A New Type of Nesting

The Real Sufferer...

2012-02-13T12:51:00.001-06:00

Nate pointed out to me that the real person that has suffered throughout the bout of flu in our house is the blog. In fact, it HAS been a while since we delivered a quality post that wasn't about what was going OUT of us instead of going ON with us.

This is something I hope to rectify soon with some great photos from our weekend at home, some recent amazing recipes we have tried, and just more general merriment than the moan and groan (literally) of the flu.

In the meantime, here is a pic of Tillie to tide you over:

The Flu Strikes Again

2012-02-09T10:12:00.000-06:00

Yes. We are once again sick with the flu in the Hanson house. This time, I was the unfortunate one to be taken down. Matilda still seems to have been lucky enough to avoid it, and I hope it stays that way.

We had a FABULOUS weekend with Grandma visiting. We got to do all sorts of fun things like go to brunch, Nate and I got a spin class in, we did lots of shopping, lots of playing with Til. And then Tuesday came.

I went off to work. Mom stayed with Tillie.
I came home from work.
We left to go to a nice dinner and to the Lion King (which was such a great show).
Came home.

3AM the stomach rumbles start. You know how you know you are getting sick, but you are in denial. That was me. Until the throwing up started.

In parallel to this happening, Matilda had her worst night of sleep in a LONG time. So when she woke up and was super cranky, I could just envision a day of miserable baby at daycare. I asked my Mom is she would consider staying an extra day so that we could keep Matilda at home. She said yes.

So I went back to bed, and Grandma and Matilda started playing.

Fast forward about an hour when my MOM starts getting sick. So here we are both sick with the flu.

Nate ended up coming home from work to take care of Matilda. Classic shit show. In many cases of the word.

It didn't end the way it should have, but it was still a great visit. We always love having visitors, especially Grandma!

The "Other" Ekern Girls

2012-02-02T09:19:00.002-06:00

This past weekend was a fabulous weekend (minus the whole Nate being deathly ill part).

BOTH of the 'other' Ekern girls were in town. We have so enjoyed having Emily in Minneapolis and getting to see her a few times each week. Matilda definitely enjoys her too!

Meghan came up to visit, so we had lots of fun things planned.

The girls did dinner with Tillie at our house one night. Emily is getting quite skilled at feeding the little gremlin.

We also headed to east to St. Paul to try to partake in some of teh Winter Carnival festivities. There was a 'beer dabbler' that was going on but apparently it was so cool it sold out.

So we just walked around, looked at the ice sculptures, and took in the cold January air.

The ice sculptures were a little intense (think man shackled to the ground trying to break free), and I happend to say that I thought they were a little serious, and was expecting more like unicorns and penguins.

We turned the corner and here is what we saw:

Yup, Unicorns.

Matilda was happy about that.

We headed to Punch for dinner, WITH Matilda, and thus fulfilling a 7 months dream that Nate has had.

Where the whole fam goes and enjoys dinner together.

Sure, we at at 4:45. Like senior citizens.

But we did it.

We dominated the pizza. Tillie dominated some squash.

And we capped off the evening o' fun with a massive game of Killer Bunnies.

Emily and I formed a stellar alliance, but to no avail.

Meghan still killed it, and walked away the victor.

The next morning, while Nate was perishing in the basement, we got to go to a favorite brunch spot, get a Target run in and have some more general merriment with Tillie.

Come back soon, Meghan! I need you to pick out paint colors for my kitchen!!

Tummy Time? No Thanks.

2012-01-31T12:39:00.000-06:00

How do you make a child do tummy time when this is what happens:

"No Thanks Daddy..."

"Oh, you wanted me to do Tummy time? I thought maybe you just wanted me to rest on daddy's belly"

"Ummm...no thanks on this little manuever. I would rather just rest my head and take a little snooze.

Just. Like. This"

"Alright, fine. If I just hold my head up for a few seconds, will you please put me back on my butt?"

7 Months!

2012-01-30T21:20:00.001-06:00

Ahhhh, 7 Months.

How I love thee.

Matilda continues to make our hearts bigger and bigger each day.

I'm actually surprised they haven't exploded yet.

She has started clapping.

and you can tell she is just so proud of herself when she does.

She has also started to really show preference.

She will do the reach and face pat for those she is very comfortable.

She will start flapping her arms very excitedly when she sees someone she knows and likes (my favorite part of getting her from daycare).

And she has a willful way of showing me she doesnt' like certain foods (mainly prunes) by turning her head and refusing to turn back my way until there is something else on that spoon.

She is a very happy little baby.

Making lots and lots of noises, and sounds, and babbles.

But definitely prefers her little gremlin noises. Perhaps its because we are always singing to her and it is her way of trying to sing too?

We have enjoyed lots of fun play time now that she is staying up a little longer in between naps.

The work nights still fly by to fast, but I am so blessed to get to pop down and see my little one at work.

Matilda is also trying hard to pick up food for herself. She still suffers from "dead arms and dancing feet" (as explained in a previous post), BUT she has started to attempt to pick up food.

It is pretty freaking cute because she concentrates So. Hard.

And then gets Soooooo frustrated.

There continues to be no concern on the weight gain front. :)

The thighs keep getting juicier.

We had to take Matilda to the doctor last week, so we know her 7 month stats come in at a nice 17 pounds, 10 oz.

Matilda has started getting breakfast at daycare.

It is one of my favorite moments of the day.

After I drop her off, I pack my stuff up and peek in for a few seconds.

I watch her strapped into her high-chair like a big girl, trying to figure out her sippy cup and watching the other kids.

ALWAYS watching other kids. Hopefully these kids are upstanding citizens, because I am pretty sure Matilda will learn all of her 'cool tricks' from them...

7 Months. The best yet....

Down and Out

2012-01-29T20:57:00.000-06:00

This weekend was such a GREAT weekend, only to end on a sour note. Nate is sick. Like not "I have a sniffly cold sick".

No. The kind of sick where you aren't sure which side to face the toilet. The kind of sick where you rub your feet together all day because you ache from a fever.

The kind of sick that causes you to self-quarantine yourself to the basement so as to minimize exposure to wife and child.

Luckily, Meghan and Emily were here to help get the massive target run done and accompany Tillie and I to Moose and Sadie's for brunch.

So hold please, while we take some time to recuperate. Well, one of us is recuperating, the other is busy with a baby and keeping the home fires burning...

Fresh Food Fast: Episode 3

2012-01-25T21:07:00.000-06:00

Well, our first night of cooking lessons with Emily got off to a lame start because Nate was running a little late from work, and so it was baby duty and dinner duty.

So the lesson was lame, but important: Jarred garlic is crap unless it is an emergency situation.

And this was an emergency so we used it.

But the result was pretty good. We made Pasta with Arugula, White Beans and Walnuts. (Click for link to recipe).

I thought it was pretty tasty, but it was admittedly a little weird at first.

If you make it be sure to add the full amount of arugula. That is where a lot of the flavor comes from, and it is a little bland without it.

Weekend Fling in WI

2012-01-24T09:38:00.002-06:00

We headed home for a quick visit and some great snuggles from the Grandparents this past weekend.

Luckily the snow subsided long enough that the "Christmas Cancelor" (I.e. my father) couldn't put the hammer down and say we couldn't come. Yes, he does seem to still weild that much power even as I approach my 30th year...
It was a very fun, low-key weekend. Even though Matilda had a nasty cold and pretty much shot bright green snot out of her nose every time she sneezed, she was in pretty good spirits.

AND....hat pracitice is totally paying off, because now she can sport Grandpa's hat!!

In other news, she did decide to finally roll over this weekend. And after she did it, I felt like she gave me a look that just said: "There..I did it. Can you please just let me sit up now, and forget this rolling over business?"

Dead Arms and Dancing Feet

2012-01-21T13:47:00.000-06:00

Matilda has always been highly adept at using her fingers, ESPECIALLY as it relates to putting her fingers in her mouth.

So, naturally one would imagine that this child would dominate getting food into her mouth. Wrong.

In fact, after we strap her into her highchair, she all but forgets she has arms let alone hands with fingers attached that are perfect at picking things up.

If you put some food in front of her, she will do everything she can to get it in her mouth including screaming until you feed her and licking the tray with her mouth EXCEPT attempt to pick the food up with her hands.

Enter--Dead Arms and Dancing Feet.

This isn't the best representation of dead arms because she doesn't attempt to pick up the nectarine with her mouth, but you can see she has no interest in activating her upper limbs to obtain gastro-intestinal delight.

She does however keep her little twinkly toes moving non-stop. This is a common occurrence. Put this child anywhere and watch her feet dance. Just like she skipped rolling over, I think she may skip walking and go straight to dancing. We shall see.

Fresh Food Fast: Episode 2

2012-01-18T20:19:00.002-06:00

We are loving our new cookbook so far and have made a few good things from it. With Emily in town for the 'semester' we are really excited to have someone else to cook for (and with). Nate says we are going to give her cooking lessons.

In reality, I think it will be more like 'how to keep your baby entertained while you try to whip something edible together' lessons. Either way it should come in handy.

We tried our hand at Ginger Lime Chicken with Carrot Couscous. Click for recipe!

Here's the deal:

1) We adored the couscous. It will absolutely be a new staple side in our house.

2) Both were ridiculously easy, and tasty.

3) We did breasts instead of thighs, so ours got a little dry. If we do breasts again we would alter the cook time slightly.

Matilda also got to try something new....this is going to be a very tricky one people. But the hint is that she LOVED it (if you can't tell). This was literally the first face she made after trying this new food. HINT: her Mom and Dad both love it and it goes great with a bowl of chips.

Pinterest Planning

2012-01-15T20:44:00.001-06:00

If you aren't on Pinterest you are missing out.

Missing out on loads and loads of fun ideas for crafts, photos, recipes, party planning and more.

It is great for storing all of the ideas you have, and for organizing all of those ideas into easy to access and organized online-folder.

The only problem is that there is so much possibility, that one can get caught up in only pinning and not actually bringing to life any of these fabulous ideas.

So for the past few weeks I have been implementing a "Pinterest Plan" which essentially is a rule that I don't get to pin a bunch of new stuff if I don't do one of my previous pins.

Enter this weeks activity: fun photograph with Tillie! I was inspired by a photo that I saw pinned, and decided it was to cute to not do with Matilda.

I am still getting used to my nice camera and truly do not know how to use it so we take lots and lots of bad pictures to get a few decent ones.

But it is worth it. And Matilda likes the camera, and being nudie. A combination that could cause problems later in life, but for now it is making for some ridiculously cute photos.

Fresh Food Fast

2012-01-12T20:01:00.001-06:00

Nate and I are excited to continue our tradition of rocking out a new cookbook every year. It all started in 2008, our first year of wedded bliss. And we are kind of coming full circle with our book choice.

Year One was Great Food Fast, a Martha Stewart best. Then came Nigella Express, which was probably our least favorite thus far but ironically drives a lot of traffic to the blog off of Google search words. Year 3 was filled with lots of great recipes with Cooking Light's, Way To Cook. And year 4 was Magazine Cuisine, any and all recipes we found and fell in love with from magazines we subscribed too.

So Year 5, we are bringing it back to Martha in her 2nd book, Fresh Flavor Fast.

We have been rocking the whole meal-planning deal the last month, and decided to use the left-over pork tenderloin that we had grilled (ummm, in January people..how great is that) to do our very first recipe from this book:

Pork Enchildas with Green Sauce.

I don't have a picture, as in the past. Let's keep it real. By the time we get Matilda down, and get dinner ready we aren't up for playing around with trying to plate food, get the camera out and attempt to create some decent light.

BUT, I do have a link the recipe. Check it out here!

It was very good. We made it and stuffed it the night before, but I would recommend waiting to stuff them until you are ready to bake them to avoid the tortilla getting soggy. Also, we didn't use any cheese and it was still delish.

I am thinking this one will get repeated when we get fresh tomatillo's from our crop share. Yum!!

Translation Tuesday: Fruit Snack!

2012-01-10T01:30:00.000-06:00

We were graced with our first ear infection over the holiday's.

And Matilda got her very first prescription for amoxicillin.

Enter: the fruit snack.

Or as I would like to call it, our first attempt to totally rodeo-clown our kid into thinking something is more fun than it sounds like.

Nate: "Tillie, it's time for your fruit snack. So yummy and delcious."

Translation: "I am getting ready to jam 4ml's of this nasty pink substance down your throat."

I'm certain this will not be the last of these little tricks.....

It's all the Craze

2012-01-08T17:10:00.001-06:00

Planking? Owling? Tebowing?

What's next in the crazy internet-photo craze?

Matilda, being the little hipster she is, wanted to get in on the action, and is ready for whatever is up next.

So let me walk you through the very brief, yet pervasive, photo challenge history.

Planking

Also called the 'lying down game'. The whole purpose of this game (which is the game that started it all) is to take a picture of yourself in an unusual spot lying face down. Think mimicing a wooden plank. Apparently it actually started in like 1994, but had a resurgence in mid-2011.

Matilda didn't care that she was late to the party.

She got her plank on at the Conservatory right on top of a little ladder.

Next, came Owling.

You know, the art of perching yourself on top of somethign like an owl.

And then, Bat-manning

I think this one speaks for itself....

And finally, the most divisive...

Tebow-ing.

As we all know from the over-publicised Tebow, he likes to get down on one knee and take a moment to thank the big guy upstairs for gracing him with his skills and talents that are allowing his team to make the miraculous play-off run they are...

So the internet decided that this would be a fun photo craze as well.

