedule allowed me the time to work at the crisis pregnancy center here in San Jose, but it doesn't. I have to trust that our support of charities who are making a difference in the lives of people struggling at the lowest levels will be blessed by God.

This is not a plug for American Idol's charity program or any other one, but thoughts on a struggle to reconcile the poverty in our world and how to help get rid of it. I'm somewhat of a political junkie and follow the already crazy 2008 presidential race that has raised hundreds of millions of dollars. If the money that goes into electing a president could go to taking care of those who can't care for themselves, imagine how different our world would be.

3 Reasons Not To Eat Dinner--According to Jenna

Tonight, I made chicken, potatoes, and peas--all things that both my girls like. Jenna decided to assert her independence tonight and fight with me about eating. Reasoning with was impossible due to the three reasons listed below.

3 Reasons Why Jenna Could Not Eat Her Dinner Tonight

1. "My teeth hurt. I just can't chew."
2. "Looking at those peas hurts my eyes, and I can't eat them."
3. (This is the best one). "Look Mommy, my fingers just fell off. Look! They're off and I just can't eat."

I have to give her creativity points for those reasons, but it still earned her a trip to the naughty step for time out and bites of a dinner she obviously didn't want to eat.

Life Lessons I've Learned Lately

1. Before you throw a load in the washing machine, make sure there are no Dora Pull-Ups in there. The tiny absorbant white stuff that has been broken into pieces in the washer, is really hard to get off clothes. It sticks like glue.

2. Do not load the dishwasher while Abby is anywhere close. She will either take the sharpest kitchen utensil out of the silverware basket and swing it around like a madwoman or she will climb on the door when it's down and try her best to get as far in as possible.

3. Do not order a stuffed bear from a website that you've never heard of before. They will never deliver your bear, charge your credit card, and cause you to worry that you've been a vicim of identity theft. (The charge was taken off my card, we got new cards, and so far no signs of identity theft.)

4. Do not park your minivan near any low limbs. That low limb will somehow attach itself to your front left bumper, rip it almost completely off when you (Nate) back out of the parking spot, and cost you a lot of money.

5. Do not plan a fun family day to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk and then a much needed date with your husband on the same day. It really is too good to be true. Both children will get fevers and one will throw up multiple times, hence cancelling your fun family day and much needed date only to be replaced by laundry, yardwork, and cleaning.

6. Target makes everything better.

Faith Like a Child

I have been battling this awlful cold that has settled in my throat and caused on and off again laryngitis all week. By the end of each day, my voice just hurts. Last night, I read Jenna her favorite book, Love You Forever, and barely got through it with all the coughing and hoarseness.

On the way up the stairs to bed tonight, Jenna asked if I would read again and I told her that my throat hurt and that it would be better if she would read me a book. (Jenna is 3 and doesn't read, but we've read some books so many times that she has them memorized pretty well.) She turned around and said, "Oh Mommy, don't worry, Jesus will take care of your throat. He loves you all the time and always takes care of you. We can't see him, cause he lives up in the sky, but he watches us all the time."

I looked at my three year old little Jenna and realized that God is already working in her. How wonderful:)

Daddy Carol Hartke

Recently, Jenna has discovered that everyone has a middle name. She has been referring to everyone in our family by their whole name. I am Mommy Marie Hartke. Abby is Abby Marie Hartke. Jenna is Jenna Chase Hartke, and Nate is Daddy Carol Hartke.

No matter how many times I tell her that his middle name is Carl and not Carol, it still comes out Carol. Feel free to call Nate, "Carol" anytime:)

Happy 1st Birthday Abby!

Today we celebrated Abby's first birthday! Our lifegroup (small group) from church joined us in celebrating and we had a fun afternoon on a beautiful Spring day.

Abby put on quite a show. For the first time, I got a cupcake cake, which is a bunch of cupcakes with frosting on the top to hold them together. It was awesome! Above the regular cake, there were three cupcakes bunched together with a heart on it. We gave that group of three cupcakes to Abby to eat.

I was fully expecting to have to encourage her to dig into the cake, but I soon realized that was not necessary. Abby bent down and put her face right in the cupcakes, not even bothering to use her hands to help her eat. She kept diving back into the cake getting more and more pink and red frosting on her face, in her hair, and up her nose! She was delighted! In the end, Abby ate two full cupckakes and loved every second of it!

Happy Birthday sweetheart Abby!

Filling up the Gas Tank

I have been driving around for days with the gas light on and the needle at the empty line because I didn't want to pay a crazy amount of money for a tank full of gas. As I came home from church this morning, I noticed that the needle was below the empty line and knew that I'd have to face the gas station and its prices.

The cost of living here in California is incredibly high and our prices are usually higher than most of the country. I know that gas is high everywhere and I honestly don't know if we are significantly higher than everyone else, but $3.21 for a gallon of regular gas is just wrong. That's my two cents--or actually 5,313 cents, which is what it cost in order to fill up our van today.

A Few Pictures

I wish I had a funny story to tell you about the kids, but I got nothing for right now. Over the last few weeks, I've spent a good deal of my time bent over Abby, holding her hands, helping her walk. She's not walking yet, but is a speedracer if I hold her little hands. We signed Jenna up for preschool last week--she'll go two days a week next fall and we are all very excited about that! Jenna doesn't understand why she can't play on the preschool playground now or why she can't play with the kids she saw there. She asks me every day if she can go to preschool. All I know is that September is a long time away for me to have to be explaining that to her!

