Wonderful Husband

Dave has been a wonderful husband and father. I cannot begin to say how much I appreciate him staying home with the kids on Mondays and Tuesdays. Not only do Benjamin and Ada enjoy spending time with him but he always welcomes me home from work with a hot meal. He always has the table set with supper on the table when I walk through the door. He has made a variety of things and has even used the crockpot. He has also went out on a limb and tried a few new recipes. He is becoming quite the chef, now if I could just get him to do the laundry! He has been so supportive of me working and so helpful around the house. Benjamin has already established his night-time routine with daddy. Benjamin always asks for daddy to give him a bath, help brush his teeth, say his prayers, and get him ready for bed and Dave does it without any hesitation. There have been nights when Dave has stayed up with Ada so I can get some sleep so I am not completely exhausted for work. Dave knows that I would prefer to stay home with the kids but it just isn't in the cards for us right now. I appreciate all that he does for me/us. I don't know what I would do without him. Thank you honey for all that you do. I love you very much!!

Starting Solids

Yesterday Ada tried rice cereal for the first time! I decided she was ready to try cereal because she keeps trying to grab food off of our plates and she is fascinated with our silverware. She was so excited to try her cereal; although, she didn't know what to think of it at first. She gave me this really confused look like "I think I want to try that again but I am not quite sure." Tonight she would grab the spoon and pull it towards her mouth. I can't believe that my baby is starting solids, it doesn't seem possible that she is old enough already (okay at the time of this posting she has only had two feedings). I am happy to report that Ada is still nursing like a champ! Things are going so well that our freezer in the basement is full of frozen breast milk.

Outdoor Fun

Ada getting ready to go outside
Benjamin working on his snowbunny

Putting on the final touches!

Benjamin and one of his snowbunnies

Dave and Benjamin working on a snowbunny

We took advantage of the nice weather on Sunday and went outside and played. I couldn't believe how nice it was. Benjamin and Dave had fun building snow bunnies "snow jackrabbits". Benjamin was only interested in making snow bunnies and not snowmen so that's what the boys made. It was pretty cute watching Dave and Benjamin work together to make their jackrabbits. There were times I was wondering who was doing most of the work as it seemed they were taking turns with the responsibility. They made their snow bunnies at the park. While at the park Benjamin enjoyed swinging and going down the slide. He is definitely an outside kid so this cold winter has been rough on all of us (not just Benjamin). Benjamin was in his element playing at the park. It was too bad his sister couldn't partake in the fun. We bundled her up, put her in the stroller, and as soon as we started walking to the park she fell asleep. She slept the entire time we were at the park and the whole way home. I think she would have slept longer if we could have left her in the stroller. It was fun getting out of the house for a change but the thing that I enjoyed the most was we got out as a family! I really enjoy family time and I must admit that there have been times where I should be cleaning my house or washing dishes but I have put it off in order to spend time with Dave and the kids. When I think about it, the kids will only be this age once; while I will always have dishes to wash and a house to clean. I can't wait for all the adventures we will get into this summer!

Benjamin Bowling

We have been going a little stir crazy with the weather being so cold lately that we have been trying to come up with different games to play with and different activities to do. Well we broke out baby bowling. Benjamin devised a new way to play the game. Line them up along the wall and hold onto the ball and say "roll" as you are knocking them down. He would play for hours like this; setting them up and knocking them down, setting them up and knocking them down, etc. He also liked to tell us the colors of the pins and what animal each one was. He would then connect color and animal. We are working on teaching him to count them. He can count beyond ten but we are trying to work on how many the respective number is. He understands one and two but we are working on the others.

All Things Girly

Benjamin has quite the imagination! He likes to pretend he is different animals (cow, horse, chicken, monkey, etc.), spider man and many others. He also likes to dress-up in our shoes, clothes, his clothes, and his sister's hair accessories! If Ada is wearing any of her headbands he likes to take them off of her and wear them himself. It is pretty cute. If you can't tell these are pictures of our little Turbo wearing Ada's head bands. Note the picture where he can't make up his mind about which one looks the best!