And it is.

Take a knee, Tillie. Take a knee.

As you can see, we have figured out ways to make our own fun in the Hanson household.

And Matilda is at severe risk of being raised as a hipster.

*Note: I'm not going to name names, but for those less technically savvy people out there, if you click on the words that have the underlines, it will take you to a website to show you other pictures of people owling, planking, etc

28 Weeks

2012-01-05T19:59:00.001-06:00

Oh, our little Tillie Bean. She is at such a fun age. Growing 'so big' so fast. Still loving to sit up. Her Sophie giraffe. And immediately putting all toys directly into her mouth.

Although she is starting to use her mouth for TALKING! Oh yes. She graced us with her first true babbling: "Baabababababa" over and over again at 5:45 AM on New Years Day.

Luckily I went to bed at 10:30 the night before and it was VERY cute, so I didn't care that it was ridiculously early.

Her thighs keep getting chunkier and chunkier. Pretty sure she take after her Mama in the 'thunder thigh' camp.

Matilda got all bundled up to enjoy our first true snow of the season, which is pretty funny since it January and an inch of snow was about all we had.

Peek-A-Boo is quickly becoming a favorite past-time. We play peek-a-boo pretty much all day long because it gets such good giggles. It is so great that she is actually trying to look for whoever is hiding now.

Peek!

NYE was like any other night in our house.

Except for the nudie baby in the NYE hat that eventually peed on our chair because her parents got cocky.

Matilda continues to be very serious, focused, intense, etc etc etc. At least that is what everyone that meets her for the first time says. Most likely it is because she is like that in new situations.

I like it.

She isn't just going to give up her smiles for just anyone. No, you have to work for it.

And she is going to do some serious checking out of what is going on before she decides how she is going to handle it.

Truthfully, it has always kind of bothered me that people always call her serious and intense.

UNTIL, our new pediatrician (whom I adore) upon meeting Matilda says, "that girl has some GREAT social skills, look at how she looks at me and checks me out...very in tune with what is going on"

That's right..social skills. She's got 'em.

Just don't mistake her not smiling at you for not liking you. She just wants to figure you out first.

My Parents Were Awesome

2012-01-03T21:49:00.001-06:00

No, I am not sucking up to my parents. And sure they were and are awesome

But I am talking about this Tumblr site:
http://myparentswereawesome.tumblr.com/

I love looking at all the old pictures. And I have to say, that now being a parent myself, I do find myself wondering more and more, what were my parents like before they had kids.

Because I think about what Nate and I were like before kids, and how different it seems like we are now. Just think of what it will be like 30 years from now when Matilda is 30. Little will she know that her dad and I used to do secret date nights. That we would always try to have our next vacation planned before we returned from the current one. That we would do spontaneously fun and dorky things. That we used to be social, and get together with friends.

She will probably barely believe it.

Just like I can barely believe that my dad did macrame when he was first married. And my mom and him went downhill skiing as a couple.

But at some point all parents were awesome in their 'pre-parental' lives. Doing stuff that their kids would never imagine. The real secret is figuring out how to keep doing those things once the kids arrive. Or just discovering new things to take up for the sole purpose of embarrassing them in front of their friends, right?

I seem to remember rides to school with my Dad in full hunting face make-up.....

Food Face

2012-01-01T09:00:00.000-06:00

It's that time of the week again. When we introduce Tillie to a new delectable food. Watch the video below and take a guess at what we are giving to her. She has a GREAT reaction at the end....

Top 5 Best of 2011

2011-12-30T19:24:00.000-06:00

It's that time of year when you find lists upon lists of the best books, best movies, most memorable news stories, etc etc etc. So I thought I would hop on the bandwagon, and share what Nate and I think were our best purchases of 2011.

There were more big purchases than I care to remember given all of the baby prep, but surprisingly our #1 purchase was quite inexpensive.

#5: The BOB

When Nate and I registered for baby stuff, we talked about stroller and decided that the Snap N Go was totally fine for us. We didn't need a big, nice stroller. Nu huh. Not us. Those things were ridiculous for how much they cost.

Fast forward to 4 weeks after Matilda was born, and we have a BOB. You know, one of those big, spendy, "totally unnecessary" strollers.

Oh, I LAUGH at our pre-parent selves and notions.

But the BOB was the advent of runs together around Lake Harriet, and was when Matilda actually started sleeping on walks and not screaming, because the ride was just so darn smooth.

#4: A New Camera

What can I say? We knew there was a little one on the way, and our little point and shoot just wasn't going to cut it. So we went big--Nikon D90 big. And we are SUPER happy that we did, because it takes awesome pictures. I have no idea how to use it and could really use some pointers, but for now auto is my friend (I know all my friends that actually know how to use a camera will gasp at this sentence), but it takes amazing pictures like these, so for now I am totally happy.

#3: A Humidifier

It all started when I was still baking Matilda, and got a terrible cold and was unable to take anything for it. The neti-pot just wasn't cutting it, so Nate ran to Wal-Greens in a late-night 'please honey, I"m pregnant' run and picked up a humidifier.

Little did we know that that humidifier would transition to Matilda's room for her first cold, and stay there because the kid is addicted to white noise. And speaking of addicted, this humidifier ALSO made Nate and I in love with white noise so it led to a purchase of a fan in our room so we can have our own white noise.

I know.

#2: Travel

We adore traveling. And 2011 didn't let us down. We were lucky enough to get to take 3 incredible trips together.

Jamaica in February for our Babymoon (and Nate's Birthday!)

New York City in April as part of an extended work trip (and my birthday!)

**Note: While this trip is remembered fondly, it is indeed when I almost died from some crazy food poison or something like that. It was terrible.

And Hawaii in October for our 4 year anniversary.

This trip made possible thanks to some very generous babysitters :)

We aren't sure what 2012 will hold for travel now that we have a little one, and the little one's daycare expense, but hopefully we will get away a few times to enjoy life outside of MN.

And...drumroll....

The #1 Best Purchase of 2011: A Water Filtration System

Oh yes. We are that nerdy. You would think a trip to Hawaii would beat this, but no. It doesn't. We have never drank SO much water in our lives. This one little purchase has been life changing.

No more zillions of plastic bottles of water purchased at Costco. No more zillions of plastic bottles in our recyclables each week.

I think I now drink almost 100 ounces of water a day thanks to this thing (and probably honestly my current state of feeding my child)..

If you don't like your water, and you don't have one of these. Get one. Immediately. We have the GE version from Home Depot and love it.

There it is. I argued that we could have put Matilda on the list since we technically had to pay for her to come out at the hospital but Nate said no. OBVIOUSLY, she would have beat the water system.

What are you must have items from 2011?

Rest Easy, America

2011-12-29T11:30:00.000-06:00

Worried about the rising crime rate?

Do you worry about remembering to lock your car and house?

Well you can rest easy, America.

Because there are 3 new superheroes on the scene.

And they are here to protect.

With smiles.

With Snuggles.

With cuteness.

And with a sword that is so soft, it can be used for munchin'.

So when you go to sleep tonight, remember....these 3 are on duty.

Rub a Dub Dub

2011-12-28T18:45:00.000-06:00

I am so glad Matilda decided to like sitting up because that meant that we could throw all of the cousins into the tub at the same time and let them splash and play!

Leo took to 'petting' Matilda...perhaps helping her get a good lather and shampoo her "hair"

Look at this little guy. So freaking precious.

There was a grand nudie baby parade after bath-time. Matilda showed off her thunder-thighs.

And Leo showed off his new walking legs--and full belly.

There is something so sweet about freshly bathed kids--and they smell so scrumptious.

As you can see Matilda definitely looks up to her older cousins.

Christmas Fun

2011-12-27T20:39:00.001-06:00

There are too many good pictures to post.

Perhaps it was because we had too much fun.

I mean it was Matilda's first Christmas...

AND, the Packers played. Does it get better than that?

Oh yeah...Matilda got her first candy in the form of a cane.

Let's just say she put all the practice of munchin' to good use as those red stripes faded very quickly.

We were very sad to not see Nick, but Becca and the boys made our holiday very merry and bright.

In fact, they brought Matilda her first swimsuit. Which she doesn't look cute at all in....not. at. all.

Nate was the master chef of Christmas dinner and made a stuffed beef tenderloin. I was impressed with his kitchen skills. It was pretty darn tasty.

There was some musical fun sent from the TOF herself in the form of a harmonica.

Nate spent lots of time playing with Finn and his new Christmas toys.....

...and Leo liked playing with all the toys that we brought from home for Matilda. Hey--they were new to him!

We tried to get Matilda interested in her new toys, but like all babies she was more interested in the paper, and her cousins.

We also experienced a first---Matilda fell asleep in Nate's arms in church. It was precious.

Grandma got lots of good Tillie snuggles...

...and after a weekend filled with so much fun and activity, this little one was pretty tuckered out...

Can you tell she is saying: "Merry Christmas to All and to All a Goodnight?"

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T12:54:00.003-06:00

6 Months

2011-12-23T21:15:00.000-06:00

They say's its your birthday....

Ok, well in this case it's a HALF-birthday.

But still a good reason to celebrate, with a little birthday crown.

We had Matilda's 6 Month appointment yesterday.

16 pounds, 14 ounces

26 inches

Interestingly enough, Matilda was ALSO 26 inches at 4 months. So there are two theories:

1) Someone measured wrong at one of these appointments.

2) All of her energy has been put into her thighs and bootie and not her length.

What do you think?

She is still boycotting rolling over, but since she will sit-up like it's her job the doctor wasn't worried about it all. And really, what use is rolling over anyway? You don't roll over as an adult. You do however need to be able to sit up now and then.

Lots and lots of snuggles now.

She reached for me while sitting in Nate's lap the other day and it damn near melted my heart right on the spot.

We are adding soy and dairy back into the diet, which I am super excited (and a little nervous) about.

She is starting to do some more voice testing--doing a really low gremlin growl and then pushing out a 'b' sound. It's pretty funny.

And LOTS of raspberries. and high pitch squealing.

Can I just say how much I love 6 months?

Food Face

2011-12-22T19:21:00.000-06:00

It's time for some blog-interaction, people.

Nate and I are having loads of fun introducting Matilda to new food. Mostly because her face is absolutely ridiculous when she tries something new.

We have been trying to capture the first 'true taste' face for all of her new delicacies.

So, take a chance and guess what food make this cute little "i'm not so sure about this, Mama" face.

She's Crafty....

2011-12-21T12:58:00.000-06:00

From the day I learned I was pregnant, I had visions of all of these little arts and crafts projects with the babe. I have all of these fun ideas floating around in my head, and the internet spews more crafty inspiration than I know what to do with.

I was very sad to realize that while I was so excited to do these fun things, essentially your child is not really 'up for the fun' as they are lumps of flesh that poop, cry, attempt to sleep, and occasionally smile--although it is usually gas.

BUT NOW....6 months later....crafty fun is definitely in view. And we did our first official one this weekend with Paddy Jr in town...and we created a great little CHristmas keepsake.

It involved painting the feet...which was not quite as messy as I was anticipating.

We had to wait to let the little foot prints dry before adding the thumb-print 'rudolph nose.'

Let's just say that trying to paint a babies fingers when all they want to do is shove those fingers in their mouth makes for a very interesting task.

But the finished product was so cute...look at how proud they are:

I love that Matilda has one reindeer with no toes...

And Paddy had one with a beehive

And of course, these pictures make good munching toys too...

I'm already brainstorming what we can do for a fun craft in January. I welcome any ideas!!

Best Vendor Gift Ever

2011-12-20T19:37:00.000-06:00

I got an email at work the other day that said:

"You have received a Whiskey Sampler that we cannot deliver via interoffice mail. Please pick it up in the mail room."

Ummmm....yes please.

Yes, it is the holiday season, which usually means a plethora of vendor/partner gifts. All of which are fun to receive...but this...this sampler of whiskey from Scotland takes the cake.

And will most likely 'warm up' our Christmas with the family.....

Can anyone say stocking stuffer?

Arranged Marriage

2011-12-18T13:00:00.001-06:00

Matilda met her future husband this weekend, and it was love at first sight. Technically she is dating an older man (by over 2 months), but what she lacks in age, she makes up for in size. This child continues to pack on the pounds.

Anyway, Paddy Jr. and Matilda had a lot of shared interests---like hanging out in the Bumbo chair and munching on their fingers....

There was also some good floor time where they exchanged toys, tugs, and head butts.

Paddy was such a good teacher, that by the end of the weekend Tillie was dominating sitting up (although I did learn the hard way--a la lots of tears---that while she is awesome at sitting up, she is not quite ready to be left alone even for a second)....

I mean what Mom wouldn't be completely stoked to see her daughter with a cutie like this?

It was SO much funt to get to spend the weekend with my dear friend Amy, and get to catch up on all things Motherhood, life and the babes. I could have sat and watched these two play together all day long. It was so precious. I can't wait to watch them grow up together.....

....and hopefully when we are getting together and they are 20 we aren't still doing Nudie Baby Parade......

25 Weeks

2011-12-14T19:36:00.001-06:00

This age is quickly becoming my favorite age.

The cuteness just doesn't stop.

The fussing has calmed down.

And Matilda's personality just keeps getting bigger and bigger.

She has figured out how to blow air, and does it non-stop.

Really fun when you are trying to nurse her.

Even more fun with a mouthful of rice cereal.

We have been having lots of fun taking holiday photos these last few weeks.

Here is her 'serious santa' face...which she reserves for those on the naughty list.

She also has experienced her first fruit: pears!