I included a few pictures of the girls. Abby's 11 months and I took this picture as she was desperately trying to get into the fireplace. We have to work hard to keep her out! Jenna is in her dance outfit. She takes ballet/tap on Saturdays:) Very cute:)

Why I Never Plan To Grocery Shop With Both Of My Children Anytime Soon

I never look forward to grocery shopping, and today was no different. I've been making macaroni & cheese and peanut butter sandwiches for a few days. When that happens, I know it is time to go shopping. It was time, it had to be today or we wouldn't have any milk for tomorrow and I just had to do it. I had to go with the girls because Nate got a call to go to the hospital at the last minute, and he couldn't take care of them. So, I loaded them up and we made our way to our local Safeway.

Shopping with two kids requires some logistical thinking on my part because Jenna always wants to ride in the cart where all the food goes, but gets very upset if I put certain foods in there. She only allows her favorite food in-like the fruit snacks and Dora yogurt. So I always end up shoving way too much stuff on the bottom and next to Abby, who is riding in the front. Letting Jenna walk is not a great option because she either says hi to everyone or takes food off the shelf and throws it in the cart without me looking.

So, for the first time, I resorted to those terrible, terrible monster carts made for more than one child. For those of you who have never pushed one of these, they are regular carts with a big plastic seat attached to the front that has room for two older children to sit on. It's enormous and quite difficult to push. But, I thought I'd try it because the alternatives haven't worked out so well in the past.

I spent the entire time pushing this monster cart through the store, making 8 point turns at the end of each aisle, and trying not to run into the other customers in the store. I wasn't entirely successful though. In the spaghetti sauce aisle, I knocked over four glass jars of sauce that were stacked off to the side. After being embarrased beyond belief and listening to Jenna tell me that I needed to clean up my mess, we escaped to another aisle where no one knew that I was the one that made the big mess.

Close to the end of our journey in the store, we came to the deli. Of course, Abby was getting hungry and crabby and they only had one person working and five people standing in line. I waited for about ten minutes, when Jenna announced she had to go to the bathroom. So, we leave the line and go to this nasty bathroom where I had to hold Abby and hoist Jenna up on the potty at the same time. We get back to the deli line, wait for another ten minutes before the lady in front of us ordered three sub sandwiches and requested that her roast beef be recut from the center and not the ends. We left knowing it would be forever before we got served by the one deli worker.

We get home and as I'm unloading the bags from the car, I notice that Jenna has a fork in Abby's hair. I, of course, freak out about this and then realize that she is imitating Ariel on The Little Mermaid when she finds the fork and thinks it's a brush. I couldn't be mad at her, just explain that Abby could get big owwies if she brushed her hair with a fork.

Going to Safeway with my children has never been a walk in the park, but today takes the cake. When they are all grown up and explaining to their own children that forks aren't for brushing hair, I'll think back to this day and long for it. Maybe. :)

A Michigan Weekend

This past weekend, I left our 60 degree weather here in California to go to frozen Michigan for my friend, Lindsay's wedding. (Sorry I don't have pictures ready yet of Lindsay, but is was a beautiful wedding and Lindsay was stunning!) I arrived Friday night just in time for an evening of Whirlyball with Lindsay, her friends, and family. For those of you who don't know what Whirlyball is--it's a cross between lacrosse and basketball in bumpercars. Lindsay married a wonderful guy, Jeff, and I was so happy that I was able to be there and be a part of it.

I got to stay with my friend, Katrina and her new husband, Daren in their home. After we went to church on Sunday, Katrina and I had a girls day out. We went to see the movie, Dreamgirls and went shopping--two things that are luxuries in my life at this point. Katrina and Daren were kind enough to get Papa Johns pizza for me since we don't have that in San Jose, and then let me ride on their snowmobile ! Yes, not only did I go on a snowmobile, but I got to drive it by myself. I have to say, that I was scared to go fast at first, but after a few minutes, had complete faith that Daren would take good care of me:)

I had a great weekend--I got see Lindsay get married, visit with Katrina and Daren, and live in the snow for a weekend:) It was 8 degrees Sat. night when we left the wedding--and I loved every second of it! Yes, I missed my family, but visiting with my friends back in the Midwest where there is actually snow was a nice little vacation:)

Happy Birthday Jenna!

Yesterday was Jenna's third birthday. As I sat in front of the computer after Christmas getting ready to send out the Evites to our friends, I decided that we would do a low key party this year and not have all her little friends over. We did a low key day with several fun activities instead of one big party.

Jenna had a full day, beginning with a trip to Target with Mommy to get princess cups and plates. Then we had lunch at McDonalds with her friends, Alison and Brittany. We even went to the McDonalds with the play place so they could run around and make as much noise as they wanted!

After lunch, Jenna went on a date with Daddy to the movies. She had never been to the theater before, so we were a little nervous about how this would go. Nate said she loved the "big tv" and the candy. She sat on his lap for most of the show and then fell asleep during the last 20 minutes. That's okay though, she had a great time!

We had a family dinner and then cake afterwards. Our good friends came over to help celebrate, and by the end of the evening, Jenna was exhausted! We were too!

Happy birthday Jenna!