The Kruse Kids

Oops!

2010-07-14T23:56:00.002-05:00

Well, I just realized that it has been almost a year since I have posted anything on this blog! Sorry about that. Things here have been a little crazy the past year! Where to even start!

Well, Jakob turned 8 in May. He is doing wonderful! He completed 2nd grade with flying colors. He will be in the Gifted Program in 3rd grade. This will be a challenge for him and I hope that he is up for it!

Alexa had an awesome year in kindergarten. She is reading amazingly well! She turned 6 this month. She is anxiously waiting for 1st grade to begin. She is done with summer and wants to get back to school!

Emma was 4 this month. She completed her first year of preschool. She will start up again come September and will be going 5 mornings a week. She is really looking forward to that! She has enjoyed her brother and sister being home with her all day. It gives her someone to play with!

And for me, I have been in school full time the last year. I am happy to report that it is going wonderfully and I will be graduating August 2nd! It is exciting and scary all at the same time. I want to get to work, but scared to get there at the same time. I have missed so much of the kids lives this past year, and I really don't want to miss anymore. Only time will tell!

Adam is also doing well. He has been at Advocate for 2 years this month. His little side business is also keeping him busy. It has just been hard with me at school all the time. It will get easier soon!

I think that is about all for now. I will try and keep this a bit more current! Time will finally be my own soon, so it should be a little easier!

School for me

2009-09-02T08:29:00.000-05:00

So, I have had 4 days of classes so far and I am feeling quite overwhelmed! This is going to be so time consuming and hard. I hope I can handle this! I want so badly to do well and I think with that attitude I will do well! Wish me luck!!!

New Haircut

2009-08-30T08:23:00.000-05:00

I decided that it was time to cut the girls hair. It wasn't extremely long, but I am trying to grow their bangs out that thought that this might help. It is just above their shoulders and looks so cute! It makes them both look so much older! I will post pictures once I take a few!

Kindergarten

2009-08-21T20:27:00.001-05:00

Can you believe that Alexa started Kindergarten today? It just doesn't seem possible to me! She was so excited. The best part of her day was finally getting to ride the school bus. Nothing else mattered. She also had a great day and loved meeting all the kids in her class. Let's hope she also keeps up the enthusiasm!

2nd Grade

2009-08-20T20:24:00.001-05:00

Jakob started 2nd grade today. It is so hard to believe that he is growing up so fast! He was so excited to get back to school and see the kids that were going to be in his class. He had a great first day! I only hope that this enthusiasm lasts the rest of his schooling years!!

Finally...

2009-08-11T11:38:00.001-05:00

I am pleased to announce that Emma is, for the most part, potty trained! It went a lot better than I thought it would. She wore underwear to bed last night and even woke up dry! This is very exciting news as we have been buying diapers/pull-ups for almost the last 7 and a half years. This expense is finally done. I'm sure we will find something else though.

It's official!!

2009-08-03T09:08:00.000-05:00

I finally got my acceptance letter in the mail for school. I was so excited! Classed begin August 24th. I have ordered all my books, which is very expensive by the way, peed in a cup, ordered my background check and trying to get to a store to get my scrubs. So much to do and so little time to do it! I will be able to breath much easier once it is all done! Yeah!!!

Sad to see them go...

2009-07-28T09:47:00.000-05:00

Today was the day that Papa and Grandma Patti had to leave to go home after being here for almost a month. It was wonderful having them here and we wish them good travels. Papa is going to be visiting again in October, so we will get to see him again then. The kids are already excited about that!

Founder's Day Parade

2009-07-25T09:42:00.000-05:00

We decided to go to the Founder's Day parade in Algonquin today. It was a good time and the weather was perfect! The sun was a little intense and about an hour and half into the parade Emma was really starting to fade. She was hot and hungry. We went and played in the fountain to cool her off. She seemed better and we decided to leave and go and get something to eat at the grounds. Once she ate she was all better. Adam bought tickets for the girls and they rode a ride. Jake got jealous, so Adam bought him a couple of tickets and he went through the Fun House. He really enjoyed that! It was a good day and we are so glad that Grandma Patti got to join us.