She wasn't so sure about it at first, and gave us some fantastic 'tart' faces.

And MAJOR MILESTONE ALERT: Matilda has decided it is pretty cool to sit up by herself.

It was pretty much an overnight thing.

One day she wasn't sitting up, and the next day she was.

The big 6 Month birthday is on Monday! I can't believe how fast the time is going. I wish I could pause time right now and enjoy this age forever.

Baby Cuteness Overload

2011-12-10T14:32:00.001-06:00

Warning: The following post contains an obscene amoutn of baby cuteness. If you cannot tolerate saying "aww" or "sooo cute" more than 3 times in a 10 minutes period, please shut down your internet browser and walk away.

This Saturday we got together with my Amma friends--6 other ladies who have babies with a few weeks of Matilda. We all met in new new mama class at Amma Maternity (also known as the place that helped me keep my sanity the first 3 months of motherhood). I was very very lucky to have such a great group of women in that class, and we continue to get together both with and without the babes.

Well, imagine all 7 babies dressed to their 'holidy nines', and also dressed in their holiday 'birthday suits' playing for 2 hours, meeting Santa and exchanging gifts. It was so freaking cute.

Matilda, as you can imagine, was very excited.

She loved holding hands with her buddy Peyton.

And was happy to be a part of the baby triangle of love. Do you see all 3 of these babies holding hands? Ugh I am dying of cuteness right now.

Matilda even got to meet Santa. Look closely...do you recognize him?

Clearly he is going for Dad and Husband of the year. Check him out handling 7 babies at one time, without breaking a sweat. And none of them are even crying.

And then we got the babies Nudie...wearing Santa hats. Prepare yourself people....

Matilda seems to think that any fingers, or any toes--are hers for the taking and are to be directly inserted into her mouth.

Nothing says true love like teething on another person's fingers.

It was such a great afternoon. So much fun to see everyone's babies, and watch them all play together.

And I can say that we made it through our first Santa visit without tears...may have been because Matilda sensed something 'familiar' about this jolly guy....

A Tale of Two Races

2011-12-08T19:45:00.001-06:00

This past weekend I had the pleasure of meeting some of my favorite people out in Vegas, and putting down some hard-earned miles as part of the Rock And Roll Marathon series. The race was at night, so we had a few hours to enjoy Vegas and take in some of the holiday fun.

It was a typical pre-race experience. Head to the start line. Go the bathroom 8 times. Snap some pics. Say a lot of ridiculous things out of nerves. You know, things like that.

Then, the start of the race came. Admittedly it seemed a little chaotic but we didn't think too much of it. And so we ran. The Ekern girls, ALL of the Ekern girls ran the race, and ran the race strong. It was Emily's first, and she dominated it. Meghan overcame her mental 'mile 10' issues from her first race. My brain didn't tell me to 'just quit' the entire time, and Rebecca not only kept me pumped, but got the crowd pumped too.

We met at the finish line. Shared our race stories, and that is where the trouble begins. To be honest, I have spent too much time thinking about this, reading about this, and caring about this. What is 'this'?

A total, and complete disaster of a race experience. From a crowded and unmanageable finish line, to unpotable water served on the course to an apocolyptic style mob scene in the hotel after the race, this race was mismanaged in a way that should be a crime.

And because I just can't bring myself to re-hash all the details (like being in a scary crowd hearing medic yelled every few minutes and people vomiting every where you look), I am linking to a bunch of blog posts that cover the issues much better than I could.

http://www.8newsnow.com/story/16223225/did-water-given-to-marathon-runners-make-them-sick

http://fortyandrunning.com/2011/12/06/nightmare-in-las-vegas

http://www.mosaicmomma.net/2011/12/power-of-apology.html

http://runitfast.com/2011/12/05/the-nightmare-on-the-strip-rock-n-roll-las-vegas-marathon-half-marathon-full-of-sin/

For those that were lucky enough to be in an early corral, and finish fast; it was a super fun race.
For those who were in a later corral, and ran an average pace, experienced inadequate racing conditions, and a failure of epic proporations at the end of the race.

LUCKILY, us Ekern girls are resiliant, and can keep a cool head. I don't know what I am more proud of: all of us finishing the race, or all of us getting back to the hotel without a hint of anger/impatience/whining. Even though my boobs felt like they were literally going to explode.Even though Meghan was the unlucky one that was having intestinal issues (thank you hydrant water). Even though all of our bodies were being invaded by lactic acid from running 13.1 miles and then standing in a taxi line for over and hour.

We laughed. We swore. We even helped save a girl from fainting.

We had great intuition about getting the HELL OUT OF the Mandalay Bay when we did, and we witnessed a fight over a taxi cab.

Because it took us longer to get back to the hotel that was about 2 miles away than it took us to run 13.1 miles, we didn't get dinner. Instead we ate corn-nuts. Peanut butter and bread, and Combos. The post-race food of Champions.

And the next morning as we were remembering everything terrible that went wrong, I felt blessed to have family that could make me question whether my abs hurt from the race or because I was laughing so much, in spite of all the chaos.

When is our next race, girls?

A Distraction

2011-12-08T09:47:00.001-06:00

Sooooo I am hoping this picture will distract all of you who are emailing me to ask if I have quit blogging long enough for me to cool my jets and put together a coherent blog post about this weekend's events: The Las Vegas Half-Marathon..

We had a GREAT time. The 4 Ekern girls dominated the race, and then the race dominated us.

More to come about this total disaster of an event, and this very fun time with family.

Is She Sleeping?

2011-12-02T06:30:00.000-06:00

Since we aren't getting invited, or hosting for that matter, many game nights now that the little one has arrived, Nate and I have taken to creating our own games that we can play just the two of us.

Okay, the 3 of us. And this one is by and far OUR FAVORITE.

It's called: Is She Sleeping?

And it's really quite simple. When you are in the car, and all of the sudden it gets really really quiet in the back seat, you just twist your arm around back there holding your iPhone ever so carefully so as to not drop it on the baby, and snap a picture.

Then check the picture and find out....is she sleeping?

So, it sounds like a pretty lame game right? WRONG. Because the pictures you get from it are HILARIOUS (or at least with our baby because she is usually never sleeping).

They fall into categories---the "what is that little black thing that keeps hovering above me" face

The "I am fighting sleep as hard as I can--can you see the slits in my eyes, yes I am still awake" face.

The--"SERIOUSLY--you just woke me up because you forgot to turn off the flash" face

And finally the: "Alright fine, I will just sleep already" face.

Is it bad that the 2nd to last one is my favorite? Look at that pudgy faced scowl. How can you resist that?

Let's Eat!!

2011-11-27T20:25:00.001-06:00

We introduced Matilda to rice cereal on Thanksgiving.

And to be honest, I was totally prepared for:

1) Her to spit it out completely

2) Her tongue sticking out of her mouth and not actually eating

I was not prepared for how easily she took to it.

It was as though she had been studying up, and had been eating for ages.

Here it is--the play by play.

Hmmm, I think I have seen Mom and Dad do this before. Let's see what this is all about

Wait a second, this doesn't feel like milk.

And it doesn't taste like milk either.

Well, that was interesting.

Oh yeah, I definitely like this. In fact, don't mind if I just help myself to some more.

We gave Matilda rice cereal after work this week and she is just DOMINATING it. I actually had to make more tonight because she was so excited and just kept opening her mouth like a little robin and bending over to get more and more.

Who knew rice cereal could be so exciting?

A Very Liberty Thanksgiving

2011-11-27T20:23:00.001-06:00

We headed back to Viroqua to celebrate Thanksgiving with the fam.

How to sum it up:

Matilda slept for 3 hours that morning.

We watched the Packers beat the Lion.

The Keaty crew arrived, and the fun commenced.

We ate a delicious meal.

We had great fun with all the kiddo chaos.

AND we took Matilda to her first Townie Bar--none other than Liberty, which is Grandpa's bar of choice.

As you can see he is imparting very important wisdom onto his grandchildren.

Like, always drink your beer out of a can coozie.

And that is polite to CHEERS! when good things happen at the bar.

And that if you are too young for alcohol, you aren't too young to get hopped up on a kiddie cocktail.

Rebecca helped join in on the lessons as well. Like how to hold a baby while holding a jack and coke.

Check out Matilda intensely focusing on this MGD. I am pretty sure she will be a beer drinker like her Daddy.

We didn't spend all weekend in the bar (in actuality it was maybe 30 minutes...but hey the pictures are priceless). No, there were lots of other fun to be had right at home.

Like Finn helping Grandma make scones and learning how to crack eggs.

Matilda getting her first rice cereal (more to come on this!)

And storytime with Grams!

Nate had a ton of fun taking Finn to a hockey tournament (which ended up being a 12 year old girl tourney). And Mom and I took Finn to Arthur Christmas--which was a great way to get into the holly jolly spirit.

I love this time of year, and it is more and more fun with more and more kids in the house!

Translation Tuesday: Noise Violation

2011-11-20T19:19:00.001-06:00

Pretty self-explanatory.

But after 6PM, it's like I magically become a police officer whose sole duty is to keep the peace...and QUIET. I will literally do anything to keep our child sleeping, especially at night. And if that means whispering. Fine.

If it means leaving all of our cupboards open just a tish so it doesn't make a loud banging noise, I"ll do it.

I've got floor boards memorized. Which squeak and which don't.
I am the master at putting away dishes so quiet you wouldn't actually know I did it.

But all of this noise policing wears on Nate. He just couldn't stand being shushed one more time.

And so we tested all the noises we normally make. Dishes. Walking. Talking. TV. I stood in the nursery and Nate made all of the noises, so we LITERALLY know what noises do, in fact, transfer to the nursery.

Thus, the Noise Violation, was born.

So now, when Nate is engaging in a questionable noise-producing activity, instead of shushing him I just say "NOISE VIOLATION"

(in a very loud whisper of course)

Matilda's Digs

2011-11-20T19:15:00.001-06:00

I've had lots of requests for pictures of Matilda's hang-out. So, here are some quick pics of her room.

Ironically, this child just LOVES to hang out on her changing pad. Not sure why, but I don't ask questions. If the babe is happy, we are happy.

Clearly, this child is never going to grow up know what a book looks like. She could already start her own dewey decimel system with the amount of books we have, which is GREAT because we love reading to her.

I also love that she has a picture of her Grandma Ekern and my Grandma Sherry looking over her at all times on the shelf.

And the hot spot of the house--the crib.

Matilda spends lots and lots of time in this sucker.

Good thing we sprang for the nicer mattress. :)

5 Months!

2011-11-19T19:49:00.001-06:00

Time keeps rolling by, and I can't believe Matilda has turned 5 months old.

She met her new pediatrician this week (which we LOVED) and we found out that she tips the scale at 15 pounds 13 oz. So I think it is safe to say this girl is not missing any meals.

Each day that passes, I feel like Nate and I have more and more fun with her. We do ridiculous things to try to get her to laugh, and we love trying to put words to her many different facial expressions.

This last week, Matilda had her first play in the exer-saucer (thank you Marie!), and she loves it. The first time she realized that the wheels made noises she looked like her world had been completely blown away!

She is also waaaaay into her feet. Although it is funny because it's like she only remembers she has them on her changing table and bathtub. When she is in either of these places we literally cannot keep them out of her hands and mouth.

She had her first full week of daycare this past week, and is making lots of friends. The daycare workers seemed pretty happy that they had her smiling by the end of the week. Of course, we heard the classic statement that everyone ALWAYS says when they meet Matilda, "Oh, she is so alert. She has such an intense look on her face."

Yes, we know. Because she is intense. Just like her daddy....right?!?! ;)

Can't wait for this next month to share our first holidays with Matilda and start new family traditions that include her!

Magazine Cuisine: Episode 20

2011-11-19T19:45:00.001-06:00

It was the perfect night to fire up the stove-top and get cozy as the snow was blustering outside.

We have introduced pork back into the diet. To be honest, I am still leery of it but we are still testing it out. So tonight we made Pork Chops with Apples and Roasted Garlic Smashed Potatoes from one of the more recent Food Network magazines.

Overall impressions were that it had good flavor, and probably would have gotten better reviews had our pork chops not been pulled from the deep freeze from god knows when Costco run. They were a tish on the chewy side. But the potatoes were good, and all in all it was a good meal.

And relatively easy (caution: I say this as a person that literally lifted zero fingers to make this meal)....

What a Difference 5 Days Makes

2011-11-18T14:37:00.001-06:00

Well, I think it is safe to say that we have officially made it through our first full week as a working family of three.

A mere 5 days ago, I was seriously considering quitting my job, running down to daycare and snatching Matilda away never to look back. She wasn't sleeping. She wouldn't eat. She was literally drunk with exhaustion.

And today, I went down to check on her and she was sucking back a bottle, had a big smile on her face (i even squeezed a few giggles out of her), and had just woken up from a great nap.

I realize work is relatively calm for me right now, and life could get crazier, but for now as we head into next week I am thankful that:

- I work for a company that is flexible. That has a sweet set-up for nursing moms. That has daycare on site so when I just need a quick fix I can go give my little munchie a snuggle.

- My husband is amazing. Who surprised me by showing up to Tillie's doctor's appointment yesterday (even though it meant biking there and then back downtown) because he knew it was important. Who continues to be amazing with our daughter. Who calms me down when I get keyed up.

- Matilda has adjusted pretty well and is melting the hearts of the daycare workers. And that she is still sleeping relatively well at night for a little one.

- My brain still functions each morning I come to work.