Adjustment

It has been a crazy couple of months for me. I was just getting adjusted to being back to work from maternity leave when I found out that I needed to have my gallbladder removed. So I was back to work about a month and then had my gallbladder surgery. I could only take two days off of work as I did not qualify for Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) (as I used this up during maternity leave) until September of 2008. Apparently, FMLA is a rolling year deal as opposed to a calendar year. Anyhow, I was lucky enough to have my surgery over the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday so I got an additional day off of work. My recovery has been pretty good except for the anesthesia withdrawal that I dealt with. I had such terrible headaches, fever, and threw-up. I could handle the pain from the incisions and surgery but those headaches put me over the edge!

January through March is my busy meeting time of the year. I have to organize and put on crop clinics, private applicator trainings (PATs), farm shows, different speciality programs, etc. I also have to attend trainings and meetings for my own professional improvement. I am based out of Turner County (my office is based in Parker, SD) and my new work area is in Minnehaha, Turner, and Lincoln counties. I used to work with seven different counties in southeast SD so I am happy that my travel has been reduced and that I work closer to home. I really enjoyed working with my old Field Education Unit (FEU). I have been having a rough time getting readjusted to work and to the new FEU.

Horsing Around

As you can tell from the above video, my kiddos enjoy horsing around with one another. Benjamin loves giving Ada "horsie rides". He will also pretend that he is a cow, puppy, goat, and a chicken. If you couldn't tell he has quite the imagination! Whether or not you want to believe it, Ada is almost always a willing participant for Benjamin. You can usually find her smiling or giggling when Benjamin is entertaining her. These two go together like two peas in a pod! There is never a dull or boring day here. We always go to bed exhausted around here--I bet you can't guess why!

Ada's Smile

Ada is growing and changing so fast! She definitely has her own opinion and her likes and dislikes. She likes and always wants to be part of the action. She will no longer tolerate sitting in her carrier, swing, bouncer, or intellitainer while the rest of the family is at the table for meals. She has decided that she needs to be at the table with us. So she now sits in her high chair and joins us at the table. She has not started cereal yet (she will in about a month) but she likes watching us eat. She will play with her toys and brings everything up to her mouth. Her favorite toy lately to play with is Benjamin's nesting cups. She likes to take them and nest them, bang them, and of course chew on them. Ada is such a tease! She is a very easy smiler except when you bring out the camera. It seems like she knows what it is and locks up! Dave and I thought we would share a few photos of Ada's toothless grin as we fear it is not going to be long before she gets her first tooth! We see the telltale signs of a tooth starting. Yikes!! Our baby is growing up too soon! It feels like we just brought her home from the hospital and that was four months ago! Where does the time go? We certainly have enjoyed watching Benjamin and Ada interact and get to know one another. Benjamin is a very loving and caring big brother. He loves giving her kisses and tonight she was giggling and watching him so he asked if sister could give him a kiss. Too precious!!

Baking Ben

Today Benjamin and I made a cake. Well, actually we made the cake the other day we just had to make the frosting and frost the cake. I knew it was time to frost the cake when Benjamin crawled up next to it and said, "Ben hungry, Ben eat cake". Benjamin is always very interested in helping me cook in the kitchen. It usually goes like this, "I want to help, I want to help" and so he does. He will pull out the step stool to get up high enough to see what I am doing and help. He helped me measure the powdered sugar and vanilla. It was so cute watching him level off the measuring cup filled with powdered sugar. He would get so excited when he was done and able to dump it into the bowl. He also liked to hold the measuring spoon and dump it into the bowl. We then decided to tint the frosting purple (it was actually more of a lavender color). Some how Benjamin got side tracked after we made the frosting so I got to frost the cake by myself. I made a rookie mistake and tinted all the frosting instead of leaving some plain or tinting it a different color so the presentation is nothing to write home about but I had fun playing around with cake decorating. I am excited to try decorating another cake and hopefully I won't make such a rookie mistake! Dave and Benjamin both agreed that the cake was good; although, I think Benjamin liked the frosting the best. I saw him use his fork and take some frosting off of Dave's piece of cake! Don't you love Benjamin's juice mostache! He looks so happy.