Camping

2009-07-15T14:07:00.003-05:00

So, we got back from camping earlier this afternoon. We went to Hidden Valley in Milton, WI. The weather turned out well. I had allergies and a migraine for about 2 days. Jake had really bad allergies and I was having him take allergy pills so that he could breath. Adam got really pink eye the day before we left. I got almost no sleep at all. Adam slept with Jake in a tent. I slept with the girls in Papa and Grandma Patti's motor home. The last night there it rained so hard that Jake and Adam ended coming in the motor home at about 2:45am. Good times!

The kids had a great time and that is really what it is all about! Can't wait to do it again next year; I think!!

Alexa & Emma's Birthday Party

2009-07-11T14:05:00.002-05:00

Today we had a party for the girl's. Alexa made it to 5 and Emma survived to 3! They had a great time. There were a lot of people that attended and there were 13 kids running around and screaming all day. It was a lot of fun.

The adults also got to have a little fun. A little later in the day we set up Rock Band and rocked it out. Sounds pathetic, but we had a good time. I love our friends; they're the best!!

Sorry...

2009-07-06T22:04:00.002-05:00

So, it has been brought to my attention that I have not updated my blog in awhile! Well, I know this is true! I just haven't had the time, energy or pictures. I have really slacked on pictures and my kids life are going to be missing a great chunk picture-wise when they look back later in life for pictures. I suppose that isn't so good for them, but it is done and there is not much that I can do about that!

Anyway, today is Alexa's 5th birthday! Can you believe how the time has flown! I can't believe that she will officially be starting kindergarten in August! Time sure flies when you are having fun!

Emma turned 3 yesterday! The baby is no longer a baby! So hard to believe! She has started potty training and hopefully she will have it down pat so that she will be able to start preschool in September.

Jakob turned 7 May 6th! I still find it hard to believe that I now have a 7 year old! It feels like only yesterday that I was pregnant with him and he was born! He will be starting 2nd grade in August.

Adam is still loving the job at Good Shephard. I am so happy that he made the switch and is happy to go to work everyday. That always make the job so much better.

As for myself, I will be starting Massage Therapy school in August. I will be full time for 11 months, but it will be so worth it! I am so excited about starting, but scared to death with all the work, time and effort that has to go into it! It is going to be a rough 11 months for everyone, but so worth it in the end!

I think that is about all for now. I will try to be more consistent and post what pictures I do have later!!

Wedding

2008-11-29T11:10:00.006-06:00

Adam and I attended his cousin's, Dan, wedding on Friday, November 28th. It was a beautiful wedding and everything seemed to go just as planned. They did a great job and I'm sure they will remember the day for the rest of their lives!

Her dress was beautiful.

Lighting the Unity Candle

Leaving for the first time as husband and wife. They make a beautiful couple!

Adam's grandmother. She is 89 years old and still beautiful!

Adam and I at the end of the night.

Roof

2008-10-31T20:57:00.002-05:00

So, for those of you that don't know we had a huge hail storm on July 3rd. We had to have our roof replaced and about 8 pieces of siding replaced on the one wall. After an adjuster that didn't do us much good and trying to get somewhere with the insurance company, the new roof was finally started this morning! They finished almost the whole thing. It looks really nice! I will have to post pictures of the before and after once I take some of the afters.

Halloween!

2008-10-31T20:36:00.000-05:00

It is finally Halloween and the kids are ecstatic! Jakob had school and we got ready to go a little after he got home. It was an incredible day around here. The temperature was in the upper 70's, which is wonderful for us Midwesterners this time of year! We were out for over an hour and a half. They all did well. Emma pooped out about 8 houses from ours on the way back. Good thing we brought the stroller! It was a good time and I hope it is even better next year!
This was the last photo and pretty much all they were saying was "Are you done yet? We want to go trick or treating!".

We had this Cubs jersey and finally talked Jakob into being a Cubs player for Halloween.