And, I am pretty thankful that next week is a short week so I will have more Matilda time, and will get to see the fam on top of it! Of course, that means I will have to share Matilda. :)

Translation Tuesday: Shit Show

2011-11-15T19:15:00.001-06:00

NOTE: In order to avoid triggering any profanity filters at my dear readers places of employment, I will refer to this Translation Tuesday's topic as "SS".....you're welcome.

Yes, this term is growing in popularity to describe chaotic events, things that go terribly wrong. This term is a close cousin to 'cluster F*&K', but a littler more gently, more appropriate to use in a crowded room.

And we use it pretty much every single day. Some days it is a legitimate interpretation (i.e Matilda has a huge blow-out thus the literal SS ensues).

Other days, it may be to describe an outing to Target gone wrong. For example, picture me losing my keys at Target, crying to the security guard because my baby is hungry and i don't know how I am going to get home. I re-trace my steps multiple times, empty out the diaper bag. Return to guest services crying, and then ultimately find them in my diaper bag (the one I looked in mulptiple times).

CLASSIC sh*t show.

And I think yesterday can only be summed up by this term.

Matilda's first day of daycare was a SUPREME SS. She didn't fall asleep until 4PM, wouldnt' take a bottle. Both times I stopped down to see her she was screaming. Honestly, she looked drunk. Drunken with tiredness. Miserably sad. Ugh. My heart just broke for her. And so while Matilda was basking in her own SS of a day, I continued on with mine at work.

And I am 100% certain I have no idea what anyone said or discussed in my meetings after I saw my poor little baby so sad, hungry and tired. Hopefully no one asks me, or I didn't commit to anything I shouldn't have or I am guessing a new SS of a day will emerge.

Dazed and Confused

2011-11-12T15:34:00.001-06:00

It happened. November 9th came, and November 9th went. Which means I have officially started back to work. Showering. Doing my hair (ish), wearing heels. Using my brain. Leaving my baby.

We were fortunate to have "daddy daycare" my first day, and then Super Grandma came back up to Minneapolis to do some 'granny nanny' for Thursday and Friday. This definitely helped the transition as I could focus on figuring out how to get myself ready to get out the door without worrying about all of Tillie's stuff as well.

And I think most of the cobwebs have been cleared out of my brain. I have found that I am able to form coherent questions and statements at work. BUT...I also find myself thinking, "I wonder if Til has pooped today", "I wonder if she went to sleep for her nap okay" and the WEIRDEST thing, is that every once in a while I find myself smelling dirty diapers.

Phantom dirty diapers. That is how you know you are on the brink of insanity.

But in all seriousness, this week went great. There were a few tears, a few moments at work where I just wanted to escape back home and snuggle with Tillie. But with good friends checking in on me, and peace of mind that Tillie was probably having more fun than she has with me, we made it through.

So next week is the big week...off to DAYCARE. Wish us (and by us I mean me because I am sure Tillie will be fine) luck.

Translation Tuesday: T-Monster

2011-11-08T16:11:00.000-06:00

T-Monster: a term of endearment used to describe our lovely daughter.

Yes, I get that it doesn't exactly sound like a term of endearment, but I promise you it is. Derived from Tillie (hence the T), and the first 10 weeks where there were days that she did have monsterly-moments, this term is used lovingly. We have, afterall, finally embraced the 'monsterly' parts of parenthood (okay, we are working really hard to embrace those parts).

For example, Nate calls from work and says: "How's T-monster doing today?"

Sometimes, we shorten it and just say monster--which as I type it makes it even more difficult to convince you it truly is a term of endearment. I mean look at her...doesn't she just look like a little monster ? :)

This is right up there with Munchie in terms of nicknames. I knew she would never be for lack of nicknames with Nate as her father, I just didn't realize the breadth she would have to choose from.

A Letter to Myself

2011-11-07T20:43:00.002-06:00

Dear Greta,

The last 20 weeks have flown by, and you have been challenged in ways you never even imagined. Who knew that a little 7 pound, 5 oz bundle could change your life so much in such a short amount of time.

There have been high highs and low lows. You are blessed to have your own mom, and a circle of moms around you that helped you get through the tough times and celebrate the good times. I'd like to tell you the hardest part of parenting is behind you, but my guess is it doesn't ever get 'easy'.

As you go back to work, remember that going back to work doesn't make you a bad parent. That looking forward to going back a little doesn't make you bad parent either. And that feeling desperate to stay home for just a few more weeks even though you are kind of interested in going back to work doesn't make you crazy.

It makes you normal. This is your new normal. The balancing act of work and family. Finding happiness at maybe not being as good as you want to at everything and maybe leaving some things undone, unfinished, incomplete.

No matter what your new normal is, do not forget this:
- You have an amazing husband, who loves Matilda so much, and does so much for you. Find time for the two of you. Which means you NEED to find a babysitter.
- who you were before Matilda. Find a way to reconnect with friends, and do things that you liked to do before you were a family of 3. Even if it is just once a month.
- Matilda will be fine at daycare. You know this child loves to be around people. Daycare = people = happiness. Yes, she will get sick. She will probably have some bad nights. But that doesn't mean she will never sleep through the night again. And it doesn't make you a bad parent for sending her to daycare.
- Bask in the babydom of Matilda. The little snuggles. Coos. Babbles. Milestones. Quiet stares. And embrace the cries. The fuss. The 'particularity' of Tillie. This time is fleeting.

Do not look back about everything you 'wanted to', 'should have' or 'could have' gotten done on maternity leave. Do not dwell on if you enjoyed it enough, if you truly savored every moment you could have of Matilda.

This is the start of a new chapter in your family. And it will be good.

P.S. You will cry on the first day of work, first day of daycare, and probably the next 10 days of work at different times of the day. And that...is okay.

20 Weeks

2011-11-06T19:37:00.002-06:00

10 weeks ago, I thought we would never get to the 20 week mark. It felt like eternity. But now that it is here, I can't believe that Matilda is already 20 weeks old.

She has started to crack herself up every now and then, just giggling out of nowhere which is fun. I also want to know what is going on in her little head. Like does my hair look ridiculous? Is she remembering a funny joke Nate told her?

In other firsts, she has really started to reach for things. Like strings on sweatshirts, her favorite toys, anything that looks like it might fit in her mouth..you know things like this. Her favorite toy-of-the-week is Sophie the giraffe. This has always been in the top 10 but you even show her that thing and she starts to get super excited and reaches to get it.

It was her first Halloween, which was oh-so-cute...

She had her 4 month appointment as well! Our 'little peanut' isn't so little anymore.

15 Pounds (71%)

26.5" (95%)

I was definitely the worst mom ever making her get her shots on Candy day, but she survived, and even got to go on her first day of shopping with Grandma and I.

Tillie is also taking great enjoyment in blowing raspberries. She doesn't have a lot of power behind them yet, but once she does, I predict this face will be around non-stop

Lesson learned this week: Daylight savings time is just not quite as cool with a baby.

Egg-spectations

2011-11-04T20:27:00.001-05:00

I added egg back into the diet this week.

For those of you rolling their eyes sarcastically thinking "BFD", let me tell you that it takes a long streak of 'blood-free' diapers to test a new food on Tillie, and let me tell you that we haven't had many long streaks of blood-free diapers.

And it is always with trepidation that I do any introduction because having a fussy baby solely because of something you eat is just not worth it. Plain and simple.

Soooo...since I haven't had egg in three full months, we didn't just jump in to it...we DOVE.

We are talking egg salad. Breakfast for dinner. I even decided at 5PM one night that i just had to make Pumpkin bread because if we saw blood flecks in Tillie's diaper the next day I wouldn't be able to eat any and so we made pumpkin bread and I pretty much ate an entire loaf in one day. Not even joking.

And the next step is diaper inspection. Dirty diapers do not even phase me anymore. I stick my nose in it. Push it around. Searching for any sign of allergic reaction. Why?

1) I don't want to keep feeding myself something that will poison my child.
2) I am desperate to get something back into the diet "full-time" since I have really only successfully added wheat since July.

If anyone has any good egg ideas, send them to me! Keep in mind I am still not eating any nuts, dairy or soy.

Baby-filled Halloween

2011-11-03T08:50:00.000-05:00

It has been over 4 years since I learned that holidays are even more fun with little one's running around. I remember Finn's first year, and how anxious I was to see him enjoy the holiday even though he was a baby and didn't really know what was going on.

And it is happening all over again now that we have a little one of our own. We had the cutest costume around thanks to Grandma, and she came up to see Tillie in action (We got some of our own adult 'trick or treating' in at the malls....). It was such a fun weekend.

I have been blessed with an extraordinary group of "mom friends" through a new mama class that we all went together and we decided to get all the babes together for some Halloween fun. Tillie did AWESOME even though she was in the meltdown zone. Didn't even cry once!

I love how sly Tillie looks in this one...like she has a secret.

Can you tell the Tillie loved her costume too?

Next year, I am sure she will be toddling down the block to the neighbor's houses...which is amazing because then I will get to steal all of her candy. :)

Translation Tuesday: Bed Nap

2011-11-01T13:26:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago, Nate had a little too much fun celebrating Wisconsin's victory over Nebraska. The next morning he 'mysteriously' felt sick and thought maybe it could have been the yogurt he ate 2 minutes prior.

So, he had to go and lie down to feel better....leaving this mama to fend for herself one more day. Thus 'the bed nap' was born.

Bed Nap: the rare and elusive occurrence of napping in a bed.

I have yet to have a bed nap when I am here by myself or with Nate. For some reason, only my Mom has been able to get me to 'bed nap' when TIllie was very very little. But Nate, he can bed nap like it is his job. Well, truthfully he can just nap anywhere anytime. Frustrating for me? Sure. (but really I'm just jealous). Great for him as he can sneak in a few minutes here and there.

I don't know what I would think I would bed-nap now that I have a baby since I didn't ever bed nap before baby, but in my mind a bed nap sure sounds luxurious....

Does Anyone Know a Good Lawyer?

2011-10-26T20:33:00.000-05:00

Because my Mom is going to need one.

Once Mars Company finds her spot on duplication of the Peanut M&M.

Seriously, how FREAKIN adorable is this Halloween costume.

The idea came to us way back when she was such a tiny little thing because we called her Peanut M&M (for Matilda Mae).

And I mentioned it to my Mom and asked if she could come up with something.

Not only did she come up with 'something' but it is ridiculously cute and absolutely perfect.

and yes, that is a candy corn fabric lining on the inside in case you were wondering.

I cannot wait to get Matilda into it!

Translation Tuesday: Hat Practice

2011-10-25T12:16:00.000-05:00

Yes, Hat Practice.

It's something we do in the Hanson Household on a pretty regular basis as our child is not exactly fond of hats, but unfortunately lives in a climate that requires said garment.

And so we do hat practice. When Tillie is in a good mood, Nate usually calls out "HAT PRACTICE" and we throw the hat on her and let her wear it around the house.

She actually is becoming much more amenable to wearing the hat. So long as it doesn't fall over her eyes. Then, watch out.

Plus, I think she looks pretty adorable during hat practice. Don't you?

18 Weeks

2011-10-24T19:46:00.001-05:00

Tillie keeps growing and stretching out. She such a long thing and she seems to carry her weight in her cheeks and thighs! :)

In the past few weeks, Tillie has started giggling a lot more, and has truly found her fingers. Soothing herself with her pointer and middle finger ALL THE TIME (see below)

The good news is that this means she can soothe herself back to sleep when she wakes up, which also means Nate and I are starting to get more sleep than we are used to. It also means the end (*hopefully*) of the paci war.

And it means we have a finger sucker. But I am okay with that. 100%.

Because she is a pretty darn cute finger sucker.

She is starting to take notice of her feet more, and rocking side to side on her back but still no rolling over and she hasn't truly 'found' her feet. I am just waiting for her to enjoy the 'happy baby' yoga pose.

Other firsts for week 18 included her first extended time away from Mom and Dad while she hung with Grandma and Grandpa in Viroqua. It was also the first time in about 6 weeks she slept for 12 hours without waking up! And the very first time ever that she slept through the night without a feeding. HOORAY!

Lesson I learned this week: Leaving your baby for a week, when you haven't been away from her longer than 3 hours, is really tough. But she will be okay, and so will you.

Four Years and Counting

2011-10-23T20:00:00.004-05:00

It's hard to believe that four years have already passed since Nate and I got married. It's hard to believe that we have been dating each other for nearly FOURTEEN years. But what is actually the hardest thing to do is imagine my life without this guy.

And we are so lucky to have incredible people in our lives that get us and the need for 'us' and volunteered to watch our little peanut while we flew across the Pacific to Hawaii.

While, we did spend a lot of time talking about Tillie, missing Tillie, looking at pictures of Tillie...

...We also took advantage of our baby free time to do some things we couldn't have done with a baby. Like go on a helicopter tour of the island with NO DOORS... (not a safe activity period let alone with a babe)...but seriously incredible and something you should absolutely do if ever in Kauai. Believe me...we were NOT going to do it. But you start to scratch the surface of the island's beauty and you just have to see more.

We also did some smaller hikes. I say smaller because we had some bigger ones planned but a discovery of MANY spiders of significant size one those hikes, the long ones were promptly canceled by me. I'll admit it. I can't do spiders. I can pretend they aren't there...but once I see one there is nothing you can do.

Nate kindly pointed out the million's of spider webs in this cave, which is why the picture is only of him. I stayed far back and got good use out of my zoom...

