Sundblad Crew

Still here!

2012-01-15T20:31:00.002-06:00

We are still here!

I am going to try to get back to posting. I want to keep track of our lives, I am not good at taking pictures but know that this is important.

Since I've been gone...

I am addicted to Pinterest. Many projects on the to-do list!
I started working out. I bought myself a tv/dvd combo and watch tv series while I do at least 25-30 minutes on the elliptical. Slowly becoming addicted.
Conley has completed the basketball program at North Dodge Athletic Club. He loved it and will start the next set of lessons at the end of this month.
Shay is loving dance!
We met with an architect last week and hope to start on the addition on our home this spring.
Both my parents turned 60 and we celebrated in style...a trip to New York for mom and a big party for dad (he didn't get cheated, he loves parties ;)).
Huge Christmas celebrations with all our families. Great food, fun and laughter!

I DID IT!!!

2011-11-19T15:38:00.001-06:00

I DID IT!!! This year I walked all 60 miles. No, I didn't take 1 picture! My sister, however, took about 1000 (very true) and put up a great variety on here blog. Just click HERE to see our journey over 3 days/60 miles! We are excited to walk Chicago next August 2012. If you are interested in joining our team, either to walk or crew please let me know! It is an awesome experience and such great cause!!!

BIG changes!

2011-10-03T21:13:00.005-05:00

The pond starting to fill up. The green stuff around the pond is.....grass!!!! Slowly but surely we will no longer have a house completely surrounded by mud!
The deer on the left is a common sight at our house. At times there have been up to 6-8 walking across the back or drinking in the pond. Ben...they are waiting for you :)

A close up! Ben...are you jealous?! :)

The pond looks about half full. There is an drain tube at the back center (hard to see in the picture) and that is about how high the water will get.

No rain was scheduled in the forecast on this day. My dad had serious words for the weather man! They quickly constructed this tent over their pour to keep it dry.

Another angle on the tent. Nate took about a dozen pictures of their construction. Very proud builders that day...but also very upset. You can see from this picture the mud we have been surrounded by waiting for our new driveway!

Day 1 the front stoop and parking pad were poured. Looks awesome now! You can see how we have been living amongst the construction. The front of the house has been exposed like that for awhile, the shed in the background covered with just plywood is going on a year or more. The new windows and siding will all be complete before winter hits...that is what I have been told. Those who know us well, know not to hold their breath :)

Everything poured!!!! Yeah!!!! My dad rocks!!! My dad, his crew and Nate did a sweet job on the driveway, walkway, front porch and parking pad. They brought in 2 loads of gravel to put down on the first half of the driveway coming in from the road. GOODBYE MUD!!!!

My new front porch. Landscaping is next years project! I'm planning on buying some rocking chairs and a small table to put out here. I just love it!!!!!!

Our nice big walk up to the front door. The siding is a sage green, white windows and a metal roof...the color on the roof I can't remember or we are still debating.

Tradition! My hand print and name are present at about 6 homes in Iowa City. We loved doing this as kids. Conley and Shay thought this was AWESOME!

They point it out to me every time we are outside. It is so funny!

My dad is the best. He believes in perfection and is the best at what he does. He knew how important it was for our house to be perfect. This is just a couple pieces to the huge puzzle, but very important pieces! We love our new cement out front and the kids love riding bikes with all the new space. We cleaned our house on Friday and kissed the mud goodbye!

Pre-K first day!

2011-08-18T09:31:00.003-05:00

Conley and his best buddy Grant. They are both going 5 days a week to Heritage Christian Pre-K program. School is from 8:30-1:30. Conley will then stay on from 1:30-3:30 in his classroom and at 3:30 go into the after school program until I get off work.
They got to pick their seats today and of course Grant and Conley sat right down next to each other. While all the kids and parents were saying goodbyes and dropping off supplies they started right in on a project!

You can see Shay wanted to stay and "play with the toys". She was excited to go with us to drop Conley off this morning.

Working on writing their names.

In front of their lockers. They got lockers right next to each other. They are VERY excited to be in the same class together this year.

Ready for school with his new backpack on!

Of course Shay wanted to get her picture taken and of course had to cheese it up!!! I thought Nate was taking her to daycare, so last minute put on some clothes with no time to do her hair because she just HAD to help take Conley to school. So funny!

No words necessary!

First day of Pre-K. Super excited!!! Packed his bag and lunch first thing this morning. Nate and Conley packed his money bag so he could buy milk. They packed quarters and dimes and went over how to make $.35. Nate will be in charge of Conley every morning. They will pack their lunches together (Nate packs his own everyday) and Nate will drop him off.

I have the day off today so I was able to take him and can pick him up at 1:30. I can't wait to hear what he thinks about school!

The Red Carpet

2011-08-15T20:09:00.004-05:00

2 weekends ago my parents, aunt, the kids and I went to Chicago to participate in a cheering station for the Susan G. Komen 3-day 60 mile walk. This guy was awesome. He was dressed in his pink shirt cheering on the walkers. Conley sporting his only pink shirt (Longaberger of course!).
My mom found a guy to donate a piece of red carpet. Shay lined the carpet up with pink boas and we cheered on the walkers. It was so much fun!!!!!!!!!

Shay gave out high fives to all the walkers and would beat her thunder sticks together. Hilarious!

The tent next to us was handing out freeze pops. These are the best treat when walking!

Some ladies were giving out ziploc baggies of ice to cool down the walkers. Many would put the bags on their neck and be holding them as they walked the "red carpet". Shay did the same with her water bottle. She is so observant...doesn't miss a thing!

The Mt. Prospect police department wears pink shirts and decorate their squad cars for the event. They ensure the walkers safety as they cross busy intersections.

Mom and I in front of our sign "You deserve a walk on the Red Carpet". Thanks to Debbie for making our sign and to Jim for donating the carpet!

The crowd at the cheering station. They had a great turnout. This helps us walkers get through the day. Usually there is a cheering station in the morning and one in the afternoon. It pumps you up to make it until your next pit stop. Thanks for all who came out in Phoenix and for those we will meet in Dallas in November. We can't do it without your support!!!

People have signs, thunder sticks, music, candy, ice, water, etc to make the walk just that much easier!

A close up of the sign, carpet and boas!

Thanks Debbie for the awesome sign!

This is the start of the cheering station...took some time for the supporters to all arrive and for the walkers to start to come in.

Goodbye Diggers!!!

2011-08-10T21:22:00.003-05:00

The extra parking area...finally a little more room for guests. Currently the driveway is gravel, but we will pour concrete when the garage addition is complete.
Standing in the garage looking towards the end of the driveway to the road. The berm on the right gives us some privacy and keeps the kids safe to ride bikes.

Our new drive entry onto West Overlook Rd. We will worry about grass and landscaping next year.

Looking back toward the house. I had a helper taking pics with me :)

Nate working away. My dad dropped his bobcat here for Nate to use. Nate has been putting on some final touches. Notice Conley in the upper right hand corner. He always wants to help/watch.

Looking back at the house. This has already changed since I took this picture. The pop-up camper is now next to the shed on the far west of our property and the white shed you can see in this picture is up against the house. This gives more parking options...but soon there will be another garage there.

The very last brush pile to be burned!!!

The pond already has some water. The rain we have had has filled up a little bit. Nate puts a flag in the ground to track the progress. I'm sure he prays for rain everyday so the pond will fill.

The pond will have a "beach"/small sand area on the right side of this picture. This is taken from the backyard looking out to the pond.

Go Big or Go Home!

2011-08-03T22:13:00.002-05:00

We finally have a driveway...more on that in the next post. This will show the progression of the drive. Nate of course couldn't let the excavators have all the fun...he had to cut down some more limbs off trees so they wouldn't interfere with the bulldozer.
Ezra moving the dirt to level off the new driveway and create the new berm. The father/son duo did a great job on our project. The weather worked against us many days, but they persevered and are finally finished.

To the right of the bulldozer is where we used to enter our driveway up to the house. I'm standing in the garage taking these pictures.

The new driveway entrance being dug out. You now enter our driveway before you get to the house. This created a berm for seclusion and safety for the kids riding their bikes. We will have a nice long drive and more parking for guests.

Here is a shot showing how long the new drive will be. It is currently gravel, but Wayne and Nate will have concrete down next year. We plan to add on to the garage for Nate's work supplies and machines, so the concrete will have to wait until that phase of the project is done.

Again showing where you used to come in. The berm is pretty high (that is how Nate wanted it), but this picture is before he knocked it down some.

This is the backyard pond. This is the beginning of the digging process. I believe this is the back end of the pond.

This is standing at the back of the pond looking toward the house. Again, at the beginning of the digging. It looks very different now.

Just a different angle. Remember this area was THICK with trees. It took months to clear all the trees and for Nate to cut them all up and burn the brush.

This is standing up closer to the house looking out to the backyard. It is almost done at this point.

Lots of people ask about the kids. Naturally it makes me nervous, but we have strict rules about being outside with parents at this house. They cannot go outside and play unless Nate or myself is out there. There is barely any water in the pond right now, so we will see if the temptation rises as the pond fills. I think they are thinking they will fish in the pond, not swim. They love swimming at Mary and Tom's house, so I'm sure they think of the pond as a fishing activity not swimming.

The Big Dig!

2011-07-18T21:21:00.005-05:00

2 weeks ago we went to the John Deere classic in Davenport to visit my sister. The Johnson's invited us to the family night "The Big Dig". IT WAS AWESOME!!! The kids could ride/operate all the big machines, they had great food and gators for the kids to drive around.

At the end of the event, the John Deere staff showed off their "stuff" in all the equipment. There were awesome fireworks and one little mishap. This dump truck tipped while driving up a mound of dirt. The bed of the truck twisted right off the cab...this was NOT part of the show!

The boys in their John Deere gear. They are mesmerized by the big equipment and patiently waiting their turn.

Shay and Aunt Jill trying to pop the balloons with the scooper part (I don't know the technical terms). Shay of course did everything the boys did.

Conley and Aunt Jill trying to pop the balloons.

Trying to get all 3 smiling and with their hats on...impossible!

Aunt Jill and Shay scooping up dirt. They let the kids operate the controls. Aunt Jill helped Shay because Shay jumped right up and started swinging the scooper around and scaring everybody.

Notice the tats! Shay has on her John Deere gear and got a tractor painted on her face. She also got paintings on both arms and one hand...seriously!

Zach and Conley operating the digger. Conley was LOVING this!!!

Conley digging up some dirt!

Conley patiently waiting while Zach and Will dig in the dirt.

Miss Jill (that is what all the kids call her) is the camera lady. She is so great to capture all the fun moments! This is right after the gator race. This was such an awesome event for the tour players and their families.

Will drove Shay and Zach helped push during the race. There's Miss Jill with the camera again!

$1.25

2011-07-14T20:54:00.003-05:00

Conley lost his first tooth today!!! Inside this "tooth fairy bunny" front pocket is the tooth. Conley proudly told me the tooth fairy gives kids 1 dollar and 1 quarter for toothes (that is what he calls them). I think I need to have a TALK with this tooth fairy. There are a lot of teeth in that cute boy's mouth and then will come his sister...who told me she will get a barbie for each tooth...my word!
The space looks HUGE! His teeth are really little and are spaced a little bit apart. It fell out at daycare so they called me at work so he could tell me all about it.

He was loving taking this picture!

Saturday Night Fun!!!

2011-07-12T15:04:00.001-05:00

Windows

2011-06-06T21:09:00.003-05:00

We put in 4 new windows 2 weeks ago and replaced the kitchen window with a new one. We bought 11 new windows total and Nate has been putting them in as he has time.
2 new windows were cut into this wall. We had problems with raccoons getting into the roof. On this wall the raccoons pulled out the insulation and was trying to scratch through the wall. You can see this above the ladder and to the left where the pink insulation is missing.

Nate repairing the insulation before putting up new plywood.

The octagon window was removed and a large window put in it's place. Don't ask about the shirt. It is even brighter in person!!!

The east side wall with the 3 new windows in place.

The north wall with 2 of the new windows. It lets in so much natural light, we love it! We love being able to see out the front. Don't look at the decorating...that will come when the project is COMPLETE! For now there is usually a ladder, shopvac, tool belt and many other items laying around our living room or kitchen.

Looking at the front of the house. We are still deciding on siding and roof colors. We are going to do a metal roof.

The 2 new windows that were cut in are the 2 on the right. The window on the left already existed, just got replaced with a brand new window. There are lots of changes happening, but unfortunately Nate has a lot of projects going on at once. We are hoping to get the remaining 6 windows in soon so the drywall crew can come and scrap ceilings, texture and mud the new drywall areas. Never a dull moment at the Sundblad house!!!

Fish Relocation

2011-05-04T15:11:00.005-05:00

Here is a shot of the flowers and awesome blue pots in one part of the yard.

My aunt lives in Cedar Rapids and has the most BEAUTIFUL backyard you have ever seen. She is the best gardener. She put in a small pond in the backyard and a couple years back she got some fish. The fish come in for the winter, so in the spring we have a "fish party" and bring the fish back out to the pond.
This is looking at the backyard.