Alexa really wanted to be Tinkerbell, but didn't want to have a green costume.

Grandma made the girls costumes and they turned out just beautiful!

Emma was just so excited for it to finally Ha-Na-Neen!

She looked so adorable!

Pumpkin Carving

2008-10-29T14:46:00.010-05:00

One of our favorite things to do come Halloween is get pumpkins and carve them. The kids had a great time. This year we let Jakob do just about everything himself. I had to help with the clean out part as it isn't always the easiest thing to do. The girls were in heaven. We let them scribble all over them (to make the faces to carve) and Adam helped them with the carving part. Emma would not stop smiling! It was a fun evening, but I am glad it is only once a year with the mess that is made!
At least this year Jakob wasn't gagging as he is pulling the guts out of the pumpkin.

Very pleased that we let him do most of the work by himself.

As you can see, Jakob gets very into his work!

Waiting patiently for her turn to start attacking the helpless pumpkin.

Emma just kept saying "Cheese!" so I would take her picture!

Very excited that Daddy is letting her do some damage to the pumpkin. Again, a huge smile on her face!

Alexa, "No, do it this way!".

Trying very hard to get that mouth that she carved to pop out.

Again with the "Cheese!" line!

Finally, Daddy let her have her turn! Very exciting!

This was my attempt at night photography of the pumpkins lit up outside. As you can see, it didn't turn out so well, but it looks neat!

Wisconsin Dells

2008-10-13T14:30:00.002-05:00

We decided to go to The Dells over the weekend as the kids had some time off school. We thought that we got a really great deal too! We arrived at our hotel on Friday afternoon and were quite disappointed as we were pulling up. See, we had gone to The Dells about 3 1/2 years ago and loved it! The hotel that we had stayed at had changed names and we thought that was where we were staying on this trip. Needless to say, it was not. We ended up getting right on the phone and booked a different hotel for the next night. Adam and I did not want to admit to the kids that we had messed up, so we stated that how cool was it that we were going to stay at 2 different hotels on one trip! They could not have been more excited! The second hotel was wonderful! It had 3 separate indoor pool/play areas. It was a lot of fun! We plan to go there in the future, although we aren't sure when that will be as it was not the cheapest place around!

And that's that...

2008-10-04T14:25:00.002-05:00

Adam decided last night that Emma was no longer going to be using a pacifier. She went to the Dentist on Thursday and she highly recommended that she stop the pacifier as it is starting to cause a good amount of damage to her teeth. Her front teeth do not touch and she said it will start to repair itself the sooner she is off of the pacifier. Adam took it heart and off we went. It was the worst getting her to go to sleep. She ended up in our bed as she wouldn't stay asleep and all we wanted was sleep. It could have been so much worse so I am not complaining too bad! She will be better off in the end!

Alexa's first day of preschool

2008-09-03T10:26:00.005-05:00

So, we weren't as happy as we had been at our previous preschool, so we decided to switch Alexa this year to a brand new preschool. A former teacher from the old preschool works there also. Alexa is so excited that she also gets to see Miss Lisa everyday! Alexa loved her first day and couldn't wait to go back! Her pictures went much more smoothly, although she did keep asking when we were going to leave!

Jakob's first day of school

2008-08-25T10:20:00.001-05:00

Today Jakob started first grade. I can't believe that he is even old enough to be in first grade! He was so not into having his picture taken this morning! All he did was complain. The sun is in my eyes, my eyes hurt, when can we go, are you done yet, etc. I barely got any decent shots and these are as good as it gets!

Back to school

2008-08-19T10:36:00.002-05:00

Last night was the first night of class for me. I am taking Women's Health Issues and a Career Development. The Women's class falls under a section that I need to graduate and the Career class I am taking in hopes of figuring out what I want to do when I grow up! Wish me the best and I will keep you posted on my progress!

Family pictures

2008-07-30T13:13:00.009-05:00

We had some family pictures taken on July 5th. We had Papa and Grandma Patti join us on a few shots. They turned out really nice. I'm glad we will always have those memories!

