Thankful

We are thankful for:

1. Family & Friends - this may be a no-brainer, but it's important to tell our loved ones how meaningful they are in our lives…ideally not just at Thanksgiving. We are so grateful to have a support system to lean on and laugh with. Our children LOVE to be around our family and friends because of the LOVE they receive from them…so very thankful for that.

2. Health - as we all know too well, this can change at any moment. In the past year, we have lost a loved one, my uncle Greg, to cancer and witnessed too many others that we know lose loved ones or become ill.

3. Our Home - I complain about our house a lot. It's too small. There are too many stairs. It needs painted. It needs new carpet. The list goes on and on. But in the big picture, it's cozy, it's safe, and it provides shelter. One day we will move and I will be sad to leave because of all of the memories we have here.

4. Jobs - as we also know, this can change at any moment, especially in our economy today. The number of layoffs we hear about in the news lately is extremely scary. We complain about them and always will, but the bottom line is, we are thankful to have jobs to get up and go to.

5. Childcare - we are blessed to have an awesome provider for the kids (we know how important this is because we've been on the other end of the spectrum) and a good preschool for Cade to attend. Both are convenient and we don't have to worry while we are at work...we know they are happy and well taken care of.

6. Transportation - our vehicles are nothing to brag about…they are 4 and 8 years old. The car is too little for all four of us to travel comfortably in, the truck is a gas guzzler and needs some sort of repair every 3 months, they aren't the latest and greatest models, but they still run and they're almost paid off, and they get us where we need to be. Can't ask for more than that!

Sure there are things that we want that we can't afford…we pinch our pennies and pass up things that we would like to have or do. Times are tough right now in our country. But these are the basics (+food and clothing) that we are thankful for and don't take for granted.

Our hearts go out to everyone who is experiencing hardship, however large or small it may be. May they all find something to be thankful for…even if it is just the hope that things will get better.

Happy Thanksgiving!

1 Year Stats

Brecken had her one-year check-up last week...had to get 5 shots! I was not prepared for that. She was so happy and then that...so sad! She recovered quickly though. I know I've been through the shots many times between the two of them, but it never gets easier.

She has turned the corner with sippy cups, so no more bottles. She still loses a lot of milk and lets it run down her chin, but she's getting better and if Cade ever has a sippy cup of anything sitting around, she grabs it and starts drinking!

Weight:23 lb 10 oz (84%)
Height: 30 in (77%)
Head Circumference: 47.5 cm (97%)

She's been pretty needy lately and I think it's teeth. Possibly a molar coming in on one side. And there's some sort of bruise/dark spot on her gums...not really sure if that's normal or not. I don't really remember anything like that with Cade.

Vacation 2008...Getting There

Back in July, we went on a vacation to northern Minnesota with Jim's family. We took an old fishing boat that I have inherited from my Grandpa Evans. The boat and trailer are pretty old and my brother had already had issues with the trailer when he had taken it up there a couple months before we went. So...I wanted to leave the boat and trailer at home. But I didn't win that one, Jim was set on taking it.

Our trip started out fine...we left on a Friday afternoon so that the kids could nap for the first part of our journey. We stopped shortly after we got into Minnesota and Jim was concerned about the tires on the trailer looking a little low. He put some air in them but was still feeling uneasy. Turns out his feeling was right and a few miles down the road, we had this...


Thankfully we didn't lose control or anything like that. There was an exit not too far from where this happened, so we were able to drive slowly to the end of the ramp and we were off the interstate. After having to remove some of our "luggage" from the truck to get to the jack, Jim got it changed and we were back on the road. But...Jim wasn't feeling the greatest about the other tire and wanted to add some air to the tire he had changed, so we went into the small town off the exit and again thankfully, there was a co-op type service station thing that was still open (by this time it was about 6 pm.) So...both tires are changed and aired up to the correct pressure and we were on our way again.

So we get about halfway in between where the tire blew and our first night's destination (my friend Holly's home in Apple Valley) and probably 2 hrs behind schedule and a conversation begins.
Jim: I don't think I put the bags back in the truck after I changed the tire.
Erin: What?
Jim: Are there two sacks back there?
Erin: No. There are no sacks back there. (Somewhere in here, I said something like, "if you left those bags back there...we are turning around and going home!) : )
Jim: Should we go back and see if they are there?
Erin: No. They aren't going to be there, it would be a waste of time, we need to get to Holly's and get the kids out of the car.