We also got to enjoy a lot of good food. It was very nice to not have to worry about anything being too spicy, or having nuts, or citrus for Matilda. And I went nuts with Tomatoes. The only restriction was no dairy. And to my delight the shave ice we enjoyed in Maui was just as popular in Kauai. And was still has big as my head!

We continued to strike out on the 'take a beautiful scenic drive' activity (last one thwarted was the Ring of Kerry in Ireland) as the fog was so dense when we went to Waimea Canyon you could barely make it out oonce we got up to the top of the mountain. But we got the best of it when we took it in my helicopter a few days later..

But aside from the beautiful beaches, tropical location, and sunshiney weather the best part was just getting to hang with my hubby. Doing things like getting groceries really quickly. Or doing things slowly like reading in a beach chair and then taking a nap. Talking about non-Tillie things. Annnndddd..talking about Tillie things.

And while we very much enjoyed our time away, we were both anxious to get back. Because while Nate and Greta were the original 'us', it just doesn't quite feel right without Matilda now*. The new 'us'.

*Please note to any babysitters reading: this does not mean we are not interested in babysitting services in the future. :)

Reunited

2011-10-22T20:55:00.001-05:00

And it feels so good.

We were welcomed back to Minnesota by my Mom, Aunt Janet and of course the star of the hour: Tillie!! Nate and I were so excited to see her we practically ran through the airport to get to them. It was so great to have such a festive welcome home.

More to come on our vacation and let's be honest---Tillie's vacation at Grandma and Grandpa's!

To Leave or Not to Leave

2011-10-12T09:12:00.000-05:00

That is the very very difficult question.

And one I have been grappling with ever since Nate and I booked a vacation to Hawaii. Do we bring Matilda or leave Matilda?

I am sure MANY people out there have MANY opinions on this, but the bottom line is that Nate and I need this time.

For ourselves. For US. To reconnect. Prepare for my return to work. Charge our batteries back to 100%.

While I am sure people can connect the dots from my posts the last 4 months, new parenthood has not been super easy for us. It has felt like the hits keep on coming from reflux, to food allergies, to extreme sleep regression--we just can't get our feet under us.

I had a picture of our lives as a family of 3, and that picture is still out of focus. It is getting clearer as Matilda gets older, but the reality is that it has been extremely hard. Exhausting. Emotional. Seemlingly impossible at times. And yes, I know that parenthood is hard. And yes, I know that we will never sleep like we used to. But getting up 5-10 times in an 8 hour night for 6 weeks straight (once the child is almost 3 months old) is NOT normal or standard. Finding blood flecks in your childs diaper for 3 months and trying to figure out what she is allergic to by altering your diet is NOT normal or standard.

And so, we are leaving Matilda. To catch up on us. Catch-up on the us we were before we were parents. Sleep. Eat. Work-out. Adventure.

Does this make us bad parents? To some, perhaps. But I know in my heart, I will enjoy my last 3 weeks of maternity SO much more after having time with Nate. And I know that Matilda will grow up much happier with happy parents.

And she is staying with the next best thing to us, so I know she will be in good hands (probably better than my own), and it will be great for her to get out of the moan and droan of life in Minneapolis with us.

So, we fly to Hawaii. And I am sure I fly to Hawaii with tears streaming down my face as I have yet to be away from this child for more than a few hours. And I KNOW I will miss her terribly. But I also know this is a good thing for me. For us. For our family.

Translation Tuesday: Paci War

2011-10-11T10:21:00.000-05:00

Nate and I have always had our 'own little language' filled with random quotes from TV, movies, inside jokes with friends, etc that we then take and use (and sometime abuse) and morph into our own way of communicating with each other.

Kind of like I imagine twins would. But more along the lines of two people who have been dating each other for over 13 years.

And so, I present to you Translation Tuesday--which will feature our most popular terms that an adult trying to have a conversation with us could be confused by and perhaps even think we are crazy.

Paci War: having to give Matilda the pacifier MORE than 5 times over the course of 15 minutes to get her to go to sleep, go back to sleep, stay asleep...you get the picture.

How you will hear us using it:

"If I have to have one more paci war today, I will go insane."
"Man, I can't believe Matilda went down without a paci war."

Hopefully the paci, wars become less and less common as we are planning on taking that sucker (pun intended) away from Tillie cold turkey pretty soon....we'll see how that goes since this girl has loved her paci since the day she was born...

Baptismal Bliss

2011-10-10T19:23:00.002-05:00

It was an absolutely GORGEOUS weekend in Viroqua. We all gathered to celebrate Matilda's baptism. My Mom had an amazing gown made from her wedding dress and my Grandma Sherry's wedding dress. It was stunning, and Matilda looked beautiful in it. .

I think she really liked the satin--she was really working it. I am guessing this is not going to be her last gown...

Matilda was an angel during the service which was a huge relief to me. My favorite part of the ceremony was when Pastor Jordan took Tillie and walked her up and down the aisle, and talked about how everyone in the congregation was now a part of Tillie's life, and that they welcomed her into their community, their family, with open arms. It was incredibly touching, and a powerful moment to realize that the feeling of community and/or family can come from anywhere and often times it is where you least expect it.

I am thankful for the people that are in Matilda's life that love her unconditionally, and will truly teach her how to live a positive life filled with optimism, hope and happiness.

We Came For Beans

2011-10-06T19:28:00.001-05:00

I've always said that Target carries a $100 deductible. You come in for a few things. You leave with $100 worth of merchandise.

And with a baby, this has only worsened.

Nate wanted to make chicken burritos. We had no beans.

Very easy solution to the problem: walk to Target to get some.

Yup. We came for beans, and left with this:

1) Sunscreen: for our upcoming Hawaii trip.
2) French Bread--because it is the only decent bread I have found that doesn't contain milk, egg, or soy.
3) Candy---because I literally LIVE on candy since no other baked goods on in the cards for me.
4) Extra bottles for my Mom and Dad who are watching Tillie while we are in Hawaii.
5) Girls socks. Because they were cute and I figure a baby in minneapolis can never have too many socks or hats.

Oh, and the beans.

So, a $1.08 purchase turned in to a $38.96 purchase. Not bad, Target. Not. Bad.
Good thing you employ my husband as it helps my guilty conscience for spending so much at your store.

15 Weeks

2011-10-04T14:50:00.000-05:00

15 Weeks has come and gone, and our little Peanut keeps getting bigger and surprising us with firsts.

She survived her first cold the last few weeks. Snotty, congested, coughing cold. I didn't know a sneeze and cough could be so cute, but it was.

Tillie had her first GIGGLE this week which was incredible. And who better to get the first giggle out of her than Grandma, who came up for a quick visit. Of course Nate is super jealous and even though he doesn't explicitly tell me, I can tell he is really working it to try to get a giggle out of her.

And another big first: Tillie rolled over!

I am not sure that it 'counts' officially, but it counts for me!

She was under her activity mat on a small pillow, and kicked her little legs over (see below) and to her surprise and mine....

she flipped right over onto her tummy.

She is 'talking' more and more, and has a new sort of squeal/shriek that she is trying out.

Personally, Nate and I would probably take a little less talking and a little bit more sleeping if we had to choose.

It's a good thing this girl is darn cute.

The Elusive Lincoln Lawyer

2011-10-03T09:52:00.001-05:00

Two months.

That is how long we have had the Lincoln Lawyer rented from Blockbuster. Two. Months.

Nate kept pushing me to take it back, but I was firm. No. I wanted to watch the movie. It got great reviews and we will definitely be able to watch a movie again, right?

The answer is yes. But it will take you two months.

Well Friday night we snuggled the little Tillie bean into bed, and then we crept downstairs to enjoy our comfy couches and nice TV. NOTE: this is a very risky maneuver as it seems Matilda just knows when we go down there and wakes up immediately.

We had pre-popped popcorn so as to not wake her up.

We started the movie. And held our breaths (Okay, I held my breath--Nate isn't' superstitious) as the minutes ticked by.

And as the closing credits started to roll up the screen, a single tear rolled down my cheek. SUCCESS! We did it. We watched a movie. In our house. Downstairs. Without the baby waking up. Boom.

Now, it may take us 2 more months to watch another one. Which of course means we have to be very selective in our viewing options. Any recommendations of must-see movies out on DVD?

The Gift that Keeps on Giving

2011-10-02T13:21:00.000-05:00

Matilda is one lucky lady. I mean we knew this already, but when Nate called and told me he got Matilda the BEST Christmas present ever, I couldn't help but bug him until he told me what it was.

(drum roll....)

Nate put Matilda's name on the Packers season ticket wait list.

I mean, look at this girl. You can tell she already loves the Packers, even though she was born in MN. Can't you just imagine her when she is 60 years old taking her kids to the game?

Magazine Cuisine: Episode 18

2011-09-30T09:59:00.003-05:00

We are starting to fall into a groove that includes actually cooking dinner and trying new recipes again. The hardest part now is finding recipes that fit the dietary restrictions that I am on for Matilda's food allergies, which still remain a mystery.

As the weather turned cooler this past weekend, we were both craving a good soup so we turned to Cooking Light's: Chicken and Barley soup.

I felt uber-productive as I had dinner ready for Nate when he returned: a true 1950's moment in our house.

And Nate was over complimentary of the soup. Who wants to guess why? Was it:
1) Because the soup was actually delicious
2) Because he wanted to reinforce the behavior of having dinner ready when he got home
3) because it was the first time in about 3 months we haven't had a protein, starch, and veggie dinner.

Perhaps it was all 3, but either way it was nice to be cooking again, cooking something new again, and to have dinner done before he got home so we had more time to spend together.

Munchie

2011-09-26T09:39:00.000-05:00

Because any other nickname just wouldn't do....

Munch...

Double Munch....

Thinking about it...

MUNCH!!!!

Abundance

2011-09-24T15:24:00.000-05:00

In spite of the severe neglect mentioned earlier, we were blessed to have an abundant garden.

It kills me to not be able to eat all of these delicious, ripe and juicy tomatoes. But Nate took full advantage to make a HUGE batch (we are talking more than a gallon here) of salsa. AND, new this year we made a homemade pasta sauce that we froze so that hopefully I can enjoy it in about 5 months once we get Matilda squared away!

It was officially the year of the cucumber in the Hanson garden. Not sure how many cucumbers one family needs but we pick them by the dozen.....

Sleepless in St. Louis (Park)

2011-09-24T15:23:00.002-05:00

Excuse any spelling errors in this blog as I am currently delirious with exhaustion.

Rewind 6 weeks ago and we were in a pure state of disbelief and joy that Matilda was sleeping for 8 hours at a time,sometimes 9 but ALWAYS 7. Now, she would also fight naps like no-one's business but I firmly stated, and continue to state that I would rather fight day sleep as long as this child continued to sleep at night.

Well clearly someone has it out for Nate and I. Now, Matilda is not only fighting day sleep. But she is also not sleeping at night.

Okay, I wouldn't call it "not sleeping", but she won't sleep unless the pacifier is in her mouth. So she wakes up at least every 2 hours, sometimes every 10-20 minutes for that F*ING paci. Which means either Nate or I are waking up every 2 hours, sometimes every 10-20 minutes to plug that F*ING Paci.

It is no surprise that a girl with the nickname, Munchie, has a strong urge to soothe herself by sucking. We are strongly encouraging thumb-sucking. Although it is pretty funny because you can't KEEP her hands out of her mouth when she is awake, but when she is sleeping it's like she forgets she has arms with hands attached that would be GREAT for hand-sucking to get yourself back to sleep.

So screw a babysitter,we need to hire a full-time paci-plugger. The job isn't glamorous, and it is long hours (7PM-7AM), and the pay isn't great. But you get to stare at a pretty cute little girl all night, and as an added bonus we will promise to get up and changing any dirty diapers that may crop up....

13 Weeks

2011-09-20T08:02:00.001-05:00

We did it! We managed to keep this little human being alive for 3 months. Seriously...it feels like a major accomplishment.

And I would say she sure is a happy baby these days--although she is currently sick with a cold so happy might not be the first word I would use to describe her.

At 3 months, this girl weighs in at 13 pounds, 7 oz!

I mean check out these thighs...

She is becoming more and more expressive every day. This is her--seriously-enough-with-the-camera-face.

And her "Daddy--you are freaking me out with your crazy singing" face...

We have also been working on the dreaded Tummy time, which she is getting better at and can go about a minute before really starting to cry. Doing it ON Nate has been helpful.

And we introduced the Bumbo Chair...maybe a tish too soon but she seems to like it, and it is hilarious when she finds her feet.

As we crossed the 3 month mark, I am thankful I work for a company that is allowing me to stay out for 5 months. While I am totally stoked to go back to the wonderful world of adults, and challenging my brain in different ways beyond worrying about blood flecks in diaper, sleep schedules and baby development--I can't imagine taking Matilda to daycare today, or tomorrow for that matter. I am sure even at 5 months I won't want to do it and it will seem too soon, but for now I am thankful to be home with her.

Lesson I Learned This Week: No matter how many times you wash your hands, and use hand sanitizer if you or your husband is sick, your baby is going to catch it.

Up Nort Part Deux

2011-09-18T09:13:00.001-05:00

We were lucky enough to get to spend another week with the fam up in Hayward this past week. It was even better as Nate, and the Keaty's (sans Becca) were able to join for the whole week. It was quite lively with 3 little ones, but there was never a dull moment.

Finn went on his first speed boat ride with Gramps, and even caught a few fish!

Leo didn't get to go, and had to watch from the pier, but then got to partake in MUCH more fun activities...a true WI boy at heart.

There was a lot of interest in baby Tillie from the boys...