Several cars drove by while we were there and slowed or stopped to look at the flowers. My aunt has people driving by all the time. If ever in Cedar Rapids, her yard is a must see!

The kids made her a stepping stone, so here is everyone helping put it in the "perfect spot".

Caught him still and smiling...what are the odds?!

I should buy a lottery ticket...I caught both smiling and still...AMAZING!

We had to break out the bubbles and play in the sunshine!

The kids loved blowing bubbles and chasing them around the yard.

Here they are dumping the large fish in.

Shay dumping in her small goldfish.

Conley dumping in his fish.

Each kid got a bucket with a goldfish in it. They got to dump their fish into the pond. There are also about 5 large fish that they all did together. My cousin brought her daughter (in all pink track suit) and the 3 kids she babysits for. Poor Landon is just 10months old, so he enjoyed the festivities from his front row seat in the stroller.

The kids had a picnic lunch outside and loved just soaking up the sunshine!!!

Thanks Linda for having us! We had a blast!!!

Mimi

2011-04-17T20:43:00.003-05:00

This face above is due to the loss of this thing below...

The beloved "mimi" (this is what Shay has called her pacifier for as long as I can remember) was given away. We decided to have Shay take the mimi to the babies at the hospital. Shay and I went up to the nursery at Mercy Hospital on Saturday and gave the mimi to the nurse to give to the babies. She was loving it at the time and we had been talking about it for days!!! After we left the hospital we went to a fun store and she got to pick out 1 thing, whatever she wanted.

The face above lasted for about 30minutes Saturday afternoon when she realized it was gone. She did great at bedtime on Saturday night, but woke up Sunday morning at 5:30 calling out for "mimi". She is in bed right now, not sleeping and calling out my name. We will see how she does! I have literally no backup "mimi" hidden, so this is for sure a done deal. I'm sure it will be a painful week, but we'll all suffer together :)

Hard at work!

2011-04-12T20:13:00.002-05:00

Picture taken 4-12-2011. Seth is here tonight helping cut up trees and move trees around. A lot more trees were dropped today and it is starting to look really bare back there. Taken 4-12-2011. Nate is the spec of gray with a chainsaw!

Taken 4-11-2011. Very blurry, but trying to convey the size of these trees that are being taken down.

Taken 4-11-2011. This is before he started the fire. The task seems HUGE to me. The excavator seems to be impressed with how much Nate can cut up and move at night. The deal is that he drops the trees and Nate will clear them out of the way. We will see how long Nate can keep this up. To me it seems like a very tiring and hard task.

If you click on this picture to enlarge it, you can really see the size of the roots and length of these trees.

This is 1 machine they are using to take down trees. They have another machine parked in the front yard that will do more leveling work when the time comes to really shape up the pond's area.

Conley refused to smile. He is helping Nate put in steps up to the loft. He was excited to be able to access this area so much more easily now.

The boys hard at work. If Nate isn't working inside, he is cutting up and burning trees outside.

Anyone in need of some firewood...let me know. We have a ton. All you have to do is come with chainsaw and truck and it's yours :)

Thank You Conley

2011-04-10T14:18:00.003-05:00

This cute boy got me sick!!!! But look at that face...how could you be mad :) Fishing excursions will soon start and these two are VERY excited!

Of course now I'm sick. I didn't feel well Friday, but battled through the day and went to bed early. I worked all day yesterday and crashed into bed when I got home. I feel like I'm on the mend with consistent drugs, but needing a nap!!!

Plant Sale and Vendor Market

2011-04-07T14:27:00.003-05:00

Please join us for this awesome event! Great vendors, food and fun!!! A portion of the sales helps our Susan G. Komen 3 Day For The Cure walk team. We are walking this November in Dallas. We love walking the 60 miles and would appreciate your support!!! Feel free to email or call me with any questions about this event or our walk.

Conley

2011-04-06T11:06:00.004-05:00

He is in there somewhere.

Sleeping most days on the couch and nights on our floor in our bedroom. Of course Conley gets sick when we are starting activities for Spring. We are in the middle of swim lessons and baseball is starting. Conley has been waiting FOREVER for baseball to start. There is not a kid more excited for baseball than Con. We practice almost every night and he asks about it everyday.

Sunday night he woke up with horrible coughing. Monday he was down! Fever, croup and no energy. We are now on day 3 and I feel like we are almost back to normal. I have been home with him and I'm getting restless. We have gotten all our laundry, cleaning, organizing and reading caught up. Today we ventured to the grocery store and hopefully tomorrow he will be back at daycare and I will be back at work.

Construction pics

2011-04-04T10:45:00.004-05:00

This is one of the storage cubbies in the room above the garage. We went through all our boxes, decorations, etc and took 3 loads to Stuff and lots of garbage!!! I spent a small fortune at Walmart on clear tubs with lids. Everything is labeled and organized. Hopefully we can keep it that way! This cubby is the largest and holds everything but Christmas. One other cubby holds all the Christmas items and one cubby is empty.

This area will hold Nate's desk. He will be able to look out to the east and the windows will be replaced, so we can open them easily to let in fresh air.

This is the stairway leading up to the room. The room will receive new carpet, paint, new lights and one new window. We are planning on making it Nate's office but also putting a sleeper sofa up here for when guests come.

This is what you see when you come up the stairs. Nate cut a hole for a new window on the north wall. This will help let it some more light and some more fresh air!

This is the loft in Conley's room. You can no longer access it from Conley's room...Nate will be building stairs off this landing to get up to the loft. We will be putting new carpet in and new windows.

This is for my sister! This used to be Conley's closet and stairs to the loft. It is completely closed off to keep out dust and to keep it quiet during this whole process. To the left of the light switch box will be completely cut out and will be Conley's new closet. For now his stuff is in Shay's room.

We're making progress!!!

2011-03-27T19:05:00.004-05:00

The stairs going down to the garage are now gone. Nate is putting in the floor boards to get it to the next phase and to keep the cold out of the house. Side note...anyone need some van seats???:) This is the room above the garage that will soon be an office/man cave. We will have some storage closets (see the door on the left beyond the seats) for our holiday stuff and business stuff. The room has slanted ceilings, so it is a tad bit awkward, but will be great for an office.

This used to be the stairs going down to the garage. The flooring is almost done and now it won't be letting in all that cold air!!!!

There will be stairs to the left going up to the loft in Conley's room. He used to have a set of steps that were quite steep, so I will feel safer about this. We are going to put some of the kids' toys up there for them to have a fun playroom.

Stairs going up to the room above the garage. We built these so that we can get to this room from inside the house. It is a legitimate bedroom, which will make this house a 4 bedroom house...great for resale, but we are NOT moving for a LONG TIME!

New stairs leading up to the room above the garage and Conley's loft. Nate has some serious skills, but is working around the clock between the pond, remodel and his business!

Goodbye Husband

2011-03-25T19:16:00.002-05:00

The diggers started today in the back timber. GOODBYE HUSBAND! Not only is the house remodel (remember he does it all...no hiring it out) in full force, but the pond construction has begun and he agreed to cut up the trees that are dropped in the woods. The little spec of blue is Conley out "helping"...playing in mud :)
The pond starts at the front of our timber and is 1 acre...I think. It will save money to have Nate cut up and move the dropped trees...we just may never see him until winter :)

The trees are HUGE! The kids were loving it!!!

Shay supervising from her spot on the recliner. She had no interest in being outside and was content to watch Curious George while the boys played in the mud.

I am stealing my husband away tomorrow night. Thanks to the Lybecks we get a date night, whoo whoo!!!

Framing 101

2011-03-18T06:56:00.002-05:00

Nate is sitting on a plank in the stairwell building the new stairs that will go up to a new room above the garage. I would be afraid that I would fall...Nate never would give it a second thought :) The kids wanted to help in any way!
We currently have no railing on the stairs going down to the basement. The new stairs need to be finished before the new railing can be installed. I'm excited to make this house awesome and to be able to decorate from scratch...the construction process, however, is not my favorite!

Daddy's helper...pencil in the ear, cheesy smile, dirty face! Conley picks up screws, hands Nate tools, vacuums up the messes and carries boards inside from the garage. He LOVES helping Nate. Last night he was even able to use the cordless drill and screw in some nails! His future wife will be thankful someday because he will be as handy and talented as Nate!

Shay turns 3!

2011-03-16T18:02:00.000-05:00

Yes, this is the only picture I have of Shay's birthday party with our families. She had a blast. She picked out Strawberry Shortcake for her cake.

I can't believe she is 3 already! It went so fast!!!

Shay:

*Loves Princess anything

*Loves LOTS of ponytails in her hair everyday

*Loves painting her fingernails & toenails

*Loves her brother...wants to do everything he does!!!

*Loves shoes...that's my girl

She weighs 31 lbs and is finally healthy. I think we have the ear thing under control. She has had 1 cavity. She is a little bit of drama, but is always making us laugh! I love being her mom!!!

Florida...we miss you!

2011-03-15T17:43:00.002-05:00

The kids and Nate hunting salamanders outside Tom & Mary's house. They may be geckos, not really sure. We didn't catch one, but they were everywhere!
Nate and Tom went kayaking in the "ocean". They stayed decently close to shore, but still very windy that day so lots of waves. They found an island out there that was prime shelling, so they brought back awesome seashells and some fish that they caught.

The kids loved this splash pad. We went there twice for them to cool off! Shay was timid at first (big shocker), but eventually warmed up to getting wet :)

We went to the Kid's Museum one day in Ft. Myers. Conley and Grammie tested out the hurricane chamber.

Playing at a park on the island. The kid's loved being outside in the sun. We swam everyday and went to the beach twice. We had awesome weather...I think it was at least 80 everyday and sunny.

Grandpa Tom, Conley & Shay on a bike ride. The kid's loved riding bikes and playing baseball in the front yard. We went to a water park in Naples one day and had a BLAST! Conley found a slide he loved and we all enjoyed floating on the lazy river.

It was fun to relax and enjoy the sunshine. I read 2 books and actually got a little bit of a tan! The kids did AWESOME on all flights and really enjoyed the time spent with Nate & I and Mary, Tom & Grammie.

I've got it figured out!

2011-03-09T20:56:00.004-06:00

I used to despise cooking and mealtime. We leave at 7am in the morning and get home about 5:45-6pm each night. Mealtime is crazy, whiny, quick, stressful and so many more things. It was hard to take the time to plan correctly and shop within our budget.

ENTER MY HUSBAND!!!

Extreme fan of Dave Ramsey he introduced me to the website E-Mealz. I now can shop within our budget and have a plan that is so easy to follow. This is my saving grace!!! Nate and I trade off grocery shopping because the list is so easy to follow. We also cook dinner together or Nate will have it started before the kids and I get home...HELLO AWESOME!!!!

The meals are great! They never repeat in one whole year! It is easy to shop and stay within budget! And I now love mealtime...okay not love (I have two kids) but I like it a little more :)

I'm Walkin...

2011-02-21T18:49:00.004-06:00

Last Thursday I learned an employee of mine has breast cancer. That is why I walk!!!

It is 60 miles in 3 days

It is fun

It is challenging

It is rewarding

It is friendships made

IT IS TO FIND A CURE!!!!

Not everyone can or will want to walk. But everyone can help!!! Each person must raise $2300 to walk and we need your support. We need prayers, we need training buddies and we need encouragement.

This year our team is walking in Dallas, Texas!!! We are excited to participate in a new location. We currently have 8 members but we would love to have more. If you are interested in walking or crewing with our team please let me know. I can guarantee you will have more fun in those 3 days than you have had in a LONG TIME!!!

Tattoo...yes please

2011-02-17T18:00:00.000-06:00

Nate entertained the kids while I made cupcakes for Shay's daycare class. They started out helping me, but discovered it was more fun to tattoo their bodies. Above are Shay's legs.
Conley decided an arm sleeve was the way to go. Here is about half way through the process.

Shay became addicted very quickly. I think she ended the night with about 20. She had several on each arm and leg. She had earrings, on her cheek, back and stomach.

Nate put this on her back. I beg to differ ;)

Nate sat at the table for about an hour applying tattoos. Hilarious!!!

10lbs lighter!

2011-02-16T18:04:00.002-06:00

Conley weighs 10lbs lighter after his haircut. This is the final product after bath! Love the smile!
Half way through I was VERY nervous. There were a few divots and we were looking a little red neck. Nate persisted and Conley sat still...and it all worked out!

Half way through and the front was crooked and Conley had to check himself out in the mirror.

The before picture. Conley truly has the most beautiful hair. Shay and I are jealous. It is wavy and thick...every girl's dream. He obviously could care less about how long it was...but EVERYONE was complaining about the hair, so we decided it was time :)

Front picture right before Nate started. Conley was playing with his gum, so this is the best shot I could get.

Ready to roll!