We arrive at Holly, Jesse, and Kennedy's home...tossed around the idea of going to check on the bags or going to Target to replace the lost items. It was a garbage bag of beach and bath towels and a shopping bag with our clothes/items needed for the next morning (so much for that planning!) Then someone came up with the idea that Jim's sister Amy and her family would be traveling that same route the next morning. So we called them, asked them to check on their way by, and then decided if it was meant to be, the bags would be there and if not, it's all replaceable. We enjoyed our time with the Buenos...at the time Holly was about 7.5 months pregnant, Jesse was studying for a major exam, and they were trying to pack up their townhome to move to Wisconsin in a few weeks...but they graciously opened their home to us. It was great to save the money that we would have had to spend on a hotel, but even better to get to see them before their move. (They since have welcomed a baby boy, Gage, into their family!)




The next morning, we head out for the second half of our trip. Amy, Zac, and Jacelyn got an early start, so I think they went by "the exit" at about 8 am or so and our bags were still there...untouched! We couldn't believe it. I guess we were fortunate that we were slightly on the exit ramp and it was a tiny town and little traffic. It probably helped that one was a garbage bag! And the name of the town was Hope so I guess we had that going for us!

The overnight stop was the way to go...we only had 4-5 hours of driving the next day...luckily no tires blew, no bags were removed from the truck, and we made it to our destination...let the fun begin!

Fun with Markers

Believe it or not...this was the second time she did this in one day! And I'm out of the running for this year's mother-of-the-year. So Cade is sitting in the kitchen coloring with markers. He drops one. Brecken and I are in the family room and she crawls up to the kitchen. Unbeknownst to me, she finds the marker on the floor that Cade had dropped and goes around the corner where I can't see her. I'm thinking, "oh she's fine," because I knew the gate was up so she couldn't climb upstairs to the bedrooms. So a small amount of time passes by and I start walking up to the kitchen and all of a sudden Cade is getting down off the stool he had been sitting on and running towards Brecken. I see him grab something from her, I see it's a marker, I see her face...her perfect little baby mouth...is covered in marker. It's like she was trying to put on lipstick! Later, I realize she was just trying to eat it. She was so proud too. Our camera was charging so I had to take a photo with my cell phone. So I get her cleaned up (thankfully they were washable markers) and we continue on with our day.

Some time later in the day, I notice she is back over by the stairs messing with something. I go to her, and there she is, covered in marker again! What the...? I know we put the markers away! Then I realize she has something in her mouth...oh yeah, it's the tip of the marker that she had BIT off earlier. I never bothered to look at the marker the first time, we just put it away...had I done that, I might have noticed a chunk of it missing! Duh! This time I got a little worried that she may have swallowed some of it so I call the Poison Control Center (but not before I grab the now-charged camera and snap a picture) and she assured me that they were non-toxic and she would be fine, just had some pretty poop the next day! ;)

Brecken's 1st Birthday Party I

 

We had a great time at the first of Brecken's first birthday parties. In attendance were Grandma Bonni, Grandpa Clark, Uncle Ryan, Aunt Anne, Julia, Lauren, Great Aunt Vicki, Great Aunt Rocko, and Ali. She was pretty tired by the time we got to cake and pretty messy by the time she got done, so she went straight to an outfit change and nap. Thanks to those who shared her special day with her! (Jim was sad that there were no pictures of him, so we will be sure to get lots at her next party...I also wanted to get a family picture and we never got that!)

The rest of her actual birthday (Saturday) was spent running errands, cleaning, and hanging out with Grandma Bonni who came early to help us get ready...thank you so much! We also got to do a video call with Grandpa Steve and Nanna Celeste and Grandpa Darrell and Grandma Roberta stopped by to say hi on their way home from a wine event in Ames. So she got to "see" all her grandparents on her birthday...how neat! That night we went out for pizza at Red Rossa with Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Ryan, Aunt Anne, Julia and Lauren. The kids were WILD!!

On Tuesday, we made mini cupcakes and took them to daycare. The "pink" frosting turned out great Grandma Roberta...thanks!

One more celebration to go and then I can be sad that it's over! ;)

Brecken's First Year Video

We made a picture montage to remember Brecken's first year...it's pretty long but it was hard to leave out any memories!


Brecken's First Year from Erin Morse on Vimeo.

Walkin'

Some video of our little Frankenstein...

Happy 1st Birthday Brecken!

Still can't believe she's 1! We celebrated this morning with sprinkle donuts (her first) and she opened her gift from us. We are having a party for her with my family tomorrow at our house. And in a couple of weeks, she will have another party with Jim's family and her cousin Jacey who is turning 1 also.