There was a lot of outdoor running around (can anyone say energy to burn?) and even some running around WITH tears.

And there was the 2nd Annual Dia De Los Adventuras, which is essentially a day for Nate and I to take Finn (and hopefully next year Leo too!) and spoil them like all Aunts and Uncles are supposed to do. Bakery. Game Store. Candy Shoppe. World's Biggest Muskie. Check.

And Grandma and I dominated the night-time bath sessions while the boys (the big boys that is) were out fishing.

It was a great week of family fun. It was also a great week in understanding just what we would be getting into if we were to ever consider having 3 children.....and I can say right now that it just wouldn't be happening unless Grandma moved in with us!

The Way It Should Be

2011-09-09T09:02:00.002-05:00

I recently ordered a few prints to hang in Matilda's nursery from a website called Zulily (http://www.zulily.com/). Essentially, it is a 'deal a day' sort of site with different brands, and products featured on discount every day.

I drooled over this site when I was pregnant, just waiting for the day that I knew the gender of Baby H. So once I found it it was a girl, and Matilda was in our lives I hunted for cute clothes, things for the nursery, etc.

So, I found these prints and ordered 2 of them. Well, I get the package this week and there is only ONE of the prints, and they packaged it--folded in half. So now, there is this GIANT crease down the middle of the print.

I decided to do something I hardly ever do--especially now that time seems to be just a little bit more previous--and emailed their customer service line.

Imagine my surprise when I get a PHONE CALL last night while we were watching the Packers (GO PACK!), from a customer service rep who wanted to me to know that they were going to not only refund my money but give me additional credit to their site for my inconvenience. He wanted to get back to me PERSONALLY, and not just send an impersonal email back.

I couldn't believe it. It is so rare to get good customer service 'these days' so when you do find it, relish in it and be loyal to those places that give it to you. I know I will be a Zulily fan for life!

11 Weeks

2011-09-06T16:21:00.004-05:00

Another week older!

No real new milestones to report (unless you count topping off 12 pounds--12 lbs 5 oz to be exact). Matilda continues to be a focused and serious baby some of the time....

And a very happy, silly baby the other part of the time

We are still REALLY struggling through food allergies. She has had a solid week of diapers with blood in them, and one very awful night last Thursday where she pretty much cried in pain all night. It was terrible. Terrible for her. Terrible for us. I am working on cutting out ANYTHING that would be suspect from my diet to protect Tillie, while searching for a good pediatric allergist.

For how sore her little tummy must be, she continues to be smiley, and is working on giggling.

Lesson I learned this week: Sometimes you just need to go to the doctor, even though you know they probably aren't going to be able to tell you anything new, or didn't know.

Where the Wild Things Grow

2011-09-03T14:24:00.001-05:00

Many things in our lives have been neglected this summer. None more than our home. We have a garden that we have barely harvested (although it isn't that fun to harvest a garden that you can eat NOTHING out of--thank you to Matilda's acid reflux and food allergie)s. Flowers that are wilted. Bushes that are dead. Herbs that are dried to a crisp.

And we have this:

Yes, take a closer look. That is a WILD squash plant growing. In. Our. Front. Yard. Seriously now. It looks ridiculous.

But to be honest I am so impressed that this sucker grew from what I can only assume is an ornamental squash I put in our fall window boxes last year, and has survived all summer long, with no TLC, when everything else around our home has died. I mean check out the flower boxes. They actually GOT some love in the form of morning waterings and they are toast. Not this squash plant. But it lives.

And you know what...it has little cute ornamental gourds growing on it. So does it look ridiculous? Yes. Are our neighbors probably worrying about the resale value of their homes living next to us right now? Most likely.

But who is going to be jealous of all the cute little squash we have? Mmm hmmm. That's right.

And hopefully my super cute fall window boxes will make up for it (well that and Nate hacking the thing down in a few weeks...)

Magazine Cuisine: Episode 16

2011-09-01T09:03:00.003-05:00

We are getting a little more capable of cooking each week. Of course, Matilda helps out by being much more content in the evenings (minus last night--but who wouldn't be a little fussy if they were pooping blood....), AND an earlier bedtime.

So usually cooking 'together' goes a little something like this:
Greta preps during day--you know measuring stuff, cutting stuff, etc
Nate cooks while Greta does the night-time nurse
We eat together once Tillie is down for the count

Sure, dinner is sometimes interrupted by the ever-persistent Paci War, but I'll take it, because then I get to eat food like this: BLT Bucatini.

From the most recent edition of Cuisine magazine, this was a super easy recipe that got us to use some of our garden veg (the most neglected garden of the century), and gave us some leftovers for Nate.

Essentially it is spinach, tomatoes and bacon reduced with vinegar and some red-pepper flakes with salt and pepper. Easy, and delicious---although it's hard to screw up anything that has bacon in it!

10 Weeks

2011-08-30T09:57:00.000-05:00

Matilda's 10th week got off to a rough start as she received her first dose of shots at the doctor's office. I will never forget her little face when she got the first prick. It was a heart-breaking mix of sadness and "why are you being so mean, I was being so good..." But, she pretty much slept all day (a special treat for me), and was her old self the next day.

She got her 'digits' at this appointment and as predicted we learned that she is a LONG thing.
11 lb, 12 oz (50th percentile)
24.5" long (off the charts-->95%)
14" head (25th percentile)

She attended her first block party with the Schuster's, and managed to sleep through most of it--loud band playing and all. Which continues to baffle me as the smallest noise at home seems to startle her awake.

She attended her first wedding where she promptly enjoyed her first polka with Mama! She seemed to enjoy the dance floor with the bright lights and music pumping. I foresee many dance parties in our future.

Matilda also got her first bug bite which was right on her face, and made her look like she was going through early puberty. :)

Other than that, Matilda continues to munch those little hands, is working on 'talking' to us, and trying to grab more and more objects. She is full of smiles, and quite the squirmy worm. She doesn't like to be held 'like a baby' but either up over the shoulder or facing out.

We are still working on tummy time too. As you can see she is more interested in munching on her hands then lifting that noggin of hers!

Family Fun

2011-08-29T10:37:00.000-05:00

This weekend was a weekend filled with celebration as my cousin Paul got married in La Crosse to his beautiful girlfriend, Sara! Welcome to the fam! The wedding was gorgeous, as was the couple.

The 'other Ekern' clan descended upon WI as well, which ALWAYS makes for a good time. Needless to say all of the children were spoiled with lots of snuggles and kisses. Looking at my pictures, I think Emily was the true baby hog...because in all of them she has one of the babes.

And, there was more celebrating to be done as it is Leo's 1st birthday next week!

All of this celebrating really tuckered the little guy out, as he fell asleep in his high chair mid-Cheerio:

It was super fun to spend so much time with everyone, enjoy good food, good company,and a mean game of bags.

It's weekends like these that make me sad that we don't all live closer to one another, but thankful that when we do get together we always have a good time.

Munchie

2011-08-25T12:53:00.000-05:00

When Nate and I were discussing baby names, we had very few criteria (if you can even call it that).

1) We wanted something unique, and not a name our baby would share with 1 million other kids in their class.

2) Nate really wanted the name to be 'nicknamable'. He is a huge fan of nicknames, and gives them out whenever they come to him. I'm pretty sure he has at least a dozen names for me.

So, we decided on Matilda for our girl name. Unique? Check. Nicknamable?

Hmm..well there is Tillie (which we LOVE), Tilda, Til, Mattie (which is strictly off-limits unless Matilda decides for herself she wants to be called that since it is grossly overused these days..), Matilda Mae, M&M, and more.

But no one could have predicted the number one nickname of affection we tend to call our babe:

Munchie.

Because this kid is ALWAYS munchin' on her hands. And now she has started munching on blankets, toys, anything she has in her hands. And so, Munchie is seemingly a nickname that has stuck for now. And I have to say I think it fits her perfect.

Well, that an "Tootin' Tillie" which Finn named her. Also appropriate because she does toot a lot.

But for now she is Munchie. She is Tillie. She is Til. She is Matilda Mae, and Matilda. She is stealing our hearts every day, with every little smile...and munch.

2 Months

2011-08-21T19:07:00.000-05:00

We're back!

We had an AMAZING time up North with my parents. I am feeling rested, refreshed and ready for the next 10 weeks of maternity leave. While we were up there Matilda had her 2 month birthday. We didn't do much to celebrate since Matilda and I were the queen supreme party poopers--sleeping by 8:30 almost every night.

Tillie has had some great milestones these last few weeks.

8 weeks: 11 pounds 1 oz

We discovered her first allergy: soy, which is surprisingly in everything.

She has started to grab for objects a little more, which makes Daddy's morning cup of coffee a little more dangerous.

First Packer game! (which she was decked out for by Aunt Marna!)

Lots and lots of smiles these days, and the beginnings of what I am sure will be a slay-your-heart-cute giggle.

9 Weeks

First Boat Ride and trip up North! It was a quick ride, but she didn't cry once!

Matilda has really found her hands this week and spends lots of time checking them out. We were adamant before having children that we wouldn't allow thumb-sucking, but this girl LOVES her hands, and is about 2 weeks from finding it, and I don't think Nate or I would even consider stopping her at this point.

She gave us our first 9 hour sleep, which was AMAZING. I'm not sure if it was the fresh air up north, the cool babysitter that came to hang with her, or the fact that she didn't sleep all afternoon, but either way I'll take it.

Matilda is 'talking' a lot more and when she gets on a roll with her cooing it is pretty hilarious. She gets a very serious look on her face.

We have her two month appointment tomorrow. I already told Nate he has to hold her while she gets the shots because I know I won't be able to stand it!

Guess Who's Getting a Pony?

2011-08-13T07:28:00.000-05:00

Last night, we attended my friend's son's 2nd birthday party, and there were pony rides (what a lucky 2 year old right?). We got Matilda her party-wear:

As, I stared hazily off at the kids on the ponies (and I say hazily because Matilda hasbeen not great at sleeping this week), and say to her: "Matilda, if you sleep 6 hours in a row tonight I will buy you a pony."'

Well, unfortunately for Matilda, she missed it by 30 minutes. i think she WOULD have made it but a storm came through and I'm fairly certain the loud cracks of thunder woke her up.

And so a few more lesson's of motherhood came my way yesterday:
1) She is her mother's daughter. Just give the girl a goal.....
2) Don't offer up bribe's you aren't willing to follow through on, although I feel like a miniature pony would totally fit in our backyard and maybe alleviate the lawn-mowing duties.

And as an added bonus, Matilda got her first pony ride:

I am headed north with Matilda to spend a week with my parents so there will be air silence for the next week, but I promise lots of cute out-doorsy pictures of Matilda when I return!

7 Weeks

2011-08-11T07:14:00.001-05:00

This week Matilda weighed in at a whopping 10 pounds, 4 oz. And I am proud to say that at 7 weeks, she has finally caught up to what I weighed at birth. Whoa.
This week started a little rocky, with Matilda continuing her war on sleep, but by the end of the week (and our new "babies only should be awake for 2 hours max" schedule) things started to look up (also, Super Grandma was in town....always keep this in mind).

Every week brings new fun milestones now.

Matilda started blowing bubbles (and drooling)

We spent our first night apart, with Matilda transitioned to the nursery and her crib. She did great! Slept for 5 hours straight which was a huge win from the previous nights of only 2 hours at a time.

Matilda had her first night of being babysat by Grandma! Nate and I went to a movie, where Nate enjoyed the movie and I checked my phone every 10 minutes hoping everything was alright (but I also enjoyed the movie)

And in general, there are more smiles, more coos, and more activity. She is really liking some of her 'toys' now, and likes to spend a few minutes under a mobile, or her activity mat. She likes to listen to you read books, and still LOVES her changing table (which continues to baffle Nate and I--but we don't ask questions).

Feats of Strength

2011-08-10T09:12:00.000-05:00

Watching Survivor, Amazing Race, or any other reality show that required people to hold onto a bar for a long period of time, balance a bucket on their head for a long time, etc I knew I could never be on those shows for those challenges alone.

I simply did not believe that I would ever be able to endure something like that for that long without just giving up.

Enter my appointment at the VW dealership yesterday. It was an 8:15 appointment. I went in early hoping to beat teh other 8:15 appointments as Matilda would need to eat and get back to sleep by 10 in order for our day to go alright. It had already been a weird morning from a feed/sleep perspective.

We got to the waiting room at 8:04, and by 8:09 Tillie started fussing. So I snuggled her into a blanket and started the sway, shush, paci move.

And I did it for 90 minutes. And she slept.

My left arm had ZERO feeling left in it (in fact I am surprised I still have use of my hand). And I made a lot of promises to a lot of people that if this child would just keep sleeping until they called my name I would....(fill in the blank). And she woke up, but I got her back down (a major accomplishment in my book).

The main takeaway for me was that now I can apply to be on reality tv, because all I have to do when I am standing above a mud pit balanced on a little log holding onto water buckets trying to do it the longest...is envision that my daughter sleeping depended on me continuing to do this task.

Because I would honestly do anything to get this one, and keep this one, sleeping. :

Magazine Cuisine: Episode 15

2011-08-08T09:31:00.000-05:00

This is not a fake out. We actually tried a new recipe this weekend. Which also means we actually cooked and are not thriving solely off of food others have made for us. HUGE win.

Of course, the only reason we were actually able to pull this off is the extra hands we had around (see previous Super Grandma post), but let a victory be a victory. We cooked. Something new.

