Girls Weekend!

Kallie enjoying lunch at The Crooked Spoon in Grand Marais (I would highly recommend it!)

This past weekend, Lyndon's mom took just Kallie and I on a shopping trip to Duluth. This trip has kind of become a tradition, this was the third time she's taken us to Duluth since Kallie's been born (but the other times daddy and grandpa were there too). It was such a wonderful weekend away, we relaxed, shopped and ate out...such a different pace from day to day life. Lindy bought Kallie a whole new summer wardrobe (Kallie's wardrobe was the inspiration for starting these trips:). And she also gave me an early birthday present of spending money, so I was able to do quite a bit of shopping for myself as well! I got new jeans, new shoes, a new purse, and I got to buy stuff for our new house. My project right now is Kallie's room, so I had lots of fun picking out stuff to decorate her room and I also picked up her bedding that I ordered, which I absolutely LOVE! My friend Erica got it for her little girl Annika and I just loved it so much I had to order it too:)!! Thanks Erica:) The picture is just below...Kallie has a white crib, so it'll look a little different, but still gorgeous!

Kallie having fun playing on the bed:) She kept throwing herself back...she thought it was hilarious!

Good morning sunshine!

Lyndon's mom is so generous, it was such an incredible blessing to have an all-expenses paid mini vacation in the middle of all our craziness right now! The only downside was that Lyndon stayed home...to put our flooring in...it was pretty incredible to come back from the trip to see our entire main floor finished(the hardwood looks amazing...but you'll have to wait until everything's done to see pictures:)! But I felt bad for him, he worked 15 hour days while we were gone! As soon as we're moved in it's going to be his turn for a little downtime!

Kallie and nana having fun together!

SO happy to be home and see daddy(who lets her drive the truck!)...wearing one of her new hoodies:)

I was tagged by Mandy...here goes:)

I am: happy
I think: all the time
I know: a lot less than I want to
I want: the best life possible for my child/ren, whatever that may look like
I have: wonderful family and friends, I am blessed
I wish: I lived closer to my family
I hate: injustice, racism, abuse, exploitation
I miss: My friends and family that live far away
I fear: losing a loved one
I feel: restless
I hear: silence! Yay for afternoon naps:)
I smell: a yuzu lime candle...mmmmmmmm:)
I crave: recognition
I search: to find out who I really am
I wonder: why, about a lot of things
I regret: a few poor decisions, but I've learned my lessons
I love: God, Kallie, Lyndon, my family and my best friends
I ache: when I think of or see sad/hurt/lonely/abused children and animals
I care: about a lot of things and have a hard time harnessing my energy in one productive direction
I believe: in God
I fight: unfairly sometimes...and I'm not proud of it.
I write: as a way to get things out
I win: sometimes
I lose: sometimes
I am scared: of sharks and water creatures in general
I need: stability and change at the same time

A Work In Progress...

All the linoleum has been ripped up...it looks so much better, even just with beat up plywood! I can't wait until the flooring is in!!!

Everything's ripped off the stairs...both handrails and again, all the linoleum. They're going to look so great when Lyndon's done with them!

I only have a couple pictures of the work we're doing on the house...just demo....b/c we're not anywhere close to being done! Our goal is to have everything painted by the end of April (so far the dining and living rooms are done, and one coat on the downstairs hallway...we have a ways to go!) so that we can focus on flooring, finishing, and MOVING in the month of May! It's been a bit of a stressful month for us...there's just so much going on and not enough hours in a day. But we're excited to see it coming together...it's really starting to feel like our home. Lyndon is so amazing...he works more than I could ever imagine...he's done so much on the house this month, and still has so much to do. I'm trying to help as much as I can, but usually only one of us can go to the hosue b/c the other is home with Kallie...and let's face it, if you had to pick between me and Lyndon in a contest of speed, handiness and efficiency...I wouldn't even be a close second:) And Lyndon's had a couple of friends that have been an awesome help...we've really appreciated it! I know my time will come though, I'll be busy packing, cleaning and unpacking next month! As much work as it all is, I just love this process of working on this house together and making it our own. I can't wait for the finished product...I'll be posting lots of pictures then!!! Please keep us in your prayers that we'll be able to accomplish everything needed so we're not moving Kallie into an unfinished house...and just that we keep the stress levels at a minimum:) Thanks!