(Sorry these are so big! I tried adding the pictures a different way and they turned out huge! I am not going back to fix it now. Enjoy anyway!)

The Zoo

2008-07-26T13:59:00.000-05:00

We decided to go to Brookfield Zoo today with Papa and Grandma Patti. It turned out to be such a hot and sticky day. The kids really didn't care. In the shade with the breeze it was beautiful. A good time was had by all though!

My favorite exhibit (the Butterflies) was open and they were very active this time. I took nearly 300 pictures. Not many turned out that spectacular, but it was fun none the less! Adam was a little surprised by that. He are a few that I took.

The lion was sleeping, but he was beautiful!

The bear was also sleeping.

But the polar bears were wide awake and playing!

The sea lions were also swimming around. This guy had just jumped out of the water, scooted to the back, and froze before he jumped back in the water. It was incredible!

We also saw a hippo that was hanging out under the water. We had waited for quite awhile and the kids were getting inpatient staring at a blob in the water. We had started to walk away and up he comes for air. It was really neat.

Oh yeah, and I also took a couple of the kids!

Riding the bike

2008-07-24T13:47:00.002-05:00

So, this is the first summer that we actually got Jakob to ride his bike. We have had bikes for him 3 summers in a row now and he has been to scared up to this point to ride them. We were told that they were to wiggly and who were we to question kids logic! We finally got pictures of the boy and his bike! He is also so verry proud of himself!

And who could forget Alexa! She was following behind Jakob as fast as her little legs could carry her on the little bike (that is now Emma's by the way!). She was also very cute that day!

Camping

2008-07-18T14:02:00.003-05:00

We went camping again for the last four days. We went to Milton, Wisconsin to a private RV resort. The kids had a great time! There was a pool and a craft every afternoon. It is a place the we plan on returning to next year!

The wheat field that was right behind our campsite.

A dragonfly that just happened to land right next to me as I was taking a picture of something else. I moved the tiniest little bit to try and get a little closer and off he flew! He was beautiful though!

Emma acting oh so silly when I was trying to put her to bed.

The moon over the trees and the wheat field. The photo does not do justice to how beautiful it was that night.

This is on of the playgrounds that is on the campground. Emma was napping so there are no photos of her. Jake and Alexa had a great time though.

I think I can!

Good news!

2008-07-14T07:44:00.001-05:00

So, Adam finally got the call this afternoon offering him the job! He will be a Networ Administrator for Advocate at Good Shepherd Hospital. His first day is July 28th. He is very excited and can't wait to start!

A day at the park

2008-07-13T08:16:00.001-05:00

Today was Uncle Rob, Aunt Lindsey and Larz's last day. We decided to go to a local park for some playing and picture taking. The kids had a great time and it was difficult to get them to leave. It was a beautiful day and Aunt Lindsey got some great shots!

Going down the super long slide. My kids could have done this all day!

Just having some fun!

And finally, some group shots.

The Party

2008-07-12T07:53:00.004-05:00

The cake pretty much says it all! We had the girls' birthday party today. It turned out to be a gorgeous day and a really good time. Everyone went above and beyond yet again. They were showered in gifts that really weren't necessary! It was a special day. We were all really happy that Uncle Rob, Aunt Lindsey and Larz got to be there for the first time. A good time was had by all and that is all that matters!

Let the present opening begin!

Jake got a new Encyclopedia which he really enjoyed reading!

Let them eat cake!

Emma...

2008-07-09T07:45:00.001-05:00

Emma found the shirt that I was going to dress her in and decided that she was going to leave the dressing to herself! As you can see, it didn't go so well, but it was funny and very cute!

Happy Birthday Alexa!

2008-07-06T13:54:00.002-05:00

So, today is Alexa's birthday and she has made it to 4! It has been a long 4 years, but we love her so much! She makes everyday a challenge and a pleasure all at the same time! Happy Birthday baby!

Can't we just blow out the candles already!

I'm 4, now let's eat!

Delicious!

Happy Birthday Emma!!