2011-02-15T18:50:00.003-06:00

I bought the kids new backpacks from Pottery Barn Kids! Love them!!! They both are so excited! They love packing backpacks to go to grandma, nana and Mary Ellen's house. These will be perfect for flying to Florida. They are on wheels or they can carry them on their backs. The backpack is as big as Shay when she puts it on her back, hilarious!!!

Hard Hats Needed

2011-02-13T14:49:00.002-06:00

We are officially a "Hard Hats Required" work zone! We are remodeling our house! YEAH!!! For those who have had the privilege of entering the 1980's bungalow...it needed a LOT of work!!! Mostly just cosmetic work. This will be the scene around here for a long time.
The plan is to upgrade the existing condition, sell and build in North Liberty. If you read that and it really sank in...yes we are moving AGAIN!

The entryway is completed. We are going to put in new light fixtures but for now the existing ones work and the rest of the job is done. Nate custom build the bench with cubbies, the upper shelf with cubbies. He painted and put up the wood casing on the wall.

He tiled the floor in the entryway and put in all new trim around the floor and the doors. HUGE difference. The floor is also heated. This room was always freezing and this will be nice in the winter.

This is the mess I'm currently dealing with. There is a layer of construction dust EVERYWHERE. I tried to keep up at first, but I have given up. We will clean when the project is finished...at the end of this year :)

No worries...family coming for Shay's bday party this weekend, we will clean it up. You don't have to eat sawdust with your cake :)

This Saturday!

2011-01-10T10:22:00.001-06:00

Check it out!!!

Stuff Happens!

I SURVIVED!

2010-11-21T14:34:00.003-06:00

Mary Berry, a breast cancer survivor was in Phoenix visiting family and she came out to support us at a cheering station. She has been a huge supporter of our team during fundraising this year! Thanks Mary...we walk for you!

I SURVIVED!!!! My mom, my sisters and 5 others walked the Susan G. Komen 3-day for the Cure. 60 miles in 3 days. We walked Phoenix this year. Some seriously questioned if I would make it, myself included. Well, drum roll please....I walked 52.4 miles!!!!!! I consider that a success!
Sisters at a pit stop. Pit stops provided food, water and potties. For me they also provided medics. I frequented the medic tent to fix my 9 blisters!

There was a great crew of SAFETY. Most rode motorcycles decorated in pink and bras...hilarious. They would bump some serious dance music to get our spirits up and take our minds off the pain! And of course they helped keep us safe along the route.

Jill took over 500 pictures in 3 days. She had a camera in our face constantly. We laughed a lot, but definitely thankful for the pictures!

Team Breast Friends supporting their Hawkeye pride! Thanks Rage Grafix for printing our shirts!!!!

Jill got to carry the "my aunt" flag. My dad's sister is a breast cancer survivor, we walk for her!

Jamie at a cheering station. She sure has lots of booty to shake! And she was always shakin it :)

Team Breast Friends! This is after closing ceremonies. If you enlarge you can see the seams splitting on my shoes because my feet had swollen to twice their normal size. I was limping so bad on the last day, Jill took video she thought it was so funny.

This was the most amazing experience. Our team had a blast walking, laughing, limping and eating together!!!! We are thinking Dallas next year in November. We would love more team members! You don't have to walk...there are great crew options and you can still be on our team!

Trick or Treat

2010-11-06T12:06:00.003-05:00

Great Grandma Shay with Iron Man, Princess and Duck
It is impossible to get all 3 sitting still, looking at the camera and smiling at the same time!

Shay and her cousin Kinzie (minnie mouse) trick or treating.

Conley (Iron Man) & Isaac (Batman) RAN the whole neighborhood and collected a TON of candy. They were always way ahead of Princess & Minnie Mouse.

Chloe was a vampire. Shay was terrified of her. Chloe tried to hug Shay and poor Shay almost started crying. Shay was pretty much terrified all night of the decorations at each house and the scary music. So funny!

Minnie Mouse must have lost her ears and you can't see Shay's costume because she was so cold she had to put on her jacket and her hat. They all made out with a ton of candy and had a blast playing together as always!!!

Quick update!

2010-10-26T19:10:00.002-05:00

Shay is potty training...sort of! She goes potty before bath and bedtime and always goes in the morning. She then will go randomly throughout the day, both when asked and telling us she has to go. I'm not pushing it and don't care when she learns. It is fun to watch her and Conley get excited when she goes. Hopefully before snowpant season she is ready to go!!!!

Nate made a tire swing for the front yard. The kids LOVE it. It is perfect height, so they can get in and out by themselves. They love pushing each other!

Table 1 Shay 0

2010-10-01T20:12:00.002-05:00

When my mom picked up the kids at daycare today, she had to sign an accident report. Apparently Shay had a run in with a table and the table won. She has a butterfly "bandaid" strip on her eye and I'm sure it will turn into a black eye by morning.
She loves her bandaid and won't let me take it off.

She is posing to show the camera her bandaid. Luckily we haven't had any ER visits yet, but I'm sure our time is coming.

Dells!

2010-09-22T09:49:00.003-05:00

We went to the Wisconsin Dells this summer with my family and had a blast!!! It was my parents 30th anniversary this year, so this family vaca was a treat for my parents from us girls. We had a blast and of course it was the perfect vacation to take with kids!
Conley LOVED it! He went full steam all weekend! My sister and mom took lots of pics, so I will have to get more from them...but I did pull out my own camera a couple of times;)

Shay had a blast just doin her own thing! She loved any area where the water shot out of the ground.

Swimming with grandpa. It was windy while we were there, so you needed to be in the sun to keep warm.

If you zoom in Shay is crying. She didn't want to go on any slides...however, we forced her down a couple. Aunt Jill took one for the team and took the crying Shay down this slide. Lots of people would stare, but we want her to learn to like it.

The crew on a water ride. Conley loved it!

Mr. Pancake House. Best pancakes EVER!

Shay decided Jill didn't need to see when walking at night. She would always put her dress over Jill's head. She thought it was hilarious, little did she know that her life was endangered;)

It's been 2 months!!!

2010-09-19T16:40:00.003-05:00

This is what happens when I leave Nate and Con alone for too long. Con in full costume, with his red neck teeth (black sharpie marker)....seriously. The two are quite hilarious and will always keep Shay and I guessing!
Conley has started soccer and LOVES it! He has the full outfit and definitely understands what is going on. He is now in the "big kid" room at Depot. It is a full preschool program this year and so far he is doing great.

Shay is still hilarious and entertaining. She moved up to the 3 year old room at Depot (she will be 3 in February) and I think it is making a huge difference in her speech. She always has been a great speaker and is very easy to understand. She is a little diva and loves to dance.

We love Aunt Jamie!!!

2010-07-24T14:36:00.003-05:00

My sisters are awesome with my kids! They love playing with them and are great to watch them when they are in town. Here are some great pics of my youngest sister Jamie with my kids. Thanks for being so awesome Jamie!!!
Reading with Shay. Not sure about the outfit Jamie, haha! Jamie is quite fashionable and always looks cute! Notice Shay has the crazy hair going on!!!!

My grandma's 90th birthday party. Bad outfit choice for Shay that day!!! She got called a boy many times, oops! She needed to leave the hair bow in and still some guessed wrong, seriously!

Just hanging out! Jamie and Shay have one sweet thing in common...Frantz Hair! Straight, thin and silky...can't do much with it!

Shay and her "mimi" (pacifier). She loves sitting with Jamie!

My sisters and my parents took Conley to cut down a Christmas tree. It is a family tradition!!!

Conley thinking Jamie is hilarious!!!!

Yes, we got in trouble with Nate for this one. Although it was a great pic!!! Notice the spiderman baseball and bat, plus the hat...so that still makes him "manly" :)

Baby Shay Shay and Aunt Jamie snuggling on the chair!

Out for lunch in Minneapolis. We had a great time visiting Jamie this summer! Excited to make it back up there again in the fall!!!

I love vacation!

2010-07-21T19:49:00.003-05:00

We went to Minnesota for the 4th and had the BEST TIME!!! The kids swam in the lake all weekend and had a blast! I didn't take many pics, sorry! We were able to spend some time with my sister and with some friends...great trip!
Conley caught about 50 fish during the weekend...not exaggerating! His spiderman pole pulled in a fish every time on the lake. Here is the only family shot we got.

One of Con's many fish. He had the best time fishing and hanging out with the guys on the dock.

Our friend's parents bought this for their lake home dock. It is a 6 person float. This was the best invention. Many people floated in the sun throughout the weekend.

My love! I don't think he left the dock all weekend. He fished from sun up to sun down. When we retire I want to move south to the beach and sun...Nate wants to buy a fishing lodge in Minnesota. He wants to fish all summer and get snowed in during the winter. We will have a while to iron out the details of that situation! :)

Even Shay got in on the fishing action. She screamed, jumped, laughed and more each time she caught a fish. Each time she was more excited than the last as if it was a new experience...so funny!

The boys fishing at dusk. Nate on the left, Conley and our friend Ben Stubblefield on the right.

Father's Day

2010-07-20T19:11:00.002-05:00

Father's Day fishing! We went fishing at a small pond in North Liberty for Father's Day. We all caught lots of fish and as always had lots of fun!
The kids tormented the fish in the 5 gallon bucket for A LONG TIME. Surprisingly they survived and Nate set them free!!!!

Conley had his shirt off, so Shay had to go topless as well.

I'm working to get caught up to present time.

One funny momma...

2010-07-14T12:09:00.002-05:00

I love this momma's blog! She has great stories and pics about this crazy thing we call "motherhood". Please read her latest post here! Hilarious!

Thanks Keri for great laughs and the cutest pics.

The birthday that wouldn't end...

2010-07-11T18:36:00.002-05:00

Conley had the birthday that wouldn't end. We celebrated early with the Sundblads, again when my sisters were in town and again at daycare. I think he asked everyday during the month of June for birthday presents!
Spiderman is still a favorite. He loves the movies, books, clothes and anything else Spiderman.

After visiting Will we learned about ALL the super heroes. Ironman is a new favorite of Conley's. Here he is in the same mask Will has!!!

Conley is now a fisherman. He loves fishing and now has all the gear thanks to Aunt Jill & Aunt Jamie!

Of course Shay had to steal and use whatever presents Conley wasn't guarding. Here she is in the new Spiderman hat and bat.

Thank you to Hy-Vee for making this sweet cake!

Cake anyone???

2010-07-08T19:02:00.003-05:00

Kinzie & Conley have birthdays 2 days apart, so we celebrated both birthdays together by the pool last month. Kinzie was LOVIN her cake!!! Shay happens to be a little to prissy to get that messy. Kinzie, however just attacked her cake!
More proof of their personalities.

Singing to Kinzie & Conley.

The kids had a blast with water balloons. Shay couldn't throw it hard enough for it to pop. She played with the same balloon for about 10 minutes.

The boys attacking Conley's presents. He got a ton of toys and candy...every boy's dream :)

We sent the boys to the shop for a new buzz and they came back with a reverse mohawk!

We immediately sent them back out to the shop for the dads to finish the job!!!

They met on the internet!

2010-07-06T19:35:00.004-05:00

Yes, they met on the internet! My sister is a nanny for a family in Georgia who have a 3 year old boy. Conley and I went for a visit in May and had a BLAST. The boys have skyped A LOT, but never met in person.
Superman ice cream...always a favorite!

Swimming with Jill in the pool. Both boys enjoyed swimming all weekend long!

Conley had a blast in the ocean! The boys loved diving into the incoming waves. He thought it was hilarious. We loved seeing the ocean again.

Swinging at the park. We packed a lot of activities into 4 days. It was hot and sunny and we loved it!

Both in love with super heroes, here in batman and superman pjs playing with their computers.

They always ate the EXACT same thing! What one did the other just followed. It was so cute. They truly had the best time together!

Matching superman pjs, playing with their super heroes. This is about 10 minutes after meeting for the first time in person. They acted like they were life long friends. It was great! We were lucky to meet up again in June when Will came to Iowa. We took the boys to a water park and again they had a blast!

Garage Sale!!!!

2010-06-10T21:25:00.002-05:00

This will be shocking for some but....I'm having a garage sale!!!! I never thought I would EVER have a garage sale, but this is for good reason! In the fall I will be walking in the Susan G. Komen 3-day Walk. I will walk 60 miles in 3 days. I'm terrified of the raising money part and Nate is terrified of me walking! Those who know me best, know I never exercise. I'm going to start!

So here is the reason for the post: Each walker must raise $2300 to walk in this event. My walking team is having a fundraising garage sale this Saturday in North Liberty! Everyone knows how much I love to shop, so guarantee there will be some GREAT finds at this garage sale. I have cleaned out all the closets and toy chests. People have been amazing to donate AWESOME stuff to this sale. Please come check it out!!!!!!!!!!!!

645 Andrews Ct. North Liberty
8am-12pm (of course we will really open around 6:30am)

All proceeds go to Susan G. Komen's 3-day Walk Event in order for the team members to participate in this amazing event!!!!

If you can't make the garage sale and haven't seen my facebook profile page, but want to contribute to my fundraising efforts...click the link below!