Our Little Monkey

This is mostly going to be pictures...Kallie has become a little monkey and loves to climb:)!! It's fun to watch her learn all the new things her little body can do...and a little nerve-wracking at times as well:) One of her newest developments is pushing her little chair over to the playschool table, so she can get on top of the table and then try and make it to the stairs. We've blocked off her normal route of sneaking to the stairs (under the table) with pillows, so she's adapted. She still hasn't figured out how to get over the pillows (they're sideways and she'd fall if she went on top) so we're safe a little while longer:) Here are just some random pictures of her climbing escapades, and a little video. Enjoy!

A Few Pictures!

So I don't have as much time as I was hoping...I haven't downloaded all the pictures, but here's a few fun ones, and a really cute video of Kallie. It's pretty long, but she did funny little things at the beginning, in the middle and at the end, so I didn't want to delete any of it! Enjoy:)


Kallie actually ATE sushi for the first time the week Grandma was here...she loved it!


Kallie is 11 months old!

Daycare Pictures: Avery (2) and Kallie having a snack

So much to catch up on!

K, I don't have any pictures to put up right now, but I promise I will soon--by the end of tomorrow at the latest! Things have been so crazy around here I thought I'd take the spare minute I have to write, and then upload pics when I have a chance.

Kallie is 11 months old today, which is so crazy for me...my baby's going to be one in a month. I just can't believe how fast time has gone by! This month has been so fun--Kallie is turning into more of a little girl every single day! She's started climbing on things (which gives me a heart attack:) and her absolute favorite is racing up the stairs, with or without us chasing her:) She's communicating and understanding so much more, and we can actually play little games with her which is a blast! And she laughs SO MUCH now...there is absolutely no better sound in the world than your child laughing with a deep belly-laugh:)

The other crazy stuff that's been going on in our lives...Lyndon is in his last month of trade school, so he's preparing for his final exam and then he'll be a journeyman carpenter, which is very exciting! We also got possession of our house on the first, and didn't do too much with it in the first week, and so now we're in panic mode, working on it as much as we can. And I've started home daycare, which is going really well, but wow, more than one baby is a lot of work! I don't know how people with multiples do it! My mom was here for a visit the first week of April, which was wonderful...Kallie had such a fun time with Grandma:)!! Add to all that a few illnesses here and there, and we've had a very busy month so far! But it's been really fun and exciting at the same time. I think everyone gets pretty busy this time of year, spring just makes you want to get stuff done!

K---that's enough writing...I know the most interesting part is the pictures...I will post house, daycare, and Kallie pictures (maybe even a video if I'm really on top of things:) asap!!! Happy Spring!

You Learn Something New Everyday....

We had a first aid instructor come to playgroup last week, and she is also certified in car seat safety, I just thought I'd pass on a few of the things she taught us about car seats, b/c I had no idea about some of them, and it was putting Kallie at risk!

She told us that there should be NO bunting bags in the carseat whatsoever (the kind that goes underneath and over...the kind that just goes on top is ok), and that babies/toddlers/children should NEVER wear snow suits or puffy winter jackets in their carseats. The reason is that in an accident, any extra material can compress and the baby can slip right out of the straps. This has happened many times, and is almost always fatal for the child. I had no idea about that, Kallie was wearing her snowsuit in her carseat all winter. The woman said that we probably wouldn't like the info she gave us, b/c it's impractical (hello, no snowsuit in -40 weather?!?!?), sometimes not economical (buying a 'transition' carseat to make sure your child is in the proper weight range for their seat) and can just be more work. But it's the safety of your child that's most important.

A couple of other things she told us: You can't buy a carseat in the states, it has to have the Canadian 'seal' to show it's been regulated by Canadian government (even though it's probably the exact same one as you'd buy in the states, and was probably made there). If you're pulled over and they notice it's not Canadian regulated, you can get a huge fine. And babies should be rear-facing until a minimum of one-year AND 20 lbs. If they turn one and they're still not 20 lbs (which will be Kallie) they have to stay rear-facing until they reach that weight. If they weigh 20 lbs before 1, they have to stay rear-facing until 12 months. And carseats have expiration dates on them (I did not know that), usually stamped right into the plastic. They last for 6-8 years usually. And if you're ever in an accident, you should buy a new seat, b/c you have no idea what may have happened to it in the impact, even if it doesn't seem to have been affected (that would be the non-economical part).

Anyways, I may have just been in the dark and everyone already knows all this, I knew some but a lot surprised me and the mom's at playgroup. Hope this is helpful to someone!