2008-07-05T13:42:00.002-05:00

I find it so hard to believe that my baby girl is 2 years old today! Time sure has flown by. We have enjoyed her so much and are so lucky to have been given her! Happy Birthday baby girl!

Let's get this cake thing going!

I did it! Now let's eat!

I might as well get comfortable!

I'm 2 years old!

Messing around

2008-06-20T13:35:00.003-05:00

The kids and I were upstairs just messing around after I had just put the girls' hair up. Alexa's hair looked especially poofy, so I thought that I would get a few pictures.

And there is Emma and her hair!

The girls always look so cute together!

What Jakob??

Dinner on the deck

2008-06-05T09:00:00.003-05:00

Our deck was finished October last year and we never really got a chance to use it. We just got new furniture and were able to eat dinner for the very first time out there. The kids loved it! It was a nice treat. Emma discovered watermelon on the rind and just grabbed piece after piece. The juice was just running every where. She was a mess and needed a bath after the meal, but it was worth it!

Oh, and I also got a few shots of the other kids!

Camping

2008-05-14T16:33:00.007-05:00

We recently went camping with Papa and Grandma Patti to Kettle Moraine State Park-Southern Unit near Eagle, Wisconsin.

The kids had a great time! Adam slept with Jake and Alexa in a tent for the first time ever! I slept with Emma in the trailer with Papa and Grandma Patti. It was much more comfortable than the ground!

They had a nice playground that the kids had a great time burning off some energy on. It also made some really great pictures!

Jake set his hat down and Emma took this opportunity to wear it while she could!

Jakob and Alexa also got to experience fishing for the first time. They are definitely not experts yet, but we'll work on that! Here's Jake trying his hand at it.

And here's Alexa.

We also found an old water pump that the kids were really fascinated in. We got some nice pictures of that also.

All in all it was a successful trip. So much so that we are planning on going again in July!

Great Grandma's House

2008-05-10T16:56:00.002-05:00

We went to Adam's Grandmother's house today to celebrate Mother's Day with her and Adam's step-mother, Patti. It was a really nice time. The kids got to play outside while everyone did some work around Grandma's house. Her flowers are in bloom and they were beautiful!

Emma loved the flowers and I got a great shot of her exploring the tulip before she crushed it to death!

Her lilacs were also in full bloom and gorgeous! I love the smell of lilacs. The kids saw me smelling them, so of course they had too! I managed to sneak a few pictures. Daddy had to assist Emma a little bit as she was a little to short to reach!

We than decided to go to the park that is right by Grandma's house. Needless to say, the kids, again, had a great time!

After dinner, the kids got a little more play time in. All the pictures were of Emma playing though! Maybe I can get those other two next time!

All in all it was a great day and I'm glad that we had the opportunity to spend the day with Grandma and Great Grandma!

Final Grade...

2008-05-09T20:07:00.002-05:00

So, I checked out my grade online for my computer class. I am pleased to announce that I got an A! I am very pleased with that as I was quite unsure from the final how I was going to do. I start my next class June 7th. We'll have to see if that one goes as smoothly!

Flowers from Uncle Rob

2008-05-09T17:22:00.002-05:00

I was shocked and amazed when the door bell rang at about 4PM and was greeted by a flower delivery. Adam accepted the delivery and I was even more shocked and amazed to see that they were from my favorite brother, Rob! They were very pretty!

Thank you Rob! Your the best! I love you!

Jake's 6th Birthday Party

2008-05-05T10:59:00.003-05:00

So, the theme for Jake's party this year was camping. It started the night before when Adam really got into decorating the entrance to the house. He did a great job and looked really nice!

Here is Alexa, Papa and Jakob before the party started. This is a nice picture of them!

The weather turned out great and the kids were able to spend a lot of time outside. We were a little worried as to how the weather was going to turn out as it was in the 40's and raining on Saturday! Needless to say, we lucked out!

The kids enjoyed eating at the kids sized picnic table!

Than the present opening began!I have never seen Jake so excited about his gifts. Most of the gifts went along with the camping theme and he was a kid in a candy store!