Donate here: Susan G. Komen 3 day for a cure

Thanks for reading and enjoy your weekend!

Stuntman!

2010-05-09T20:12:00.002-05:00

When I left them they were just riding bikes...I came out to a jump, SHOCKING!!! Nate of course hooked Conley up with a small jump that Conley thought was AWESOME! I remember watching Nate and his buddies take their dirt bikes and 4-wheelers off jumps WAY larger than this in high school...I'm sure that is in my future. Remember...this stuff is all new to me. I grew up in a family of girls and we were much more cautious and careful.
Thankfully a collision was avoided here or I would have had tears for sure!

Nate of course gave Shay some "awesome air" and she LOVED it! She has mastered riding her trike and loves to go "faster" as she often tells me. I envision us outside riding bikes everyday this summer.

Conley 1...Shay 0

2010-05-03T19:34:00.002-05:00

Yes, I'm going potty...no that is not what you think it is on my face!!!! And yes, I ACCIDENTALLY punched my sister in the face and gave her a bloody nose! I was wrestling my dad and her face got in the way of my fist! She is just fine, my mom took pictures to prove it...check them out:
See my sis is just fine. It stopped bleeding and her hair is even under control!

She was dramatic about the situation for a little bit and she had her "crazy after bath hair"! She had to show my mom her bloody kleenex to gain sympathy because mom was laughing and taking pictures. I don't think Shay liked that!

Watch out Lance Armstrong!!!

2010-05-02T19:24:00.004-05:00

Shay now has mastered pedaling her trike. She loves it and is excited to finally be able to keep up with Conley!
Conley riding without training wheels. He will ride through the garage and onto the driveway doing large circles. He kept saying "this is awesome"! He would have done better, but he insisted on wearing his soccer shoes.

This was hilarious. He stood and told Nate that his "grandpa would be so proud of me". He would then ask Nate to watch him and see how fast he was.

He went by me too fast, so I only caught his backside.

Yesterday Tom took Conley to teach him to ride a bike without training wheels. We have tried before and he fought us on learning. I knew if we weren't there that he would behave and listen to Tom teach him. HE ROCKED IT!!!!! Every time he gets on the bike he can go farther and faster. I'm sure by the end of this week he will be a pro. Before I know it he will be riding RAGBRAI and mountain biking with Nate, hehe! And yes, he ALMOST ALWAYS wears a bike helmet. He just didn't have it on when I made him ride for pictures. It was put on later when he was showing off for Mary, Tom and Luke.

Party!!!

2010-05-01T20:19:00.002-05:00

Our "mimi" (pacifier) throwing away party was tonight at Chuck E. Cheese's. OH MY WORD!!!! It has been 20+ years since my family has been there. WOW! The food was horrible and the atmosphere not much better, but Conley had a BLAST. He could have played ALL night. Of course the cheap toy he picked out broke/he broke it before we left Cedar Rapids.

We had a "first" tonight as well. Conley had to use the bathroom while we are on the interstate almost outside of Cedar Rapids, so we stopped at the Rest Area between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City. My dad commented that we had never stopped there before, so it was just an extra adventure to the evening.

We also stopped at my aunts before going to our "party" and put her fish in her backyard pond. She had brought the fish indoors last fall for the winter, so we had to go up for the "moving of the fish". The kids thought it was awesome and Conley brought up some fish food to feed them in their new home. My mom took pictures, so I will post them later. No "moving of the fish" party is complete without wine, crackers, cheese, grapes and of course goldfish snacks and juice boxes for the kids. Thanks for the great "fish party" Linda!!!!

BIG NEWS!!!!!

2010-04-27T20:29:00.003-05:00

We have been "mimi" free for 24 hrs!!!!! A "mimi" at this house is a pacifier. Yes, Conley still used his. I know you all are judging right now, but this is my house and my kids, and for a long time it gave me sanity in certain situations to have it. It was all his doing! He announced last night that he was going to throw them in the garbage. One by one, he found them all and in the garbage they went. He cried a little at bedtime, but otherwise did great. He asked for one when we got home from daycare, but quickly got over it. Hopefully it goes well. I remember my friend Jamie saying it was just a couple days of crying and then her kids forgot about it...so hopefully we are on that same plan!!!!

When I picked up Shay from daycare today, they announced that Shay went on the potty today!!! YEAH!!! I always joked that she would be trained before Conley...thankfully Conley is good to go with that subject. Shay initiated going and actually went. I have set her on the potty here but never have had results. Hopefully she slowly catches on by watching her friends!

Shay got her first haircut over Easter weekend. Conley just had to have his haircut after watching Shay. I never thought I would pay to have Conley's hair cut, I always thought Nate would just take care of it. It was a fun day, and they got suckers...win for everyone!

Shay wasn't exactly "loving" it!

Giving Aunt Jamie the "stink eye". I of course am tying to explain to Conley that he can get his hair cut when Shay is done.

Crazy Hair!

2010-04-26T19:53:00.003-05:00

Daycare LOVES playing with Shay's hair. Here is today's creation.

Pea up the nose!

2010-03-17T20:17:00.003-05:00

Last night I had a fun night out with the gals. Great girl talk, great food and lots of laughs! Before I left last night I cooked dinner for Nate and the kids. Tonight during dinner we were eating up the left over peas (we had other great food as well, no worries) and the following happened:

Con- "Hey dad, put the pea up your nose like a booger again, k dad?!"
Nate- "Con (it's supposed to be a secret tone), what are you talking about (with weird smile)"
Con- "Dad, do it again and then blow it out like a booger"
Shay- "Booger dada"

Of course I do the slow head turn to look at Nate with eyebrows raised. He of course has a HUGE smile on his face. And then folks, up the nose went a pea and yes, he shot it out like a booger and the kids were DYING laughing. I love the little things he comes up with to entertain them! However, the next time they have peas at daycare, I'm sure I will get a "talking" to regarding a pea up Conley's nose.

I want more sleep...

2010-03-16T21:48:00.002-05:00

For MY CHILDREN!!!!! I'm going crazy with bedtime craziness! I love my children, but they are awful at bedtime. I have no idea what to do! I have tried everything:

*We read books
*We have tried routines that they would become familiar with
*When they don't sleep or stay in bed, we spank
*When the above happens we have tried to bribe them (yes, bribe...remember I said I'm going crazy)
*When they don't stay in bed and/or cry for an hour, we ignore until they are sleeping AN HOUR OR MORE LATER!
*We try to calmly go in their room, put them in bed and exit without talking to them (saw it on some show, Super Nanny or something)...we have done this several times in one night and then we give up and spank (remember I'm going crazy)
*We up their bedtime and then we move it back trying to find the right time (there isn't a RIGHT time, I know I'm understanding that now)

We have very little time with them during the week. We leave the house around 7:15 every morning and get home around 5:45-6. The bedtime was always 7:30 ON THE DOT, but that gave me 1.5 hrs with my kids each night and I needed more time with them. So bedtime is 8 for Shay and 8:30 for Conley. They are gated in their rooms and both in full size beds, so they can get in and out of bed at anytime, but are forced to stay in their rooms. They both fight bedtime and Conley has every excuse or request formulated and ready to go each night. I'm exhausted and dread bedtime each night.

I would love any suggestions!!! I don't care if you do not know me personally or not, I NEED HELP!!!!! I want my children well rested to start their day and I want bedtime to not be stressful. I believe my children need more sleep. I don't think they are one of those types of kids who can operate on less. Their day is packed with activities and learning at daycare and they crash for naptime and can be whiny when not enough sleep is had the night before!

Can Man!

2010-03-14T20:19:00.003-05:00

It was beautiful outside today!!! We took the kids on a walk down by the res to the playground. It was great and the kids had a blast. Of course on the way back Nate taught our son and daughter an extremely desirable life skill. He explained to Conley that pop cans are worth money (Conley loves putting coins in his piggy bank) and that campers usually throw some into the woods. Conley and Nate scoured the woods for any can they could find. $.25 later we were on our way home. Conley LOVED it! He proudly threw each can into the stroller and even shared one with
his sister! Tried a new format...I don't like it, but I'm too lazy to figure out how to change it. Next time I'll do better!!!!

Running to me with a newly discovered can! He was so excited!

Running back to dad to continue the hunt!

Shay was mad that she had to take a nap today, so she fell asleep crying on the floor of her room. She did sleep almost 2 hrs so it wasn't a total loss. She can be such drama and definitely doesn't want to miss out on ANYTHING!
We watched a friend's little girl today and the kids had a BLAST! Conley had a great time playing with someone his own age. We played hiho cheerios, watched a short movie, played kitchen, dress up, babies, trains, and a few other things in 2.5 hrs. I was exhausted and so was Conley. We ran an errand after she left and Conley was snoring by the time we were out of the driveway. It wasn't too bad having 3...but Nate says he is not interested. We will have to work on him a little bit more :)

2010-03-13T16:59:00.002-06:00

It was so nice out the other day, my dad came over and we took the kids to a playground by the water. Conley rode his bike and dad pushed Shay in the stroller. It was so nice to get outside. We definitely got a little muddy, but still had a blast!!!

Conley on top of a play structure. My dad was awesome and would climb up and follow Conley's directions.

My dad going down the slide...per Conley's instructions!

Conley protesting his picture being taken.

Shay on top of the play structure. She loved climbing on everything.

I have a ton more pics of Florida, but thought I would give you all a break with some current photos.

More vacation pics

2010-03-08T19:54:00.003-06:00

The kids were discussing major subjects...coloring, books, boogers and dirty diapers :)

I dropped the boys off this day to kayak/fish for a couple of hours.

When I went to pick the guys up I brought the kids and they got to go for a little ride. Conley had a blast and actually went out into the water far from the shore.

Shay was not liking sitting in the kayak with Nate. It probably didn't help that this fish was in there with him...so of course he decided to torment her with it, hilarious!

A sunny day for a walk and bike ride. Lovin' the shades!!!

Conley was loving his bike. He wanted to go out every second of everyday. He cried when it rained and he couldn't go for a bike ride.

Here are the kayaks loaded up for an adventure! Nate loves fishing and Tom loves to kayak, so they took several trips out onto the water while we were there.

Here is a shot at the front of their house from across the street. They only have 1 neighbor to the left. To the right is an empty lot and across the street there are no houses either. We were fortunate to be able to borrow the navy suburban from Tom & Mary's friends. This was helpful when the girls wanted to go shopping or to the beach and the boys went kayaking.

Loved vacation!

2010-03-02T20:09:00.004-06:00

This play kitchen was at the recycle center in the plastic bin. Mary and Pat asked the guy why it was in there, and he said someone didn't want it and of course it is plastic. So they scored this free from the guy and the kids loved it!!!! Grammie was getting served coffee from the kids while reading this day.

Shay entertained herself for almost an hour one afternoon. And yes, she dressed herself in jeans and then pjs on top! She is quite the fashionista!

The only time Shay got in the water. She agreed to get in the hot tub (don't worry it wasn't that hot) with Nate and Conley for about 10 minutes.

Tom trying to convince Shay to get in the hot tub. Conley loved getting in both the pool and the hot tub. He couldn't get enough. Unfortunately it wasn't too warm, so we had to heat the hot tub for him to be able to get in. The pool wasn't too warm, but on a couple sunny days Conley braved the cool pool waters.

Shay was not a threat to drowning at all. She usually stayed inside far from the water.

This shows how the back of the house opens up to the pool. The pool area is completely screened in, so no worries of bugs getting inside the house or in the pool area.

This is the best swim device EVER!!!! My sister told me of this product last summer and I could only find it in catalogs. Mary found this recently at Target. Conley could stay afloat without tipping and I was never concerned with him being in the water by himself when he had this on. He also loved it, which made putting it on him a piece of cake. I would highly recommend this to anyone with young kids near water. It is awesome!!! It is called "puddle jumper", or that was the marking on the back.

If you enlarge this picture you can see he is wearing his turtle "watch". It is not a watch, but that is what we called it and told the kids. They wore this when we were in the house or out front and not swimming. If the turtle gets wet an alarm sounds inside the house (extremely loud and could easily be heard if we were out front). Basically meaning if they fall or get into the pool without us being there we will know instantly. This made me feel very secure with two young kids and a pool so close. I see us using this at Mary and Tom's in Iowa in the summer as well. Thankfully the alarm never had to sound while we were there. Tom also installed alarms on all doors leading to the pool area. We turned them on at night so that if the kids woke up while we were all sleeping and tried to go out to the pool an alarm would sound. I am so thankful he took the time to think all this through and make the house safe for our kids.

Pics from Florida

2010-02-22T18:03:00.004-06:00

Conley fed this bird the leftover shrimp out of Nate's bait bucket. The birds were loving it.

Yes Shay is wearing her fleece jacket at the beach. The winds were strong and it was cold. Plus she doesn't weigh enough to keep herself warm, :)

Seriously need I say more. He wanted to be right out with Nate fishing. This is at Tigertail beach. It was not good for shelling, but pretty in its own way.

The guys went fishing in their kayak's earlier in the day while the ladies went shopping!