Puppy Chow

Last night Benjamin kept asking if we could make puppy chow (how did he know what I was craving?) and I told him we would make it tomorrow. So the first thing Benjamin asked about this morning after he woke up was when we would make puppy chow. I decided a long time ago that I didn't want to be the mother that made promises but didn't keep them so we made puppy chow today. Benjamin likes to help measure the chocolate chips (and eat his share while waiting!) and cereal. He will be very patient while we measure all of our ingredients and get our stuff prepared but it drives him wild waiting for the chocolate chips to melt in the microwave. His other big responsibility is helping me coat (shake) the cereal mixture in the powdered sugar. As soon as it is done he needs to "test" the puppy chow. I prefer to eat it after it has been cooled. Dave can't stand the stuff which is just fine for Benjamin and me as there is more for us! I can live without potato chips but I have to watch myself with this stuff. I have to really practice self control as this is one of my favorites to snack on. This is the recipe that I use:

Puppy Chow

6 cups cereal (chex, crispix, etc.)
1 cup chocolate chips (6 oz)
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup cooking oil
2 cups powdered sugar

Melt chocolate chips and cooking oil in microwave for 1 1/2 minutes or until melted, stirring occasionally. Stir in peanut butter until smooth. Pour melted mixture over cereal and shake until well coated. Add two cups powdered sugar and shake until well coated. (I use a gallon Ziplock bag to coat the ceral with the melted mixture. I transfer the coated cereal into a plastic container. I then add the powdered sugar and shake until well coated). Refrigerate.

I hope you enjoy making the puppy chow. Benjamin and I sure did!

Hooked on a book

If there is one thing that Dave and I are guilty of it is reading to our kids. We spend a lot of time reading to both Benjamin and Ada. Benjamin has always loved being read to since he was just a few months old. His daycare provider was always amazed at how he would sit still while being read too and how he would look at books and read out loud to himself. He is two now and still has a love for books and reading. Ada apparently has a love for books too. But if you notice she is quite a bit advanced with her reading! She couldn't get enough of aunt Carrie's book "High Maintenance". Carrie's book obviously had no pictures so I am not quite sure what attracted Ada to that book but it had to be something! The kids receive a free book each month from the Sioux Empire United Way. Benjamin has sure accumulated a pile of books already! When Dave and I look at the kids' book collection we realize that there is not a single book that we have not read. Benjamin definitely has his favorite books. I don't know how a person can listen to the same story over and over and over and over again day in and day out. I purchased the Usborne Complete Book of Farmyard Tales (it has 20 stories & about 300 pages) thinking we could read a few stories each night from the book. Let's just say that there have been days where I have read that book cover to cover and Benjamin is still asking me to read it again! We really do enjoy reading to the kids and watching their eyes light up when something excites or interests them. We get just as excited as Benjamin when a new book comes in the mail.

Ada's Tabby Textured Blanket

While my sister Carrie was here with her sewing machine I decided to get crafty. Carrie and I made Ada a tabby textured blanket. We had a lot of fun picking out the fleece and ribbon. We even had fun putting it together and sewing it. We decided that if we were to make another one that we would stick to the "chubby" ribbon as the "skinny" ones were a pain to work with! Our blanket may not be perfect but it got Ada's stamp of approval.

Weekend Visitors

Over the weekend my sister and brother-in-law came out for a visit. It was too bad that it was so cold out. I had plans for us to take Benjamin sledding and just spend some much needed outdoor time. Benjamin sure took a shine to his uncle Matt. He was very concerned where his uncle Matt was and always wanted to know what he was doing. Carrie brought out some snacks/treats for her and Benjamin. Well, Benjamin would give her this look and she would cave in and give him the fruit snacks or candy bar. She thought that she hid them but Benjamin would find them every time. We thought the weekend went by pretty quick. Dave, Benjamin, Ada, and I had a good time visiting with Carrie and Matt.