And the lucky dish was: Green Bean and Potato Salad. It is from a quarterly magazine called Cuisine At Home. Lots of yummy recipes!

As an added bonus, this was the first of the green beans from our garden (yes, we have a garden and yes it is severely neglected), and we used up the potatoes from our crop share in way beyond just putting them in foil and grilling them along with the protein of the day.

It was a good dish. Mom and Nate tried to sneak some onions in, and were successful in the getting them in, not the sneaking part....

Super Grandma

2011-08-07T13:39:00.000-05:00

The last 7 weeks have not been easy. I wish I could write about how much Matilda and I are on the go, and how we take family naps in the middle of the day, and cuddle while she sleeps so peacefully. But Matilda is a 'spirited child' and has definitely given me a run for my money.

Don't get me wrong. I still get to enjoy snuggles and cuddles. And am loving her smiles, coos, and personality. But the point is, I have had some difficult days.

And luckily, I am blessed to have a Mom that is 'Super Grandma' and has come to the rescue a number of times. It feels like every time she comes up there is a different 'need'. From just general recuperation after having Matilda, to providing an extra pair of hands to help cook/clean/swaddle/cuddle/etc. And this weekend Super Grandma even managed to get Nate and I out of the house on our first date (where we went to a movie), and our first run post Matilda.

Nate and I are so appreciative of all of her help, love and support, and we couldn't have gotten through the last few months without her.

I swear I need to make her a cape--she could wear it whenever she comes up. I don't have a picture of Super Grandma, but here is a recent pic of Matilda!

The New Form of Communication

2011-08-03T10:29:00.000-05:00

What I am learning with every passing day, is that the more sleep matilda gets, the better and more she will keep sleeping.

So I am on a vigilant war path to ensure she gets every possible minute of sleep she will take.

Exhibit A:

I hung out at my neighbor's house on Sunday who kindly let me squat in her air conditioning since ours was broke and it was disgusting outside. Fast forward to Matilda falling asleep in my arms, over my shoulder and her napping for about 1.5 hours--while my bicep is shaking and Sina and I exchange very soft whispered conversation that whole time. I think I am going to have one really large bicep and one tiny one by the end of this newborn stage.

Exhibit B:

Nate stays home from work on Monday. I get Matilda to sleep and am so petrified of her waking up (because her morning snoozes were lackluster at best) that I refuse to talk to him. So he sits at the kitchen table to do his school paper and we communicate via text message. Yup. Text Message. Even though we were approximately 12 feet away from each other.

I know I need to get better about putting her down to sleep. But if she falls asleep in my arms or on me, I would rather sit and watch paint dry for 4 hours if it meant she would sleep. And with each nap that that happens during, I become more and more accepting of the fact that I can't and won't get anything done. Well, maybe becoming very acquainted with every scratch, nick and dent in our walls. But other than that, nothing.

6 Weeks

2011-08-01T16:25:00.000-05:00

We did it! We made it to the 6 week mark. The week that I've heard so many Mom's say things start to turn around, get better, more enjoyable etc! It feels like a huge relief and accomplishment all at the same time.

Matilda continues to grow, and although I don't know exactly how much she weighs, I know for sure it is over 9 pounds. She is destined to be a chunk just like her Mom.

We had lots of first this week:

1) First smile at Mama! It was one of my favorite moments of motherhood so far. I hope the smiles keep coming.
2) Starting to make eye contact.
3) First week of acid reflux medicine. Poor little thing gags and writhes anytime I eat anything acidic. It seems to have definitely helped.
4) First trip to the MN zoo with some of Mama's friends.
5) First date with Daddy while Mom went to get a pedicure!
6) First new Mommy class, with 9 other babies (where you promptly pooped your pants twice, one of which was a major blow out)
7) First week you decided you really do enjoy the bathtub--well for about 10 minutes...

8) First time checking out (and enjoying) the mobile that Max and Otto are letting us borrow.

9) First Book Club appearance where you were very well behaved--and up for like 4 hours

10) First time sleeping for longer than 4 hours at night! (which was greatly appreciated by both of us, especially since it happened 2 nights in a row!)

You Just Have To Ask

2011-07-31T08:38:00.001-05:00

I learned a new parenting trick yesterday: just ask.

Nate and I hesitantly left the house yesterday for his friends graduation party. It was right in the beginning of Matildas witching hour and it was already showing. So we decided to leave early and take the scenic route (ie...drive until she falls asleep).

Fast forward 45 minutes and this child has resisted the alluring motion of the car, the white noise of the wheels and the beautiful sounds of a hush-a-bye Johnny Cash cd. So we risk it and just go to the party. The car stops, the screaming starts.

Nate throws on the Moby wrap, and Matilda instantly calms, and proceeds to sleep for long enough for Nate to have a few beers, for us to enjoy the food (which I had to bring my own...thank you food allergies), and for us to feel just a little normal.

As we pulled into our street Nate says, "Thank you Matilda, for letting daddy enjoy the party."

To which I said, "yes, that was great but what Mama really wants (and I'm the one that feeds you remember) is for you to sleep for 5 hours. Not 6, not 7 because I'm not greedy, but just 5.

And. She. Did.

It was brilliant. I can't believe I am even typing this because I am so superstitious about jinxing us by saying anything good, but she did. She slept from 10-3. And I slept too.

So, now I have decided my child is actually quite reasonable. You just have to ask.

I Hate My House

2011-07-30T07:57:00.000-05:00

No really, I hate my house.

In the last 6 weeks, we have had a tree go partially down and break our neighbor's fence, water in the basement all the way into our finished area and tonight...a broken air conditioner. And not just a 'call the repair guy, pay the emergency fee' sort of broken. The replace it for $4,000 broken.

Ok, so maybe I don't hate my house so much as I hate being an adult and having to deal with all of it. And on top of that dealing with it WITH a newborn, that doesn't especially enjoy the early evening hours, which makes it nearly impossible to get anything done when Nate is at home (which is usually only during those early evening hours..).
How do you swaddle an infant when it is 83 degrees in your house? And how do you sleep when you have an infant that won't sleep without a swaddle?

Riddle me that.

And whatever I did to piss off the karma gods, I would like to know what it is so I can make it right and go on with our lives--incident free for a while.

The End of an Era

2011-07-29T15:17:00.000-05:00

This week was a very sad week in the Hanson household as we had to put down Lucy--our almost 23 year old cat.

Lucy has been in my life longer than most anyone beyond my core family. From the moment we found her stranded in the gutter and begged and pleaded to my Grandma Sherry to take her in (which totally worked), she won my heart.

Her little smoosh face stayed young through her old age.

She was not keen on Nate moving in with me when we lived in our apartment. Whatever room Nate was in, she was in the opposite room. Fast forward 5 years, and they were fast friends with morning 'love' sessions. Recently, Lucy was a little peeved that my belly was too big and not teh perfect 'resting pillow for her' and she even opted to lay on Nate during our regularly scheduled night-time snuggle sessions.

She perservered through me dressing her in Cabbage Patch Doll clothes when I was about 8. Lived through a house full of doggy-visitors. Many trips back to Viroqua where she set up shop in Hotel Ekern.

She even had her own special 'trick' which involved using her paw to grab single pieces of food off of my Grandma's garbage can (very advanced I know...but she is a cat and had a trick..come on people--this is impressive).

Losing a pet is never easy. But for me, I guess I have always viewed Lucy as a little piece of my Grandma, sticking around to make sure that I was doing alright and watching over me. So I guess I will view Lucy's passing as a nod from my Grandma that we are doing alright, and she really just wanted to stick around to meet Matilda.

And through all the sadness of losing a pet, that thought makes me happy and warms my heart.

This is What Happens When Your Child is Born in MN

2011-07-27T17:48:00.001-05:00

After finding flecks of blood in Matilda's diaper last week, we are on a strict diet to find out what is causing the blood (and hopefully some of her fussiness).

This means:
No Soy
No Wheat
No Egg
No Fish
No Peanut Butter
No Tree Nuts
No Cow's Milk
No Dairy

You heard me right. No cow's milk or dairy. No god-fearing Wisconsin girl would have a food intolerance to dairy. So CLEARLY this is all because she was born in MN (the lesser of the two states), because I can't explain it any other way. Nate and I certainly both adore all things dairy. Cheese. Cottage Cheese. Yogurt. Chocolate. Etc. So she didn't get this from us!

Look at this face...it's begging for dairy---but her stomach doesn't agree.

Well my assumption is that it is dairy. It could be fish. Which is fine by me, because that is MUCH easier to give up for me than DAIRY. Argh....

So for now I am drinking rice milk (yuck), and eating rice crackers, and having rice or potatoes for most of my meals. It's a great post-pregnancy diet plan...but I want my cheese back. And I want the ability to race to the cupboard and grab something and stuff it in my face when hunger strikes and I am feeding Matilda without having to read the ingredient deck 8 times.

How are you supposed to be a cheese-head with no cheese? Someone explain that to me?

One Month

2011-07-25T12:39:00.000-05:00

Well, after a month of having a newborn, this is what I can say for sure:

The day's of getting anything done 'on-time' are over.

Here we are a day after she has turned 5 weeks, and I haven't blogged any pictures from her one month birthday.

Yes, we are still taking pictures. It is the uploading, editing, and blogging them that seems to be the problem.

But I am trying this new tactic of swaddling Matilda for a few naps a day which allows me the chance to do something. And by somethign i mean race arond the house adn try to make food for myself, fill water bottles, go to the bathroom, pay bills, clean the litterbox, and maybe if I have the chance, blog. :)

Happy One Month (and a week now...) to our baby girl Matilda!

Magazine Cuisine: Episode 14

2011-07-17T18:58:00.000-05:00

Yummm...check out this delicious dish:

Nothing like a little Feta Stuffed BLT Burger to wet your appetite on this warm summer day. One would picture Nate and I resuming our normal lives but just with a baby right?

WRONG.

We haven't cooked much of anything these last four weeks without the help of friends and family. Although we did manage to make chicken enchildas tonight (only the world's easiest recipe). This was our last Magazine Cuisine that we made pre-Matilda and i Just never got around to blogging about it.

Nope--no fun new recipes here unless you count figuring out how to use leftovers to make as many meals possible as fun. If it wasn't for the amazing people in my life, I would be starving. Matilda would be starving. And Nate would be living off of PBJ and Quesadillas (his go to meals of choice when I am gone).

So to my Mom--thanks for all of the delicious food you have brought to us on your many trips up here the last few weeks. From Nate's favorite coffee to fruit, chicken, bread, etc. It has kept us going.

Summer--the BBQ kept Nate fed last week. The scones and Costco treats were a lifesaver for me.

Marie--the taco night. You came to our door at the perfect time...and it was the biggest sigh of relief to know that we didn't have to worry about dinner that night. And now you have us in bagels for the next few days which will most definitely get devoured.

Katie F.--for coming to my house and cooking me a fresh dinner of veggie stir-fry and giving me MUCH needed adult conversation.

Sina--the POWER FOOD lunch was amazingly delicious and oh so healthy!

Andrea--the BIg Bowl on the night Nate had class was clinch. It was such a long day alone and your timing was perfect. (And the 'to-go' turkey dinner came in handy that next night!).

I never thought that COOKING--something Nate and I absolutely love to do would be something we just. couldn't. get. done. But it is. I am confident we will get back there, and hopefully soon.

But in the meantime--perhaps Magazine Cuisine should be called: What can I throw together with the crap in my cupboard?

Keeping It Real

2011-07-16T07:14:00.000-05:00

Life with a newborn is not all peaches and ponies, and I definitely do not want to lead anyone astray that it is.

Take last night for example.

I could spin it to say this:
Nate and I got to do some of our favorite things last night. Enjoy a beautiful sunset on Lake Minnetonka. Have a Punch Pizza dinner for two. Explore new places and try new things.

But in reality this is what happened:
After pulling out every trick on the new parent handbook to help Matilda over her fussiness (swing, stroller ride, gibberish singing, etc etc etc) we thre her in the car seat and started to drive. Destination: whenever Matilda stops crying.

This took us toward Lake Minnetonka, where we passed the Punch PIzza in Wayzata. Nate hopped out. I kept driving for fear that Matilda would awake. He jumped back in. We ate pizza from a box while driving. We happened to catch a beautiful sunset as we were driving.

Then we had a choice to make--head back toward home or keep driving. I opted for the keep driving as I wanted Matilda to sleep and sleep and sleep until her crankiness was gone. So we ended up in Chaska. A 'suburb' neither of us had ever been to. Exotic, exciting Chaska. Which we continued to drive straight through.

And so, we had a 'driving date'.

Matilda woke up. Ate her midnight snack and went to bed. (Whew!).

Today is a new day, and hopefully a 'fuss-free' day.....

The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

2011-07-14T20:43:00.000-05:00

The Good:
Having your 'hand' held by your baby. And by hand I mean finger.

The Bad:
Losing all feeling in your arm because you just held your baby through a 3 hour nap in fear that putting her down will make her cry.

The Ugly:
Going two days without showering amid bouts of spit-up, and night sweats. (Hey...it is called "the ugly"). Aren't you glad I don't have a picture for this one?

3 Weeks

2011-07-13T20:54:00.000-05:00

Matilda tuned a whopping 3 weeks old on Sunday. 3 weeks of snuggles. 3 weeks of diapers. 3 weeks of getting to know each other.