This is our favorite beach so far. Residence Beach. We were there at sunset. We collected a lot of shells and Nate fished off the shore.

Here are the kids looking for shells. They want to bring home a shell for everyone in their class.

More shelling and fishing!

Here is the biking crew, minus our leader. We can bike a lot of places. Conley ROCKED the tag-along hooked on to Nate's bike. Shay rides in the burley and eats or sings to me the whole way. It was hot and sunny this day, love it!

These pics are all from Tom's camera. When I win the lottery, I am going to buy a camera just like it! I probably should buy a ticket, I heard that helps, hehe.

We are having a blast. We love just relaxing, swimming in the hot tub (the pool is still a little too cold), and exploring this island. Nate and I would move here tomorrow if given the chance. It is amazing and beautiful and relaxing and quiet and SO many more things you don't get in Iowa!!!!

Shay is turning 2!

2010-02-14T21:04:00.002-06:00

We had a birthday party for family on Saturday afternoon. She was blessed with some great gifts, fun play time and great food!!!! Unfortunately, Shay has not been feeling well and had a fever both Friday and Saturday morning...so she wasn't her "sassy" self. But she still had fun and enjoyed playing with her cousin Kinzie.

My cousin Meagan's daughter Tayva...she is so cute and was rockin' her Valentine's Day outfit for the party!

All the kids helping Shay open presents. We had a great time with family and we can't believe she is 2 already. Her birthday is this Wednesday. My camera battery died, so I will post more pics when I get them from Tom or my mom.

Naughty Conley

2010-02-09T19:19:00.002-06:00

We have had a problem with Conley at daycare lately. I picked the kids up yesterday and Conley's teacher informed me that Conley had been in "timeout" 13 times before lunch! He also had to talk to the "principle" (aka owner of the daycare) twice about his behavior. We are not sure where this is coming from and she said he had a better day today.

Here is the conversation today in the car on the way home:

ME- "Con, were you nice to your friends today at Depot?"

CONLEY- "I was a little bit nice and a little bit naughty"

At least he is honest. We will have to work on this! We didn't allow any dessert last night and we didn't allow a few other favorites. We made it clear that he was being punished for being naughty to his friends and not listening to his teacher. We will see how it goes! Open for suggestions!!!!!

My lovely son!

2010-02-04T20:31:00.002-06:00

My son is now talking to friends on the internet...man they grow up fast ;) My sister is taking a year off from golf and is a nanny for a couple in Georgia that have a 3 yr old son and are expecting their 2nd this summer. Will and Conley talk a couple times a week via Skype and it is the funniest thing you have ever seen.

They show off their toys to one another
Ask to visit each other
And of course only talk on Skype when they are fully dressed in Batman (Will) and Spiderman (Conley) costumes.
Once Will was asking Jill to do something and Jill couldn't understand, and Conley yells into the computer to Jill what Will is saying...so they help translate each other to their mom/nanny. HILARIOUS!!!!

Hopefully someday we can get them together in person to play. In the meantime Skype will have to satisfy them. Conley drew a picture for Will and we put it in a care package that my mom sent to Jill. It is so funny!!!!

I'm nervous that my child will never be potty trained after this morning he told me "when I'm 16 I will be potty trained" and that "I have to go on the potty when I'm 16" I reminded him that when he is 16 he can drive and that we have talked about being 16 and driving before. AND that he should be potty trained when he is 3... which Conley you are almost 4!!!!! People say you never see a kindergartner in diapers...I may have the first one!

This morning we were talking about his undies and being able to wear them. He is NOT potty trained 100%, so he wears pullups to daycare in the morning. He decided to carry his undies with him to daycare this morning. While walking up to the front door of daycare (the owner of the daycare in front of us) he loudly informed us that "these undies are dirty"! I quietly told him that the undies were stained, but clean. "What are the brown things"....I decided to be honest and told him they were "skid marks" and it happens to everyone. Magille (owner of daycare) was dying laughing but definitely just kept on walking.

Great Weekend!!!!

2010-02-03T20:51:00.003-06:00

Nate loves the Pawn Stars show on the History channel. Unfortunately we no longer have cable and have to watch it online if at all. The pawn shop featured in the show is located in Vegas. We stopped by on Sunday (when we had our rental car) and we were surprised by the crowd. As you can see in the above picture we had to stand in line for about 10min to even get in the door. It was WAY different than on tv, but we enjoyed seeing it in person!

Nate and I had friends get married in Vegas last weekend, so we were able to get 3 days away just the two of us. We had a great time hanging out with friends and sleeping in!!!!

We rented a car on Sunday and visited the Hoover Dam. I had been once when little, but Nate had never been and was really wanting to see it. This is a shot off the observation desk looking down at the water coming out the other side of the dam. Nate took this shot, I am afraid of heights so I stayed inside the visitors center while Nate went outside.

They are building a new bridge going over the Colorado River. I would NEVER drive across this! It is obviously not done, but terrifies me just looking at it. I don't think this picture does it justice. This bridge is one of the highest off the "ground".

This is a picture Nate took of the dam. It is amazing. This area is so beautiful!!!!

Here is Nate as we walked across the bridge to go on the tour. You can see the new bridge in the background. They had many of these little alcoves that you could look out and down to the water FAR BELOW!!!!!!

Here are the guys looking so nice all dressed up! Nate was the best man (he is second in on the right) for Seth.

They got married on a terrace at the Bellagio. The fountains (think Ocean's 11) went off when they kissed at the end of their ceremony. It was dusk and absolutely beautiful!!!! The reception had the best food I've ever had at a wedding!!!!!!!

Lynden wore her grandma's wedding dress, which Lynden's mom also wore at her wedding. It was beautiful!

Birthdays, Fishing, and Friends

2010-01-28T19:36:00.004-06:00

My kids are allowed to dress how they like most of the time. For some reason this day was filled with pjs paired with boots of some kind...above Conley in snow boots and below is Shay with her cowboy boots and pjs.

ICE FISHING ADVENTURES

Nate's best friend is getting married this weekend. For their "bachelor" party 6 guys went ice fishing in northern Iowa last weekend. They had a blast and can't wait to make it a tradition next winter! Above is Shane fishing.

This is the lake they were on. When they pulled into the parking lot there were no cars...because everybody just pulled right out to the lake, up to their hut.

My birthday was this past week and I was blessed with a day off work and time with my family!!! We had a great night of homemade pizza, gifts and great cake!

Helping mommy open her gifts!

Helping blow out candles!

A day at home!

2010-01-20T10:54:00.004-06:00

Thankfully I have today for working this Saturday! I have no desire to drive in this nasty weather!!!! Nate also has today off...he is usually slow in January and February and uses this time to get stuff done around the house. We are hoping for a productive day!

The kids are enjoying playing games, watching movies and just laying low in their pjs. I did however, include some pics of their "loving" relationship. They play really well together and fight really well together. I know I had this same relationship with my sisters, but SERIOUSLY it drives me CRAZY!!!!!!!

Playing together nicely. They are laughing and sharing and enjoying this....And then it usually turns to this! Conley got mad because Shay shut his fingers in the dollhouse door. We are working on "toughening up" Conley. He is quick to tell on Shay and get upset.

In attempts to have them love each other again, I had them help me make muffins together. They had a blast and loved waiting for them to finish baking. Needless to say we enjoyed eating them as much as making them!

Quick update!

2010-01-17T14:16:00.003-06:00

Sporting the cowboy boots. Shay got a pink pair for Christmas and Conley has a black pair. They thought it was fun to be matching in their boots!

Sitting together in the blanket basket watching cartoons. Of course they have been told not to do this and usually get in trouble, but I had to take a picture first it was so cute!

Shay loved my painted toenails, so we painted her toes. She loved showing them off to everyone!

The kids are sleeping, so I thought I would update really quickly.

Things are great at the Sundblad house. Our Foster Rd house will go on the market tomorrow, so the prayer is that it sells quickly and we get close to our asking price!!!! Nate and I are crazy busy with work and other projects. We are looking forward to a weekend in Vegas for our friend's wedding at the end of this month. In February we are off to Florida to visit Nate's parents for 10 days...a much needed vacation!

Conley- Talks NON-STOP. Often in the car he talks the WHOLE way home from daycare or to daycare without taking a breath. All I can do is laugh, because it is so cute and he is so funny! He loves to play with Shay and often asks her to play with him, which I love.

Shay- She is a girly girl. Loves to play with my hair and put all her clips in and brush my hair. She LOVES her brother. Follows him everywhere and is talking all the time. Her sentences become longer and longer and her understanding of us and what we are doing is great!!! She is learning so much at daycare and will be 2 in less than a month! She is still a little petite, but can hold her own if needing to fight back.

It's a good night

2009-12-14T19:52:00.002-06:00

Dinner made- CHECK
Cookies made- CHECK
Dishes done (husband did)- MAJOR CHECK
2 loads of laundry done- CHECK
House picked up- CHECK
Kids getting a bath (husband doing)- MAJOR CHECK

All that is left is to put the kids to bed and then the beloved 1.5 hrs of P90X. I'm so sore from yesterday, but I really want to stick it out!!! Nate bought some free weights and the bands needed for the program today! Hopefully I can still walk tomorrow!

Big girl bed update...Last night was AMAZING! Never woke up in the night, yeah! Slept from 8:30pm-6:30am. She is a rockstar!

Goodbye Baby!

2009-12-13T21:24:00.004-06:00

This was a big weekend for Shay! We switched to the "big girl bed"...no longer my baby. She AND Conley were very excited. They jumped on the bed and loaded it full of her blankies and stuffed animals. She started off with nap on Saturday and did AWESOME! Last night was not the greatest but she tried hard! Her room is really cold and I really think she was cold and not just protesting her bed. She again did awesome at nap and even better tonight going to bed. Hopefully tonight goes well!!!! So now onto big girl stuff, yeah!!!!

You can barely see her in the corner because her pants match her pink blankies (not on purpose)

For now she has a mattress & boxspring on the floor. And yes, Conley's car sheets until I get her some flowers or girly something. We did put up a bed rail along the side and pillows on the floor at the end. She has my beautiful wrought iron white bed waiting for her when she is ready to be higher off the floor.

Conley rides with Nate on both the snowmobiles and the dirt bike. I was always concerned about his safety (big shocker) and wanted him in full gear. Nate found a great deal on a helmet that can be used for both dirt bikes (summer) and snowmobiles (winter) with extra parts for the different seasons. The helmet looks just like Nate's. Conley is in love...he had to put both in his room on display, hilarious!

Here are the matching helmets

On another "big news" note...we started working out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! For those who know me well, know I NEVER workout! I have been blessed with my dad's family's metabolism and body type. It however isn't shedding baby belly fat naturally (shocking), so I have been keeping my eyes open for something that will get me excited...trust me that is what it is going to take. Well...I found it- P90X! Nate and I are going to do it together and we started tonight AND it KICKED MY BUTT! I am a weak individual. Nate did awesome. We decided to take before pics and after pics 90 days from now. I am determined to stick this out! I have been known to get on a workout kick and drop out 1 day later. This helps that Nate is excited about it and doing it with me. Pray for me...I going to need it :)

Let it snow!

2009-12-08T20:11:00.003-06:00

Here are the fearsome twosome ready to roll. They were in charge of clearing the driveway tonight! Conley wore his snow pants and jacket for 2 hours (even while inside), he finally took it all off to put on pjs. He loves the snow and helping his dad!!!

Shay thought she wanted to go until Nate turned on the snow blower and she quickly changed her mind. She is always scared of loud noises, hates the dirt bike, vacuum, snow blower, etc.

The boys hard at work. Nate is leaving soon to go into town to get one layer plowed at our rental properties! Hopefully it's not too bad and he returns soon, I need his help in the office...it is almost finished!!! Only 3 nights of organizing and filing of papers, we both are vowing to be better in this area of our lives!

New do!

2009-12-07T19:23:00.004-06:00

Conley and Nate are down working in Tom's shop and Shay is in bed. Yeah, peace and quiet!!! We often play hard and loud after dinner (it is the only time with our children during the week) so I love the moment both are in bed and the house is quiet. I should be organizing Nate's office (I promised to finish it this week), but I thought I would catch up on blogging.

Poor Conley inherited from me the inability to keep the eyes open when smiling! Poor buddy!

We cut Conley's hair last night and Nate's. Nate is on a saving kick and decided to forgo the trips to the barber and save money by having me cut his hair. He is funny about it being done perfect, so I was very nervous. Both him and Conley got a buzz and I think I did a great job!!!

Shay was really into saying cheese during this picture. I think Conley was talking to me, big shocker! Conley talks almost nonstop. He always talks the whole way home from daycare and any other time we are in the car. He also talks his way through dinner. He is so funny!

If you look close you can see that Conley is gripping his "monies". He was given $1 from me the other day, when he was curious about my wallet and money being in it. He then began the death grip, and carried it with him at all times that day...including bed!