Walking and Tubes

This is what the time change and no nap does for Cade...he fell asleep sitting by me on the couch Sunday night at about 8:45.

I got gas for $1.90 a gallon Monday!! Love that!!

I called Jim "Jim" the other day and Cade said, "Hey, that' s not his name, it's Michael James."

I don't know when you can actually say "Brecken walked," but she definitely made some big progress today...she was walking several steps at a time pretty steadily around the family room. Whenever she would make it from one point to another, she would turn around and look at us and we would all clap and cheer for her and then she would do the same. So much fun to see her excitement! And Cade's too.

Cade has his tubes put in today and his adenoids removed. Everything went pretty well and he is back to his rambunctious self tonight. He had to have an IV put in for the adenoid removal and I guess it infiltrated or something like that? So his hand and part of his arm was very swollen, but that has slowly gone down over the day. He did very well at the surgery center, got upset because he didn't want to wear the gown, but he did keep it on and went off with the nurse without a problem. It was when he woke up that he was pretty upset, I think partially because we weren't there and partially because it's just a weird experience coming out of the anesthesia. The doctor said his adenoids were huge and that there was lots of gunk in there. He drank quite a bit of apple juice while in the recovery room and then threw up on the way home. We're just thankful all went well and happy to have our Cader back to normal!

Happy Halloween

(Click on the picture to make it larger).

Thursday we went out trick-or-treating for Beggar's Night. Cade really got into it this year and went for the full two hours...he was definitely in the zone. He would go up to the door by himself and sometimes say trick-or-treat, sometimes not, sometimes say thank you, sometimes not. Des Moines and the surrounding communities have a tradition of telling a joke before you can get the candy, but I figured that he is still young enough that he could get away with not doing it. But several houses asked him if he had a joke and he just looked at them like, "Huh?" and then I'd have to yell from the sidewalk that we didn't get into that yet. Come on people, he's 3, just give him the candy! ; ) Brecken was a trooper riding around in the wagon, trying to eat leaves off the floor of it and snacking on Puffs that our neighbors had gotten as a special treat for her. We saw some of their friends from Sue's, neighbor friends, went to Sue's and even got to see JuJu and LoLo when they came over after their trick-or-treating! I heard one of the dad's taking his kids around say, "Trick-or-Beer," and thought, "well there's a concept!" ; )

It's hard to explain the Beggar's Night/Halloween thing to little ones. The kids have Halloween shirts and I wanted them to wear them on Friday to get one last use out of them and Cade, with his biggest eyes, says, "Is it Halloween again?" Um yeah, actually it is Halloween today, but not the trick-or-treat Halloween. So confusing!

Friday I took the kids downtown for Cade's ear doc appointment. Barack Obama was speaking down there and on our way out, we could hear him from the parking garage! I wish we would have went. What a cool experience it would have been to put in the kids' scrapbooks if he ends up becoming our next president. Cade calls him "Rock Omabama."

At the doctor's appointment, we found out that Cade will be getting tubes put back in his ears and set that up for this Thursday. He has a lot of fluid in there and it is affecting his hearing. So that's why he says, "What?" and "Huh?" all the time. So hopefully the tubes will correct the hearing problem, but unfortunately I don't think they are going to do much for the listening problem!

Saturday night we got to babysit our nieces/cousins Julia and Lauren and they even got to stay overnight! Cade was pumped because they both got to sleep in his room. Julia on the top bunk and Lauren on Cade's "Thomas bed" on the floor. They were so wound up, playing tent, jumping on the couch, eating treats, playing games that they did not settle down and go to bed until 11:45 (old time)! Anne and Ryan went to a costume party dressed as Miami Ink, which involved mesh-like shirts that make you look like you are covered in tattoos...I wish I had a picture to share, as it was pretty funny.

The rest of the weekend involved working around the house (seems to be a common theme). Jim did a bunch of yard work and put things in the shed for the winter. The weather was unbelievably nice for November in Iowa. Our neighbor was putting his Christmas lights up! Brecken and I ran to Target and got Cade a new car set...we needed to get her infant carrier out of my car and then switch the rest of them around...it's complicated figuring out what type of seat they are supposed to sit in, what direction it's supposed to be facing, and when they can switch! I guess the one I picked out for Cade wasn't so easy to put in our truck...Jim almost lost a thumb in the process, or so you would have thought...it only bled a little though. ; )