Benjamin got to spend a few hours by himself with his Matt as Dave had to work on Saturday and Carrie, Ada, and I went shopping. I found some much needed dress clothes! Since I am so short it is hard for me to find pants that fit so I typically have to get them altered. Carrie was kind enough to bring out her sewing machine and help me hem my new pants. I think that they look pretty darn good! I will post some pictures of the kids with Carrie and Matt when I get them. Apparently, we just took pics with their camera!

Brotherly Love

Benjamin has been a great big brother! He really loves Ada and cares for her. You should see the two of them together. She watches his every move. Benjamin can get Ada to smile and laugh with ease. Her little face just lights up when she sees him. He does the same when he sees her. It is so cute. Granted, we do have days when he trys climbing on her and is constantly in her face. But Ada is learning to hold her own with him as she will grab his hair or swat at him when she wants him to leave her alone. Benjamin enjoys holding "sister" and playing with her. He always wants to know where sister is and he wants to wake her up if she is sleeping. I think these two are going to get into alot of trouble together.

Ada Update

Yesterday, Ada had her 4 month check-up. She is a very happy, healthy little girl. Our baby is 26 inches long (92 %) and weighs 16 lbs 13 oz (95 %). Her head measurement is 16 inches (45 %). If you couldn't tell nursing is going very well for us!! The doctor is a little concerned because one of her fat rolls on her legs doesn't match up with one on the other leg. This could mean that she has a problem with her hip, etc. We have to just wait, watch, and see if it corrects itself. Otherwise, if it is still a concern at her 6 month check-up, she will have to have x-rays to confirm that everything is okay. The doctor is not entirely concerned yet because Ada likes to bear weight on her legs and she doesn't show any signs of pain or problems when standing. Arm update--Her right arm is healed and today you wouldn't know it was ever broke. She moves it and uses it with no problems! There doesn't look to be any nerve damage so that is great news to hear.

My Little Princess

Today Benjamin and Ada celebrated their friend, Mady's 1st birthday. Her actual birthday was on Saturday but the fun was today. Ada looked so cute and comfortable sitting in Mady's chair that I had to take this picture. I also thought she looked pretty snazzy in her party outfit accessorized with her headband (courtesy of her auntie Carrie). Ada is a very content little girl. She handled being passed around at the party with no problem. She entertained by giggling, cooing, drooling, and blowing raspberries. She also tried to eat my cake. Okay, she actually grabbed at my cake and got pretty close to getting a handful. She's at the stage right now where everything that she touches goes right into her mouth. I can't believe that my baby girl is 4 months old already!

Joe Cool

I had to share this picture of Benjamin. He looks so cute with his "eyes" on. He calls glasses and sunglasses "eyes". His uncle Matt and auntie Carrie got him these sunglasses. He absolutely loves them! When he puts them on he says he is like uncle Matt. I have to wonder when he went from my baby boy to big boy. I can't believe how fast time flies by. I feel like we just took him home from the hospital. I guess I am still in denial that he is two and growing up!

Liberated

Today is February 1, 2008 and I finally decided to start writing my own blog. Most of our family and friends live a good distance from us so I thought this would be a great way for them to stay connected to what we have been doing and to share in the many moments, memories, and milestones that Benjamin and Ada will encounter! I have been truly motivated to blog by my friend Angela. I have spent the last several months reading her blog and looking forward to each of her new posts. Thank you Angela for your motiviation and inspiration!!

Today, I took the Certified Crop Advisor exam and I will have to wait 6-8 weeks to find out whether or not I passed. I keep telling my husband that it does not matter if I passed or failed because I feel liberated just having taken the THING!! The down side is that if I have to take it again I have to wait an entire year to try again--so I am thinking positive thoughts.