Alexa got a gift herself and posed for a picture with her cousin, Sidney.

A little after that, the best gift was about to be opened. Jake received the Wii Mario Kart game. He just looked at the box and said "I don't have this, why am I getting a game?" I just whispered to say thank you and we'll deal with it later. We are so lucky that he didn't see through that and figure out our gift to him! The last gift was the gift from Mom and Dad. The boy about jumped out of his skin with excitement! It was priceless!

Cake time soon arrived after that. I do have to say that my Mom gets some of the coolest cakes. The kids always love them. This year was no exception!

It seemed to have been a great day and everyone said that it was a nice party and they had a good time. That's all that matters!

Things...

2008-04-29T13:33:00.001-05:00

So, I weighed in again this morning. I was please that I at least lost 0.8 pounds. This makes for a grand total of 29.1 pounds. My goal was to have lost 30 pounds by Jake's party, but I will take what I can get! I am just having a tough time staying motivated and on track. I have had so much emotionally to deal with and that isn't helping. I just want nice, warm, sunny weather and that should help!

The kids are doing well. I can't believe that next Tuesday Jake will be 6 years old! I just can't fathom that. It seems like yesterday that he was born. All the kids are getting so big. I want them to stay little forever! I love them so much!

10%

2008-04-09T21:44:00.001-05:00

So, I did my weekly weigh in on Tuesday and I am pleased to report that I have lost an additional 4.4 pounds. This makes a grand total of 26.5 pounds. It also means that with that weigh in I have lost 10% of my starting weight. It means that I am getting somewhere! I still wish that I could make it go a little more quickly, but that is all the complaining that I am going to do!

Jake's tooth!

2008-04-03T14:54:00.002-05:00

So, we went out to dinner last night and I heard this screaming from across the restaurant. I really didn't want to know what was going on, but made my way back to the table anyway. Jake had taken a bite of pizza and he had blood all in his mouth and his face was all blotchy from crying. Adam stated that his tooth was so loose that he was surprised that is was still holding on, so to speak. He just kept complaining about it hurting, so Adam took him into the bathroom and pulled it out. This is his fourth tooth that he has lost. The first two were quite awhile ago and the third one was on Sunday, which he must have swallowed with dessert because we never found it. He looks so funny now and we had a good time last night making fun of him because he was talking a bit funny!
He is going to look really funny soon if his teeth start falling out faster than they can grow in!
Once we started taking Jake's picture everyone had to get a piece of that action. This is the best, real smile that we could get out of Alexa.
We kept telling Emma to move so that we could get a picture of Jake's missing teeth. She just kept laughing and pointing to her teeth. She is too funny sometimes!
We figured we might as well get all 3 of the kids in one picture for once. This isn't something that happens very often anymore!

Getting there

2008-04-02T10:27:00.000-05:00

As of my weight in yesterday, I have lost a total of 22.1 pounds. I still have a long way to go, but at least I'm trying!

Minnesota

2008-03-30T11:17:00.006-05:00

So, we decided very last minute to go to Minnesota for Spring Break. We got a great deal on a hotel and just wanted to do something. We figured that the kids would love it with all the things to do. We left Easter Sunday (the 23rd) and returned Thursday (the 27th). The Mall of America was a big hit. If it had been warmer there would have been a few more things to do. That's okay though, the kids still had a good time!

Emma had a really great time and got in some really good naps! She slept like this for over an hour! I wish I could sleep any place or any where! Oh, to be a kid again!

Alexa also had a great time! She wasn't tall enough to ride some of the rides, so we had to distract her so that Adam and Jake could go off and ride the rides that she couldn't. Grandma and I took her to Club Libby Lu and she had a "makeover" done. She loved it! She looked to adorable!

Watching as her nails were getting painted.

You have to give your lips a good smack after getting lip gloss on!

Isn't she just the cutest thing! She was all smiles for quite some time after we left!

Doing a little pose.

Unfortunately, we have no pictures of Jake. It is so hard to take pictures and watch 3 kids in an extremely crowded mall. Needless to say, we had a great time and did some good shopping. I can't wait to go back!