An update on Shay: We had a 6 month check up for her tubes and they are both still in!!!! Hopefully they will stay in throughout the winter months. Last winter was awful with her being sick all the time. We don't have another appointment for 6 more months. She is talking more each day and you can understand her better everyday. She can say her ABC's and count to 10 with some coaching. She is really growing in maturity the last couple months. About 2 months ago she was moved into the 2 year old room at daycare. They felt she was mature enough and would benefit from the learning activities...I would have to agree. She is developing so fast on all levels and is no longer my baby :(

Shay and her "mimi"...she loves her paci!

Our new house!

2009-11-15T13:01:00.005-06:00

Okay, I know it has been awhile! In my defense, I work 50 hrs per week, have 2 children, moved to a new house in 2 days with one week notice, and I'm sure I could come up with more excuses if you gave me more time and would listen.

I have included pics of the new house. I miss our old house for so many reasons, but love the new house for its differences. Some things I miss, my beautiful kitchen...I loved that kitchen and all the storage and the cabinets! I miss how the old house felt cleaner and more up-to-date. I loved being so close to downtown, daycare and church (now we actually have to leave the house 15 minutes before church instead of 5, hehe). I love how the new house has the kid's bedrooms on the first floor. We have cut down on the amount of toys EVERYWHERE. They have to keep toys picked up and in their bedrooms...this causes them to play in their rooms more, I love it. I really appreciate the new house being smaller. We got rid of A TON of stuff (thanks stuff etc) and having a smaller house makes cleaning a whole lot easier!

This is our living room. We just moved up this tv, it is supposed to be downstairs. We were given an antenna thingy (I don't know what it is) from my aunt and it only works with our newer tv. We are in the market for a small flat screen and obviously need a tv stand of some sort. This is the old fax stand from Nate's office at the old house.

This is my awesome dining room table (now being put to everyday use). Sorry it's a horrible pic. This is where we eat all the time, we don't have a dining room in this house!

This is our kitchen. We have nice oak cabinets, just need some updated hardware. We will be moving over our dishwasher from the old house and someday completely remodeling this kitchen. We are going to take it out about 6 ft, off the back of the house and gut it! This is funny to those who know me and my cooking skills! But I believe we need a nicer kitchen and everyone always hangs out in the kitchen!

This is the downstairs tv area and play area. It really is huge, but this just shows one part. We have an extra fridge down here and cabinet storage. The kids have their toys down here and soon the huge tv and surround sound will be set up down here.

This mess is bedroom/slash office. Nate's business is run out of the back 1/2 of our bedroom. Luckily the room is huge and we have yet to purchase a bedroom set. I have only been looking for something for 6 years. I can't find anything I like and we are remodeling and putting on a master suite to this house, so I might as well wait to see what the bedroom will look like. In my defense it is laundry day today, and we are going to finish unpacking the last 3 boxes of office papers and personal files!

This is our entry into the house. You can go down the stairs to the right or come straight into the kitchen or living room. It is hard wood throughout the whole house except downstairs family room.

This is our backyard, or some of it. We have 3 acres and it backs up to timber, which makes it feel more than 3 acres. Nate of course says it is perfect for a pond and then we will use the pond to put in geothermal, yada, yada. Go for it buddy!

Samson! He lives in the greenhouse attached to the house. More on this in a later post. The kids love him more everyday. We are glad we kept him. He now will let us put on a leash and actually has gone on walks to the res with us. He definitely is getting more mellow and getting more used to the kids.

This is why we can't live in town. We own more trailers than anyone I know. 4 snowmobiles sit on the side of the garage, there are dirt bikes, two riding lawn mowers, and I'm sure other items I don't even know about. We would look like hillbillies in town for sure!!!!!!!

This is the front of the house. We are planning to add a 3/4 stall to the right of the garage. Behind that will be a master suite with a walkout shop in the basement. Of course we have MANY remodel projects. We are trying to wait at least 2 years before we start anything major. We are happy here and it definitely feels like home. We have awesome neighbors (we really have never had neighbors) as Nate's parents live 2 doors up and the couple that lives between us is awesome. We enjoy being close the res, and have taken walks out there almost every weekend.

Yeah, we are connected!!!

2009-10-15T19:56:00.002-05:00

We finally (after 3 days of trying!!!!) got internet, phone and fax ALL working. I had to do a little yelling at several Qwest employees, but finally got us hooked up.

We are completely moved (1/2 of the shop is done, the rest to come over this weekend), just need to clean Foster Rd this weekend!!! Nate has some serious picture hanging and minor things here and there. It really is starting to feel like home.

I will post pictures soon. Grandma Pat has my camera in Israel, but as soon as she returns I will post pics of the new house.

Thanks for all who helped, prayed, provided meals, packed, unpacked, and so much more!!!!!!!

Apple Orchard

2009-09-30T20:36:00.004-05:00

My sister left for Arizona yesterday and we won't see her again until Christmas, so it was nice to spend the day with her doing a fun activity!

Our friends Troy and Hollie and their two girls joined us as well. We got lots of apples and of course yummy turnovers!!!
This pic is hilarious. I think Conley looks thinner lately as he gets taller, but in this pic it looks like he has a big belly still...too cute!
Jill and Shay picking apples. Shay LOVED eating the apples.
The guys...they kept trying to find the best "spot" to pick. They analyzed it all and let us know where to be. They are so funny!
The kiddos eating their apples. It was a beautiful day and we had a blast. A great activity before nap time!!!

NO CHICKENPOX!

2009-09-14T20:06:00.005-05:00

Shay recently has gotten into dressing herself, sorta! She loves to put on clothes, anybodies clothing. It's hilarious, especially when she gets frustrated and can't get something on right.

Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Shay does not have the chickenpox! My mom and I were doubtful, but seeing that we are not holders of a medical degree we decided to have a pediatrician check Shay out. My aunt (LOVE HER) watched Shay today AND took her to the doctor. The doctor said she has a cold (yes, we knew this) and some mosquito bites! I think there is one confirmed case of chickenpox at daycare and Shay is due to receive the vaccine in 2 weeks. We are the family that contracts the weird illnesses so I was completely (okay sorta) calm going into today and actually had daycare lined up all week for Shay. Did I ever mention how awesome our families are and what a blessing it is to live close to all of them?!?!Conley thankfully agrees to push Shay around in her doll stroller. She will climb in it and yell for him until he gives a big sigh (hilarious) and agrees to push her around the first floor of our house.

Move It, Dig It, Do It

2009-09-13T16:19:00.004-05:00

We went out the the fairgrounds, to the Iowa Children's Museum's event today. It was awesome. Conley loved "driving" all the vehicles and tractors. My dad and I took him out there and we had a blast just watching Conley soak it all up!
I can't even tell you what this is, except he loved it and it was easy for him to get in and out of!
I'm sure there are one of these in his future!!!
Trying on a fireman's helmet! He thought this was pretty cool!
Not so sure about the fireman's mask though!
He loves riding on our mower, so this is natural for him!
Similar to the tractor at Bubba Dean's!
He won the 3 year old tractor pull. I don't think he had a clue what was going on!!! All he cared about was riding the tractor and was mad he had to wait in line to do so.

We had a blast! My mom and grandma kept Shay at home so we could enjoy time with Conley. So much fun and easier just taking out one! Shay is a little under the weather AGAIN...daycare thinks she has chickenpox! There are several "red bumps" on her body, but nothing has blistered yet, so we are going to keep her out of daycare all week and see what happens. It is pretty routine for me to have each kid out of daycare for a week each year (yes we still have to pay) for some uncommon illness. I'm ready to have a healthy year!!! Maybe 2010 is my year!

Albert City, IA

2009-09-12T14:21:00.004-05:00

Fun on the farm. We went to Albert City, Ia 2 weeks ago to visit Nate's grandparents. They live on a farm and Nate's uncle and his family live on a farm up there as well. We enjoyed spending time with them. Nate was able to help out Phil (his uncle) with their home remodel project as well. Thanks for everything, we'll be back!!!! We had beautiful weather and enjoy running and playing outside. We threw the frisbie, blew bubbles, played kickball, rode our bikes and just hung out!
Bubba Dean gave us a ride out to the field to check on the corn. Shay loves corn on the cob, so she didn't understand that this corn isn't for us to eat.
Shay was not a fan of riding in the tractor. Conley, Bubba Dean, Nate and Shay all are up in the cab. Shay would not get in unless forced by Nate.
Conley and Bubba Dean went for a ride around the farm. Conley LOVED this!!! He loves tractors and kept pointing out every tractor while we were in Albert City. This had to be his favorite part!
Bubba Dean and Grandma Viv have 2 horses that are kept at their farm. The kids loved petting, feeding and just talking to the horses. Shay LOVED them! She always got very excited and would scream at them, the minute she saw them.
They were not afraid at all!

Funny Conley moments

2009-08-19T19:44:00.002-05:00

I have tomatoes sitting on my window sill in the kitchen:

Conley- "I don't like momatoes"
Me- "They're really good for you"
Conley- "They are just for mommies, I will eat them when I'm a mommy"
Me- "Boys are daddies when they get bigger, girls are mommies when they get bigger"
Conley- "And babies are Shay-Shay"
Me- "Yup, okay"

Driving home from daycare today (it was POURING RAIN)

Conley- "Can I play outside at my house"
Me- "No, not today"
Conley- "Okay, we'll think about it mom, okay?"

I always tell him "I'll think about it", when he asks me to do things I don't want him to do. Too funny!

We have been having problems with Shay biting at daycare. She does it as a defensive mechanism when someone takes a toy or invades her space (she is a drama queen). Conley on occasion has a love-hate relationship with a few boys a daycare. By the conversation in the car the other day I see we still have some work to do.

Me- "Did you have a good day with your friends today?"
Conley- "Mom, we don't hit our friends we have to be nice, so I just hit Lucas a little bit today Mom"

Pics

2009-08-18T19:51:00.003-05:00

For those who saw my Facebook status the other night...I captured Shay during her meltdown. She wouldn't eat dinner but stood by the pantry crying for fruit snacks. I held my ground and she didn't get any fruit snacks and went to bed! Tonight she ate her entire dinner and THEN got fruit snacks. Hopefully she figures out how this is supposed to work!

We start them early at this house! Nate can't wait to buy Conley his own dirt bike. For now I REQUIRE Conley to wear his helmet and Nate gives him rides around our property.

Conley eating some good ole corn on the cob!

Shay LOVES corn on the cob. She eats THE WHOLE THING!!!

Miss Shay in a sweet dress found at Stuff, of course!!!

A bull snake got caught in the insect sticky trap set by the bug guy. Thankfully our renter's boyfriend was here, he saved the day!

Conley got this golf cart for his birthday. Shay loves getting rides around the driveway.

We're here

2009-08-05T19:18:00.002-05:00

We are still here, alive and as always crazy busy! I'm still searching for the camera cord, seriously my house is pretty clean and organized, I don't know what is going on!

Few facts to catch you all up:

Potty training going well. Pretty much trained and even dry at naps, yeah!!!
Shay is healthy and sassy. Totally a girl and totally drama, love it!
Nate's first flip is almost done (he promised 2 more weeks). It went well, and we are excited to see him for the first time in 3 months :)
With all the rental properties completed and all rented, and flip almost done...we bought a house! Nate was getting bored (yes he still has his business that occupies 50+ hrs a week). More details to come and pics. It is a home for us (yes we are moving), but the details are still unfolding as far as moving and selling. It needs work (of course, Nate would never buy a house that didn't) and an addition to give us more room. Nate is SUPER EXCITED, and I'm glad that it will be cheaper, smaller (less to clean), and we will see Nate more because he will be working at home on our own house, yeah!

There can't be anymore, I'm exhausted just writing and thinking about those 4 things. Someday I'm going to relax and enjoy the little things, but now I'm just enjoying "the ride".

Potty Training...

2009-07-16T20:23:00.002-05:00

We took the plunge and decided last Saturday no more diapers. I was hearing from daycare that he was going on the potty there and was doing great. I figured we would take the plunge!!!

Saturday-- 3 accidents (2 poop)...we were at my aunt's house all day and love her! She did the nasty laundry for me while we were there.

Sunday---1 accident and it was at the end of the day

Monday---1 accident at daycare (poop)

Tuesday---1 accident at daycare and they told me they didn't think he was ready to quit diapers all together. I pressured for them to please try with me, I knew he could do it!

Wednesday---he started telling us he had to go and pooped on the potty without being prompted. Yeah!!!!!

Thursday---good to go...he now runs to the bathroom and can pull shorts and undies off himself. We have cleaned the toilets at home a lot and the floor around the toilet, but still I'm considering it successful right now!

Since Isaac Lybeck never has worn underwear we scored some free undies from Mindy!!!! And yes Isaac still goes with no underwear daily :) Conley loves the underwear, but still wears diapers for nap and bed. Usually wakes up dry from both, but still would rather be safe than sorry.

I had some great pics of Shay and Conley but can't find my camera cord. I am totally stumped because it is not in the place where I always keep it. When I find it, more pics will follow!

Shay is REALLY walking!