Milestones for this week include:

First mall visit with friends Max, Otto and Summer
First true grip on Mama's fingers
First lunch out (and VERY public breastfeeding) with Grandma
First "night out" for Nate and Greta--which included a 30 minute walk around the hood without Matilda courtesy of Grandma

We are learning more about our little peanut every day. What cries mean what. How she likes to be held when she has the hiccups (which are my #1 enemy in life right now..well that and gas that keeps Matilda up). How to function on very little sleep. Etc. Etc. Etc.

I can''t believe Tillie has already been in our lives for 3 weeks. While some of the days admittedly seem quite long, I can't believe how fast it has already gone. Looking back on her hospital pictures I already feel like she looks pretty different and is definitely more alert and aware of her surroundings. As her pediatrician said: "She has a very intense look about her for such a young baby"...

I'd like to say she gets that from Nate, but unfortunately......I think it may come from me. :)

The Fourth!

2011-07-09T15:35:00.000-05:00

Our first trek back to WI is complete. We headed home for the Fourth of July with Matilda in tow (along with a trunkload of baby paraphernalia). She did great on the ride and slept for most of the way. I think I was the one that was worse for wear worrying about her going to long without eating. But we survived!

The weekend was eventful as we got to meet Finn and Leo for the first time, and hear all of the 'she is soo cute' from Finn. Leo provided his shrieks of approval.

We headed to La Farge (population 500ish) for a Fourth of July parade that I swear exists solely to throw candy out as the marching band was made up of approximately 8 people, and there were about a handful of floats that weren't just old cars, tractors or trucks. But it was true Americana...

And Finn did me proud as he sprinted around collecting as much candy as possible (of which there was an "aunt candy" tax).... Look at this kid--he loves sugar.

Nick and Matilda had some quality bonding time as NIck helped keep Tillie's paci in...as her hands are in constant need to be by her face. I love the contrast of big vs small.....I think Nick's forearm is bigger than Tillie's stomach.

We also celebrated Janet's birthday (which she graciously shares with America). What better way to celebrate than with grilled pizza's, s'mores and beer in the garage? Well...that and lots and lots of Aunt Janet snuggles with all 3 of the kidlets.

It was a great weekend. I held my breath the whole way home as I was sure Matilda was going to freak out in the car, but she didn't. That's not to say there wasn't a meltdown for milk the second we got home, but we made it. Another first done. Now we need to work on the first plane ride! :)

The Newest Addition to our Nest

2011-07-06T21:40:00.003-05:00

If you have trouble watching this from the blog, click on this link to go to the Youtube version:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6SOavClhnU

What They Say Is True

2011-07-03T14:30:00.000-05:00

Well after 2 weeks of being a family of 3, I have come to one very strong conclusion:

What people tell you about not having any time to do anything once the newborn arrives is true.

It kills me that I haven't been able to blog more than once since the arrival of Matilda Mae. But between feeding, and pumping, and trying to sleep and trying to eat and feeding and pumping (did I mention feeding and pumping?), it seems like a daunting task to blog.

And truth be told, I feel this immense pressure about the blog. I know people are waiting for pictures and stories about Matilda so there is peer pressure. And I want to be able to truly capture the feelings and emotions we have been going through since going into labor, and it just seems impossible right now.

So hang with me, please. I am cooking something up that I promise to get posted soon--just after the feeding and pumping and feeding and pumping.....

For now...hopefully this will tide you over. Matilda Mae hanging out on a quilt my Mom's cousin, Sharon made for her--enjoying her favorite pastime--sucking on her fingers.

Welcome to the World, Matilda Mae!

2011-06-25T20:27:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday, Nate and I were blessed to welcome a healthy baby girl into this world. She was certainly worth the wait, and melted our hearts right away.

Meet the newest member of our nest:

Matilda Mae Hanson

Born June 19th, 2011 at 9:51 PM

7 pounds, 5 oz

21 inches

Right now we are busy adjusting to life as a family of 3, and are figuring our parenthood with a newborn. Nate is absolutely smitten with his baby girl, and is an amazing Dad already. She is going to be trouble for him, I can just feel it!

We will share more details soon, just wanted to get the initial details up for everyone.

Thanks to all for thoughts and well wishes throughout the last 9 months and since Matilda's arrival.

What's in a Date?

2011-06-18T06:42:00.000-05:00

Sell-by dates. Expiration Dates. Best if Used by dates. Due Dates. What do they all have in common?

They are all crap-shoots. You can pick up a cup of yogurt that doesn't expire for 3 days and it is rancid. Similarly, we have been eating out of a tub of Costco cottage cheese that is well past it's best if used by date and it is still completely delicious.

And perhaps in recent relevance, I am learning that a due date does not equal a delivery date. Baby H has clearly has no desire to leave the womb. I've made it all too comfortable. Or Nate and I have already sufficiently scared it and it refuses to come out if we are going to be its parents. Or maybe it's showing us who is boss from a VERY early age.

Either way, at 40 weeks instead of holding a baby..this is the situation:

And thanks to some very good friends who have been keeping me sane by going shopping with me, getting pedicures, going to lunch, and in general saying the right things at the right times, I am in a very good spot for being over-due.

I've got no complaints besides the fact that every single person I talk to now says "you're still here" or "you're still pregnant"....or something Captain Obvious like that.

Nate and I have a whole weekend of activities planned to keep us busy. Luckily it is the St. Louis Park "townie festival' this weekend called Parktacular, and we started out the weekend right with some serious BINGO--of which I won $18. I was pretty excited (clearly not excited enough to send me into labor).

So today, we will check out another library book sale (because I need more books like I need a hole in my head), and partake in the Parktacular Parade where I will enthusiastically sprint into the street for candy. And by sprint, I mean point to the candy and hope Nate picks it up. :)

So that's the update on the due date. It has come and gone. And Baby H is still waiting to makes its grand entrance into this world. We will keep you posted!

Magazine Cuisine: Episode 13

2011-06-17T12:23:00.000-05:00

What do you do when you are waiting for a baby to arrive? You bake. Well, that an organize stuff. Drawers. Closets. Shelves.

But you also bake. Which is why this recipe from Food Magazine for Salted Nut Bars was perfect. Why was it perfect?

1) I didn't have to turn the oven on and get the house warm. Yes, I realize this isn't technically baking then but I'm fine with it.

2) It had the perfect blend of salty and sweet. I am pretty indecisive these days on which of those flavor profiles I am wanting. Viola! A treat that delivers both.

3) This literally is like 3 ingrediants and took 10 minutes.

4) It reminded me of my Grandma Sherry who always had Pearson Salted Nut Rolls.

Overall, it was good. Pretty chewy. Would not recommend to someone who suffers from lockjaw or has a loose tooth. But other than that. This was a winner for me!

Hooligans

2011-06-16T10:30:00.000-05:00

As Nate and I were nearing home this morning after our "seriously-Baby H-come-out-now" walk, one of our neighbors was fiercely inspecting his car and was very eager to share that his car had been (and I quote): Hit by Tweens.

Apparently, in the wee hours of the morning a bunch of tween girls thought it would be funny to put ketchup, mustard, syrup, etc on car handles and windsheilds of cars parked on the street. Apparently they didn't realize that while 5AM is "totally late" for them, adults are actually up at this time.

I had a flash back of my Dad dealing with infamous egging incidents at our house growing up, as this neighbor of mine was saying how he is pressing charges and calling the cops. As we walked away, the cops were bringing these girls to the cars where they had to wash everything off and our neighbor yells at them (in front of the cop): "You can start with this one because my wife needs to get to work"

Nate and I laughed about this incident but both said if our kids ever did something like this shit would 'hit the fan.' But what does that even mean? Nate's approach is shame and embarassment (which should lead to many interesting discipline stories in our future--stay tuned) and all I could picture is me literally blowing steam out of my ears and being paralyzed with anger.

This was actually a perfect way for me to start my first official day past my due date. Because quite honestly teenagers are scary. Because they do stupid stuff like mustard people's door handles. And all of the sudden Baby H's rib-kicking violations don't seem so bad.
And the sooner Baby H comes out, the sooner it is likely to turn into a hooligan.

Tri Season

2011-06-13T14:11:00.000-05:00

Triathlon season officially started this weekend, with Nate's first big race of the season.

I didn't spectate the whole thing as sitting in a car/park bench for 5 hours seemed like not the brightest idea to Nate and I, but surprised Nate at the finish line (huge thanks to Sina for letting me borrow her wheels to get there).

He looked super strong as he crossed the finish line, and beat his personal best by 18 minutes!!

No matter how many races you do, it is still a huge accomplishment, and I think Tri's take the cake. When you are willing to plunge yourself into a cold lake on a cooler day in MN, then get on your bike, and after that decide to throw down a few miles on the pavement, you have some serious motivation within you. Nate has more races planned this year, so hopefully at the next one I will be able to be the supportive wife WITH a baby cheering Nate on.

I am also relieved we got through the tri without having to put our crazy "what if Greta goes into labor while Nate is racing" plan. It was in place, but it would have been a little chaotic. And Nate was even nice enough to still go on my daily labor-inducing walk with me that night. What a guy!

Magazine Cuisine: Episode 12

2011-06-10T13:19:00.000-05:00

This week brought record highs to Minneapolis: 103 degrees without humidity! What better way to beat the heat than to enjoy my favorite summer treat, watermelon.

I am the only consumer of watermelon in this household as Nate dramatically tries it once every year, and then dramatically gags and has his moment to remind me how he thinks it is so disgusting.

I came across a recipe for Watermelon Granita in the Whole Living magazine this past month which was relatively easy to make, and gave me another way to enjoy this summery treat.

Think of it as a cross between a popsicle and a snow-cone. It was good, but in general my take on it was that even thought it was easy to make it still probably wasn't worth the effort to make just for me. Maybe for a party or something where more people could enjoy it.

It doesn't matter now as it is 55 degrees and I may as well be baking banana bread as we have literally progressed from spring to summer and are already in fall weather all in the course of 3 days. Here's hoping it doesn't snow tomorrow.

Things Keeping Me Up at Night

2011-06-08T12:17:00.000-05:00

1) My ridiculous bladder. It has gotten be unacceptable really. The amount of times I go to the bathroom every night is making me question if Baby H has identified the location of the bladder, understands its functionality, and is already starting to mess with me.

2) My inability to breathe out of my nose. I have been graced with an extremely smooth pregnancy. From a preggo-induced complaint stand-point I have none. BUT, I am on the third sinus infection of this pregnancy and I am over it. Nothing like having the air on to keep out the humidity but then having a humidifier going in the bedroom in an effort to be able to breathe. I just hope I can lick this before the HEAVY breathing of labor begins.

3) Late Night Hunger Attack. Oh yes. If I don't eat enough for dinner the night before, Baby H decides to sound the alarms at about 3AM. I've enjoyed many late night snacks from a bowl of cereal, to nectarines, to popsicles (which I discovered was a really dumb idea since Baby H then starts to do some serious dancing).

4) Weird Dreams. There are many, and they are way too messed up to even try to share. But let's just say one of them involved my ability to be able to peer into my belly because it was like a kangaroo pouch and I had a whole litter of multi-ethnic babies.

5) No Apparent Reason. Yup, if the above four don't keep me up, some internal alarm clock that tells me I've had enough sleep at 4AM does. It's happened a few times and it is the most frustrating thing. To not feel tired at all at 4AM, with your husband snoring next to you, knowing you have to work the next day and try to function like a human being. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know all you mother's are going to say "welcome to motherhood", or "just wait until you have a kid". I realize this is my future life. But the kid isn't here yet, which is why I should be SLEEPING--storing up my reserves! :)

Last Chance Weekend

2011-06-05T21:13:00.000-05:00

Just like the people on Biggest Loser have "last chance work-outs", Nate and I decided that this weekend would be our 'last chance date' weekend before the baby comes. Although I think we both are hoping that the dates aren't over forever, just in the short-term while we acclamate to a family of three.

So my 38th week of pregnancy started...with the belly getting bigger, and bigger, and bigger.

After meeting Nate downtown for happy hour on Friday, we headed to Uptown for a quiet dinner and got outfitted with new running shoes so that I can hit the pavement as soon as possible.

We headed to the Minneapolis Farmers Market bright and early on Saturday, and I got some seriously delicious Strawberry Ice that was made with Coconut milk, fresh strawberries, agave nectar and lime. It was heavenly.

And of course Nate had to show-off his camera skills

Once we started actually thinking about what we couldn't do with a brand newborn, we came to the conclusion that both of us running errands efficiently was probably going to be the biggest change. So that is what we did. Costco. Home Depot. Crate and Barrel. Creative Kidstuff. Target. Byerlys. All of them. As quick as possible. It was great. And yes I realize this doesn't sound as much fun as it probably was for us.

And there was napping.

There was also a double-date that included 18 holes of mini-golf and a dinner that Nate has been dying to eat for the past 2 years---5 Guys.

Now, I would like to say the golfing was close--but in reality Ryan schooled us. He gave us lots of useful tips like "never let your ball stop short" and "visualize your ball where you want it to go"....as you can tell from my score it was very helpful. Although I think I should get a pregnancy handicap :)

And today there were lots of labor inducing activities: eating pineapple, sitting in the heat, household cleaning, spicy foods and walking...none of which are working as of right now.

We did head to the SLP Aquatic Center and relaxed poolside for awhile. It was nice to be under an umbrella, enjoying the weather, dipping my legs into the water--all while looking like a beached whale and being okay with it!

And we ended our weekend with a movie and a delicious dinner. And of course since we treated this like our last 'baby-less' weekend, I am sure we will have about 3 more, which I am trying to mentally prepare for.

Either way, each day that goes by we get a little more prepared, a lot more excited and a little less scared.