Weigh in

2008-03-18T09:28:00.001-05:00

I weighed in this morning and was delighted to learn that I had lost another 2.7 pounds. This makes a grand total of 20.9 pounds gone forever. I sure hope that I can keep up the momentum!

Yeah!!

2008-03-18T09:25:00.002-05:00

So, Alexa went all day yesterday, again, with no accidents. She is even starting to run into the bathroom when she has to go, with no reminders.She is so proud of herself. Now all we have to do is get Emma to use the potty and we will officially diaper free!

Success?!

2008-03-17T07:00:00.002-05:00

So, yesterday was the first day that Alexa used the potty exclusively and had no accidents! She even did #2 before going to bed! She was so proud of herself. This is such a huge relief. It is still going to take some effort on our part because I still don't think that she gets when she has to go, but we're working on it! We are so proud of our little girl! This just took a huge stress out of our lives!

And the battle begins...

2008-03-14T10:21:00.002-05:00

Yesterday began the battle of all battles in our house. We started potty training Alexa. We have been hyping it up saying that once we were out of diapers that she would have to begin using the potty. She would always agree, but I don't think that she would take us to seriously. The day finally came and each attempt at sitting her on the potty ended in a lot of tears shed (by Alexa, not us yet!). She peed once and was so proud! She even asked to yell out the slider door that she did it town. It was very cute! But, about 30 minutes later, she had another accident. We are using pull-ups at night as we don't expect her to be able to so it all in one day. She kept asking once Jake got home from school "Is it night time now?". Our answer was "Yes, but are not getting a pull-up until bedtime!". "OH!" was the comment that we got back. It is 10:30 in the morning and so far all I have got her to do is nothing. One pair of underwear have been slightly damp, so I know it is there. She just refuses to give up control and just use the potty! It is making for a very long morning, let me tell you! I wish that there was some miracle way of doing this so that she had the confidence and we didn't have the headache!

Back to school

2008-03-12T22:56:00.001-05:00

Last night I started my first class in I can't even tell you how long! I have decided that it is time to finally go back and get my Associates. I only have 5 classes left and can't wait to be done! Wish me luck! This is going to get challenging as the classes get a little tougher, but I'll figure out how to make it work! Only 7 more weeks to go!

Slowly, but surely...

2008-03-11T09:24:00.000-05:00

So, I weighed in this morning and discovered that I had lost another 3.3 pounds. That makes for a total of 18.2 pounds so far. I really wish that this process didn't take so long, but what can you do. I am doing this to be healthy and I am going to make it stick this time!

The Girls

2008-03-01T22:51:00.001-06:00

The girls and I were playing around yesterday while Jake was at school. I figured I hadn't taken any pictures of them lately, so I grabbed the camera. It is so hard to get good pictures of them anymore. Alexa always wants to see the picture on the camera once it has been taken. She is leaving the spot she was in before you can even finish taking the picture. Emma just wants to attack the camera and moves towards you as soon as she sees the camera. It makes photo shoots much more interesting!

I love my socks!

2008-03-01T22:45:00.001-06:00

Again, these are pictures of Emma that Adam took February 26th. Emma will not keep her socks on her feet for anything anymore. She kept taking them off and shoving them in her mouth and running around like that. She thought it was hysterical! Adam finally grabbed the camera and the rest was history!

Emma...

2008-02-29T22:36:00.000-06:00

So, these pictures were taken February 1st, but I forgot that they were on the camera. I gave the kids a snack one afternoon while they were catching up on a little TV. I wasn't really paying much attention as I was putting everything away and cleaning up some things in the kitchen. When I turned around Emma was at the couch with her bowl full of snacks. She placed the snacks on the couch and made a few attempts before she was able to make it up. Finally she made it! It took awhile before she decided on her final position. She just sat there eating her snack and she couldn't have been happier!