2009-06-21T20:56:00.001-05:00

I know I promised her to be walking about 2-3 weeks ago, but this weekend she finally has it figured out! She will crawl every now and then, but prefers to walk, yeah!!!!!!!! I was excited for her to quit ruining pants and bruising her knees. The kids actually spent the weekend with my parents and sister (huge thank you), while Nate and I attended a wedding in Kentucky with the Sundblad family (seriously fun). We are glad to be home and see Conley and Shay for father's day!

Sorry such a boring, short post! I leave in 2 days for Arizona for a conference for work. So I have to get on laundry, groceries, cleaning and Nate's detailed instruction sheet for the 5 days I will be gone. HUGE prayer request, haha.

Golf weekend!

2009-06-07T20:33:00.006-05:00

My sister and her caddy (her college coach).

So this was one of my favorite weekends of my life!!! I have never seen my sister play in a pro tournament event before, and I had the best time. My sister did not have the best golf weekend, but had the best support turnout yet and I know she wanted to do better, but truly we all had a great time and we all know she is a superstar! There were signs all over saying you couldn't take pictures and my mom warned me of this. I was able to sneak a few and have included some shots. Unfortunately my sister told me today that none of the players really care if you take pictures; if I would have known that I would have taken a lot more. Day one was sunny and hot = awesome!!! Day two was rainy and a little cold, not so fun! I have never experienced golf in the rain, and know I know why it is a bad idea. However, I love my sister and support what she is doing (and my cousin 6 months preggers walked it in the rain) so I was out there with my umbrella, rain pants, and golf shoes on! My sister had a great following and it was fun to learn a little bit more about this crazy golf life of hers!

After day one. It was beautiful sunny day and just the right temp. My white legs got some serious, much needed sun, yeah!!! My sister's high school friend carried her bag for about 100 ft. after my sister finished practicing (yes they practice after they just played 18 holes, doesn't make sense to me), and then had to rest, that bag is HUGE!!!

Day 2 was played in the rain! I looked AWESOME! I had some sweet golf rain pants and a HUGE golf umbrella. Sorry no pics of super-fan this day! In front of me you see the crowd waiting for Jill and the other player to tee off. Sorry the pics are out of order.

The sisters on day one! Jamie couldn't come on Saturday, she had a bridal shower she was hosting at my parent's house and a bachelorette party to attend!!! I had to be super-fan for the both of us, haha!

Super-fans!!! We have the best time and love supporting our sis. Lucky for Jill we both are very positive no matter Jill's performance and are always making her laugh!!!

Jill and her caddy getting a ride back to the club house after her round on day two! We were glad to get a smile out of both of them, considering they played the majority of the round in the rain and she didn't shoot as well as she could have.

The crowd following on day one. Needless to say she has never had a crowd that big and the media presence was a little annoying at times.

Crazy Summer!

2009-06-02T18:59:00.005-05:00

Conley and Shay showing off their hats from Disney! Conley asks when he sees his hat in his room when we can go back. We keep telling him to save his money, and he then asks for money for his piggy bank. Like any picture, getting both to look and smile at you at the same time is impossible!!!!

Conley help me make brownies for a teacher at daycare that was leaving. He definitely is a fan of licking the bowl. Honestly we both could have ate the batter and bought brownies on the way to daycare the next day! WE LOVE CHOCOLATE!!!

June may prove to be the craziest month in our lives yet, okay...maybe it comes in third behind the first month after each child was born (no sleep, crying, diapers, breast feeding, etc) = yes June comes in third! Some may want to quit reading because the rest may bore you, but my fam will be excited and curious to see what we are up to for the next month!

1st week/weekend...My sister plays in Cedar Rapids for the Ladies Titan Tire Challenge. Folks, this an event you won't want to miss!!! There are 144 women who compete in the Futures Tour hoping to make the LPGA tour. These are all Professional Golfers with amazing talents. My talented sis happens to be on the Futures Tour and will be teeing off at 1:40pm on Friday! We expect her to kick some serious golfing bootie and win some serious coin this weekend. She is seriously an amazing golfer and will be on the LPGA tour in the next few years...so if you don't come this weekend you can just turn on your tv and watch her kick Annika Sorenstam's (equals Tiger Woods in girls golf) butt! She is currently featured on the home page of the Duramed website: www.duramedfuturestour.com. You can also see her on KCRG.com on the sports page, she did an interview with John Campbell last week that aired tonight!

2nd week/weekend...I work, go Stuff! AND my baby boy turns 3!!!!!!! Holy cow time flies!!! He is so excited for his birthday party weekend and keeps asking when his party is and if he can have a Spiderman car. He is constantly talking and exploring at home. He loves being outside and driving his power wheels around!

3rd week/weekend... Kentucky here we come. Nate is the best man in his friend's wedding and we are going to spend an extra day in Tennessee visiting my aunt and uncle. It will be a long 4 days with long days driving, but we are leaving the kids behind and are excited for a weekend with just the two of us. We will probably be bored, haha!

4th week/weekend... Scottsdale Arizona!!!!!! We are headed to Arizona for our annual work conference and I will be a workshop speaker this year. I am very nervous, but have great help at work preparing me for lots of questions and comments regarding our crazy-huge store. I'm excited for girls weekend and lots of sun and shopping!!!!!!!!!

This is the week!!!

2009-05-18T20:43:00.003-05:00

Go Shay-Shay go!!!

I truly feel like this is the week!!! Shay is feeling so much better. I believe that the 2 weeks out of daycare and several doses of antibiotic, tubes in each ear, and we are good to go. I'm praying that tubes will help lessen future ear infections, and they say if an ear infection should occur, it goes away faster with stronger ear drops for treatment!!!

Anyway...back to the title, Shay is going to walk this week. Quite the statement, I know, considering she just got used to standing not long ago. However, she will do 2-3 steps on her own before sitting down (yes, not falling, but the diva chooses to just not walk anymore than that). I told daycare today I don't pay them all that money for nothing, she needs to walk this week! Some say "be careful what you wish for", but seriously!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm very excited for her to hit her milestones "on time", and to be more independent. And of course, quit wearing out the knees on all the awesome outfits I have for her!

On our way to get her tubes. We left pretty early and she couldn't eat breakfast. She did awesome and I truly loved and would recommend the University!!!!

Shay's new favorite thing is to sit in this tote and throw out all the balls. She then yells until someone throws them back in for her to repeat the process. Conley of course, wanted to try Shay's new idea. Shay is not a fan of sharing!

Pushing around her baby! She loves to push her baby and the walker toy in the background all around the main floor.

Summer Fun!

2009-05-09T08:20:00.005-05:00

10 days ago I wrote that Shay would be returning to daycare...well, she made it 1 1/2 hrs that day before I received a call at work to come get her. So again, she was out of daycare for another week and returned Thursday and Friday of this week, whoo-hooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She made it all day, yeah!!! Seriously huge thank you to my family for helping out, they kept her all day so I could still work. Nate's grandma spent the most time with both her and Conley trying to get everyone healthy and gaining weight ;) Shay will get tubes this Wednesday at the University and I'm praying that this will help our situation. I truly feel she is 100% better having spent many days out of daycare, away from germs, eating and sleeping a lot!

I thought I would include some pics of the scores thus far during garage sale season!

Nate's mom found this sand/water table for Conley...it is awesome. Both him and Shay played for hours last weekend. We didn't have any sand yet, but they love the water with the boats, which was fine for me, less messy;)

Conley also got this tool bench set, and of course knew he must wear his safety goggles when working with power tools ;) Again, Shay loved it also which made for some mommy free time to get some stuff done, yeah!!!!!!!!!!

The BEST find was this blow up jumping toy. The cousins loved it and had a great time! Of course the boys managed to get in trouble and we had to deflate it on the first day due to punishment, go figure. I'm sure this will be the HIT of the summer!!!!!

Conley and Isaac had a blast. Chloe of course designated one side for girls and one for boys. She put up signs indicating which side belong to who, but we quickly reminded her the boys couldn't read, she was bummed ;)

Here we come daycare!

2009-04-27T19:04:00.005-05:00

Tomorrow is Shay's first day back at daycare in 10 days!!! Daycare has probably enjoyed taking my hard earned money and not having 2 kids to watch, jk. We have scheduled tubes at the University on May 13 and I need her to be well for that appointment. She seems to be doing SOOOOO much better. She is still on antibiotic and the nebulizer twice a day. I feel she is gaining weight and is getting really close to walking. Overall it has been a beneficial 10 days home away from germs. I on the other hand have a little bit of cabin fever! I'm used to going full speed and running around like crazy...maybe that is problem- Shay is telling me less running around and more at home resting...but that is no fun!

I thought I would include some pics of my healthy gal...

Miss Thing has a little bit of "tude" when I try to get her to smile. She does the "I'm holding it in" smile, until I act crazy enough that she starts to laugh!
Finally I got a good smile out of her! Notice the little piggies...I love doing her hair!!!

April

2009-04-18T20:52:00.004-05:00

It has been crazy since my last post, so this post will include many things! We had a nice Easter weekend, my sister was home from Minnesota, the kids enjoyed many awesome Easter egg hunts, and I got a pedicure (MUCH NEEDED, thanks sis!)! Shay is sick again and I was frantically stressed about her health this week, but I am doing better. I scheduled an appointment for her at the University of Iowa Pediatric ENT next week and I am very excited to hear a new doctor's take on her body! She has not been well since before Christmas and it has been emotionally and sleep draining on me! I am sooooo excited for spring/summer and nice weather. We need to air the germs out of our house and get outside for fresh air!!!

Dying Easter eggs with Grandma Shay, Nate, Jamie and Shay! Nate convinced Conley later to dye his hands green, that was fun to clean off! I know my dad was here somewhere, just absent from pics.

Mary bought Isaac and Conley matching Easter baskets. They loved them, Spiderman of course! They had a blast comparing their finds at the North Liberty Easter egg hunt!!! Conley was a little slow to catch on during this hunt, Isaac however had his basket full in about 10 seconds. No shocker for those who know how much Isaac loves candy. Halloween and Easter have to be his favorite days!
This is Shay after a wild day a daycare. They love messing with her hair. She either comes home with pigtails or a mohawk quite frequently.

Conley had a great time today helping Nate build "add-ons" to his trash trailer. I about died laughing when Conley picked out his own outfit today (bob the builder was a perfect choice for today) and put his tool in his pocket ready to go outside and work. He truly is Nate's helper. He is always all up in Nate's business when he is outside working. But don't worry he gets a few things from me...ordering everyone to take their shoes off when they come in, hates his hands dirty-wants to wash them right away, likes to vacuum and clean!!! He is in training, his future wife will appreciate his cleaning skills ;)

I love my kids!

2009-03-30T20:46:00.003-05:00

I, like any mother, have days where my kids stress me out. We have been really busy lately and have a busy spring and summer ahead of us. The other day the weather was beautiful and Nate took them on a little ride! Watching this melted my heart!!! Their faces were lit up with smiles and they didn't want to stop.

Our sled didn't get much use this winter (thankfully), so we put it to use in the Spring!!!

Conley is really into holding Shay lately, so he was loving this!

My lovely Shay!

I couldn't resist taking a picture when I saw her sleeping like this!

An update on Shay. We currently are taking medication for our 5th (!) ear infection since Christmas. They are hoping if she does not have any more we can wait on tubes until the fall if needed. She is FINALLY gaining weight, yeah!!! She is over 20lbs. and Nate and I both think she is really starting to fill out and is taller. She is definitely feeling more comfortable standing up, but not ready to take any steps on her own. She will walk if you hold her hands, but only for a short while. We are practicing!

Shades of Green

2009-03-29T16:07:00.006-05:00

I am almost done blogging our vacation from about a month ago, how sad. I had a hard time finding the free time to sit here and type. I thought I would show some pics of our amazing resort. We stayed at the resort compliments of Nate's grandma. We stayed at Shades of Green, the military Disney resort on the Magic Kingdom grounds. They provided transportation to and from the parks, amazing!!!! We had the best time, thanks Grammie & Nana & Grandpa Tom.

Conley standing in front of the resort entrance on our final day. This was the warmest day, so we broke out the shorts and short-sleeved shirts, yeah!!!!

The front entrance to the resort. It was amazing. They had shops, ice cream parlor, restaurants, free Wii playing at night, video area for the kids, and much more!

Conley swimming the last day. Wearing Chloe's goggles!!!

Shay chillin by the pool. I couldn't tell that day her nose was so nasty (sorry). Remember she had a double ear infection and we didn't know it for another 24 hours, poor girl.

They had beautiful pond area with fish and you were able to feed them. They also had remote control boats that you could pay to drive. Conley loved the idea but soon lost interest.

This Mickey Mouse was in the lobby of the resort. Here is the gang on our second day on our way out to Animal Kingdom. About 2 seconds after I snapped this photo Conley (mr. clumsy) fell off Mickey's foot and face-planted on the floor.

Shay after day one. She of course pulled out her ponytail, so her hair is sticking straight up. She had more fun climbing in and out of grammie's suitcase.

Magic Kingdom

2009-03-22T16:09:00.004-05:00

Our third day was spent at Magic Kingdom, my favorite. The weather was much better, and Shay was of course sicker. This park had more for Conley and all the Princess stuff for Chloe. I think we all really enjoyed this park.

Conley finally took a nap this day for about an hour in the stroller. It was much needed, because the two days prior had NO NAP!!!

Conley and Isaac had a blast trying on character hats in this store. We bought each of the kids a mickey mouse ears hat and had their name put on them. They all were excited to pick out their own style of hat.

Jill, Mindy (holding Kinzie), Nate, Shay, Conley and myself on a ride in Magic Kingdom.

The beautiful castle. Chloe, Mary, Mindy and Pat had lunch with the Princesses inside the castle. Chloe was so excited and had a great time!!!

Greg, Chloe, Mary, Isaac and Conley on the flying carpet ride. The boys got to ride this twice in a row, they were thrilled.

Conley driving Nate on the race cars. Conley did this once with me and once with Nate. He liked being able to steer.

Animal Kingdom

2009-03-15T20:41:00.003-05:00

Our second day was spent at Animal Kingdom. It was definitely warmer this day and we enjoyed the sunshine. There was a TON to see this day. We went on a safari ride, played in a HUGE jungle gym, watched the parade, and saw some shows. There were many live animals to see and the kids LOVED it.

Conley in the stroller we rented from Animal Kingdom. He loved wearing his shades when he saw that Isaac and Chloe had some too.

Above is the crew eating lunch. We packed our lunch each day to help save some $$$. It was fun to sit and relax in the sun!

Below is my sister and Conley on the dinosaur ride. My sister lives in Orlando and was able to see us almost every day!!! We don't get to see her often enough, so that was great!!!

The parade at Animal Kingdom. It was awesome!!!

Shay enjoying the parade. It was one of the rare moments she was wide-awake and smiling. Poor thing was sick most of the vacation!

Epcot

2009-03-13T20:02:00.005-05:00

Here is pics from our first day at Disney. It was about 60 degrees and rainy part of the day. We made the most of it and saw everything we could in an 8 hour day. By the end of the day we were exhausted and ready for a hot meal and bed!!!

Nate and Conley ready for the 3-d movie. Conley was a little scared and kept jumping and moving in his seat to avoid the objects "flying" at us!

Chloe, Isaac and Conley getting swallowed by the shark ;)

Double trouble! Yes is was about 60, but Isaac was NOT cold in his tank top and shorts. That kid is never cold, he was so funny!!!

Conley and Nate with Pluto. Conley started to warm up after Pluto.

Conley and Isaac with Donald. Conley now started giving out high-fives and knuckles.

Giving goofy a high-five.

Airplanes...

2009-03-08T20:38:00.005-05:00

We just returned from an awesome trip to Disney. Nate's parents gave us the trip for Christmas and the whole fam (Lybecks, Grammie Pat, Mary&Tom) went to Disneyworld for about a week. We had a blast and I took a TON of pictures. I thought I would share the airplane pics first. This was Conley's first time on an airplane and he was very excited. He did great!

This is at take off the flight down. The boys had a great time sitting by each other and did great!!!

This is Chloe and Conley going through the airport with their carry-ons. Conley was so proud of his little suitcase.

Shay sitting by herself while Nate stretched his legs. She did awesome considering she was sick all week and turns out had a double ear infection!!!

Conley asleep on the first flight coming home. He slept the whole first flight and got antsy on the second flight, but overall did well.

Isaac was very curious about where his pee was going to go when flushed. Mindy took this pic so I know she won't care that I posted it.

The crew at the airport. We came with quite the load. Tom and Luke got some awesome pics of the whole group with all our luggage.

Birthday Girl!

2009-02-21T13:47:00.003-06:00

Shay turned 1 last week and we had a great time celebrating with family! I was so busy during the party, I forgot to take any pictures. Luckily Nate's dad took some great pictures and I will get those from him to post later. Daycare made this hat for Shay on her actual birthday. They took a picture of her and sent it home. This picture is at our house at dinner.

Mary got Shay the chair in the second picture from Pottery Barn for her birthday. She looks like a big girl sitting in there by herself. She just loves to crawl in and out. Conley of course said he needed one, so we'll have to remember that come June.

Of course he can't be left out of the action, but doesn't want to look at the camera. I'm sure something fun was on tv. My kids really do wear pants, but never when I take their picture, weird???

Monster Trucks!

2009-02-08T12:53:00.004-06:00

The boys went to the monster truck show in Cedar Rapids last night. It was a late night but well worth it. Conley had lots to say about the experience and Nate did take some pics!!! They can't wait for summer for the motocross to start at Hawkeye Downs.

Here are the monster trucks in action!

Nate and Conley in front of one of the trucks

The little dudes hanging out, watching the action!

In front of a tire on the monster trucks. You can tell they were excited to be there!!!

Blue Eyes

2009-02-04T11:18:00.005-06:00

Shay played last night with Conley's booster seat for about 30minutes. It was so fun to watch her climb in and out. She would sit and look around waiting for someone to praise her efforts. Too funny! Love Shay's blue eyes.

Our first pony!

2009-02-02T17:48:00.003-06:00

Shay has her first ponytail today. When I picked her up from daycare they had her hat on her, and when I pulled it off at home, I was pleasantly surprised to see her hair in a ponytail. I have been so excited for her hair to get long enough!!!! I love ponytails, pigtails and all that girly stuff. She looked so cute and so grown up!!!

All grown up in her ponytail!

Conley of course wanted his picture taken and wanted Shay to sit in his lap. She wasn't cooperating, but was laughing at the same time.

I'm Freezing!

2009-02-01T14:32:00.004-06:00

I'm freezing! We have had some SERIOUS bills the last 2-3 months for our gas/electric. This last bill almost gave me a heart attack. Now, I understand it is winter and Iowa, my house is average size, and we have an outbuilding...but come on!!! We have now turned the thermostat down even further, and it's programmable so it goes really low when we are not here or sleeping. Nate's shop is set at 32, just to keep it above freezing for the vehicles, dog, and blind stuff.

A warning for visitors, wear your long underwear and wool sweaters, you're going to need them ;) I just had to take pics of my kids all bundled up in their beds. Shay was looking so precious asleep under her blanket.

You can barely see his little head poking out right under the stoplight sticker on the wall.

We are headed to Florida with Nate's family at the end of February and I can't wait for warmer weather. Mary gave the kids new swimsuits and "warm weather" outfits for Florida and now I'm even more excited and wishing we were leaving tomorrow!!!

Happy Birthday to me!!!

2009-01-26T19:10:00.003-06:00

I started my day with breakfast in bed (thanks babe), of course then Conley had to eat his breakfast in bed with me. Nate took my kids to daycare and I did whatever I wanted, it was great. He gave me a gift certificate for a massage he had schedule for me today at 2. It was AWESOME. Then reality set back in...daycare called and Shay had a fever, I had to go get her right away (oh and took Conley at the same time). A gourmet dinner of frozen pizza (Nate "cooked" it), and then a haircut for Conley. It wasn't going well, so he ended up with the buzz! I'm planning on spending the rest of the night on the couch and read some magazines or start my new book. Yes, I lead an exciting life!!! Truly I would have it no different!

Here is the after of the haircut process. Of course Shay is sporting the crazy hair as always. Nate saw this photo and commented that Shay's hair doesn't even look real. Poor girl!!!

This is a before haircut picture. They had played with shaving cream at daycare this day and his hair stood up on end!

On Sunday my mom and grammie Pat came over for dinner and birthday cake. Conley was very excited to blow out candles and then pull them out and lick the bottom!

Busy weekend!

2009-01-25T14:33:00.005-06:00

Shay got another ear infection this past Thursday, and thankfully is doing much better. The medicine does give her explosive poop and she is averaging 2 major blowouts per day. Laundry has never been so disgusting! On two occasions I gave in and just threw the undershirts away. Seriously disgusting!!!

Big shout out to my parents. They helped huge on Friday when daycare called to have me come pick Shay up. I really needed to get stuff done at work, and had left early the day before for her doctor's appointment. My parents picked up both kids and brought them to our house and hung out all afternoon. There is no greater blessing than having family close to help out, I truly appreciate that.

Saturday morning I was up bright and early to join Mindy and Chloe on a shopping spree at the Iowa City store's 1/2 Price Sale. I found some awesome bargains and got some cute stuff for both Shay and Conley. Saturday for lunch my aunt and grandma stopped by to hang out for the afternoon. They brought lunch and birthday presents (my birthday is tomorrow). I got the coolest vase from my aunt. I had to take a picture to show it off. It is very shallow and you put just a couple fresh stems in the vase. It looks AWESOME in my bathroom, thanks Linda!!! Saturday night my parents took us out to eat for my birthday, while Grammie babysat. I got to pick, so we went to The Atlas. Mindy introduced my to the buffalo chicken burrito awhile ago, and I fell in love. It was yummy!!!!

My vase with beautiful flowers. I not the best green thumb, but I am excited to buy fresh flowers for my bathroom. I'm sure my guests will appreciate my decorations as well ;)

Nate is quite handy and that has been both fun and costly throughout our marriage. He loves doing projects and upgrades around the house, but does come home with quite the Menards bill. His most recent project is the bed for Conley. He decided he was going to make Conley a bed when we moved Conley into his new room a year ago. He made a frame out of birch for the mattress and boxsprings to sit in and it has 2 drawers on each side for storage. This is great because we don't have a dresser in Conley's room. It is a little higher off the ground than I would prefer, but very nice. We already had a stool for Conley to use in the bathroom when he brushes his teeth, so we are using that for now. Of course Nate said he would build a little step unit that Conley could use to climb in until he is bigger.

It didn't fit up the stairs at first, so Nate and Luke had to take it apart in some places. It was funny watching them attempt it the first time. They would not admit it wasn't going to fit, they tried so hard, but eventually gave in to the spectators.

There was a little damage done to the wall, but of course Nate will just fix that. It was a tight squeeze and that is putting it lightly!!!

His bed all put together. He of course is very excited and of course tells me that his bed is "just for big boys, not shay-shay". Yes bossy ;)

Shay

2009-01-14T20:20:00.004-06:00

My aunt pointed out to me that Shay has been very absent from the blog. Well, she is anything but in our lives. She has changed so much and I can't believe her first birthday is less than one month away. She is sooooooooooo funny!!! She loves to be chased, tickled, kissed, and hugged. She is our dancing queen. The second she hears music, she gets her groove on!

Here is the skinny on Shay:

~She loves her brother...she pulls his hair and laughs at anything he does

~She LOVES to dance

~She loves to give kisses and hugs to her baby

~She loves to eat...has started eating what we eat and may eat as much as Conley at dinner (not saying much for those who know Conley's dinner habits)

~Uses the sign language for "more"

~Has 6 teeth, 4 on top and 2 on bottom

~She is a momma's girl

~She is crawling and is starting to pull up

She loved helping me with the laundry.

She probably ate more clothing than she helped fold, oh well!

She has the crazy hair going on all the time!

I can't cook...I hate cooking

2009-01-10T20:51:00.004-06:00

I do!

...I'm too tired

...I don't care

...We are not picky eaters (thank the Lord!)

...We don't have much time

...I'm not creative

...I'm too cheap

..I'd rather give excuses than just get busy cooking

I truly don't care if I cook my family dinner. Seriously, I will admit that we have eaten a lot of mac n cheese, grilled cheese, frozen pizza and other items that are shortening our life span and clogging our arteries! AND THEN... when I actually cook something that is somewhat creative and delicious, Nate and I get food poisoning!!! Seriously, how hilarious is that. Nate and I both had a little food poisoning this past week from something I prepared, yes our kids escaped the jaws of my cooking, praise the Lord!

Why bring this up, you may ask???

Well the other day I got creative and Conley and I made some trail mix, oh yes, VERY COMPLICATED. I hear the oohs, and aahs coming in! I have included pics as proof. This is a big step for me, you know they sell it already made in a bag at Walmart.

AND...Nate's mom has this crazy idea (but a REALLY good one) that I am going to start cooking using all this natural, healthy oil and stuff. Heck, I can't even remember what it is I'm supposed to cook with and she just told me about it 2 hours ago. We are already doomed! Now this new cooking idea of hers is healthy and may cure Nate's psoriasis, but could be fairly expensive. Sorry honey, you may have to live with it a little longer due to my "cheapness".

I did buy a book about crock pot cooking. I thought that would be easy for someone who works 50 hrs a week with two children. BUT...I haven't opened the book yet. I have never done new year's resolutions, but I think this may be my year. I may try to get organized and plan ahead my meals. I tried this once. It lasted about 3 months and then again, I got lazy. Writing this goal on the blog might make me stick to it. My family is hoping this new year's resolution will stick. Wish me luck!

Conley didn't understand that you can't just eat the M&Ms.

Conley showing off our new snack creation. It has lasted for a week, which is amazing considering it has chocolate as an ingredient!