Jake's play

2008-02-27T22:30:00.004-06:00

Today was Jakob's kindergarten class play. It was 'The Mitten' by Jan Brett. Jake was one of the narrators. He wore khaki pants, a light blue button down shirt and a navy striped tie. He looked very handsome. All the kids did a great job! Jake was on stage the whole time and just couldn't seem to sit still. All the kids seemed to remember their lines; which is a good thing! Once we got home, I remembered that we didn't bring the camera so all we have a the cabcorder recording. Maybe one day I'll take some pictures again!

Thank goodness!

2008-02-26T15:27:00.003-06:00

I was very excited this morning when I got on the scale and saw that I had lost 5.4 pounds! After a slight gain last week, which was very detrimental, I was very excited! This makes the total lost of 15.3 pounds. I hope that I can keep up this momentum and get a lot of this weight off by summer! That would make me extremely happy!

Yippee!!!

2008-02-12T10:23:00.000-06:00

So I weighed in this morning and was very pleased to learn that I have lost 4.8 pounds for the week! I was shocked and surprised! That is very encouraging to me! That's what will motivate me to keep it going!

Jake

2008-02-11T17:02:00.000-06:00

So, Jake was up at about 2am crying and really complaining that his ear hurt. He couldn't sleep or get comfortable at all. He finally quieted down about 5am. We thought all was well and at about 6am heard some noise on the bathroom. Adam went to check and discovered that he had just thrown up twice. Needless to say, he didn't go to school and I ended up taking him to the immediate care center. He has fluid behind his eardrum and his eardrum is red. They gave him a decongestant and a prescription for an antibiotic. Hopefully we can get enough doses in him and he will sleep well tonight and be off to school tomorrow!!

Snow day

2008-02-06T23:29:00.000-06:00

Jake had a snow day from school taoday. We ended up with about a foot of snow once it stopped snowing. I am so tired of snow and can't wait for spring!

Weigh in

2008-02-05T22:25:00.000-06:00

I weighed in this morning and was a little disappointed that I only lost 1.6 pounds. I was hoping for a little more as it is still new. Oh well! I can't let that hold me back now. I just have to keep reminding myself that this is for me and I am doing this to be healthy! I just really hope that next week goes a little better.

Gym consult

2008-02-02T11:27:00.000-06:00

At the gym they give free consults every 3 months to see what progress you are making. They check body fat, body composition, flexibility, strength, endurance. I think that is it. I knew it wasn't going to be good, but to hear and see it written on paper is more disappointing. I am using that as motivation to do this. I don't ever want to see numbers that are that bad again!!

The gym

2008-01-31T23:23:00.000-06:00

I decided to aid in the weight loss that I should join a gym. I joined this afternoon and feel good about my decision. I'm hoping that will make my progress better. I am looking to gain energy and better health.

Yipee!

2008-01-29T11:22:00.000-06:00

I had my first weigh in this morning and I lost 4 pounds! That is very encouraging to me. I need to see results to keep this thing going!

It's Time...

2008-01-23T11:20:00.000-06:00

So, I have decided that it time to start the weight loss journey again. I am very unhappy with myself and it is time that I do something about it. I have signed up on a site that tracks my calories, fat and what not. I am looking to make this permanent. I would love any encouragement that I can get!

Christmas Morning!

2007-12-31T12:57:00.000-06:00

The kids were so excited about Christmas morning. They came running in our room "Santa came, Santa came!". We made them wait a little bit before we dove into the mountains of presents. They are so much fun to watch. That is what makes Christmas so much fun to me!

Emma!

2007-12-19T12:44:00.000-06:00

Emma grabbed the blanket off the couch and started having a great time! Most of the pictures didn't turn out as she was moving so fast or darting for the camera once she saw it. She is so cute!

Ice Storm

2007-12-13T12:13:00.000-06:00

So we had this really bad ice storm that came through and covered everything. The trees looked beautiful and I had to try and get a couple shots.

Decorating the tree

2007-11-30T11:56:00.000-06:00

Adam decided it was time to put the Christmas tree up. The kids had a great time looking at all the ornaments and than putting them on the tree. Emma had more fun taking the ornaments off! It's hard to believe that Christmas is less than a month away!