Just doing my thing...

Dorothy is now a toy/horse/pillow...only took 3 years for them to play together.

I was at Target the other day heard someone ask someone else, "How are you?". And the other person replied, "Just doing my thing". I thought to myself, that is so cool, that is how I am going to respond to that question from now on!! Except, I can't! I have tried, but I get too embarrassed. So now I dare you the next time time someone says "How are you?" to respond" Just doing my thing". It will be awesome!


Nori's new favorite game is called, "Play Egg!" alternatively titled, "Neeeesst" which she says in a meek little baby bird voice. She loves to curl up in my lap as her nest and cover herself with her blankie pretending to hatch. Sometimes her pleading to "Play Egg" sounds more like "Plague", but it's still cute. I taught her to love regurgitated worms and how to fluff her feathers. I am happy she is still such a cuddle-bug. She got a Boon stuffed animal bag which basically turns into a bean bag chair when filled with stuffies. Only problem is she prefers to dump most of the animals out and crawl in it herself. The bedrooms in our house are tiny so we are all about saving space and multi-purposing. Likewise, my underwear and socks are so fun to drag out and make wonderful dress-up props as wells as a comfy dog bed. No need to buy the real thing when mom's already got it covered! FYI, stacking bath towels can make a great stepstool to reach out-of-the-way objects.

Fixing Dora with Handy Manny's screwdriver, Turner, while dressed as Princess Aurora.

I swear she doesn't watch much television but it only takes one show a day and movie here and there to foster a love for all things kids. Add in Dora sticker books, princess storybooks, Disney soundtracks, Nemo underpants, and hand-me down character toys and we have full-fledged commercialized childhood up in here. Anyone for a corn husk doll?

Imagine those puppies half a foot higher ^ ^

Gramsie Hol rolled into town this week to help babysit and go dress shopping for Casey's wedding. We found her something fabulous at Macy's that fits her shape and had a custom bra fitting which gave the girls an extra 8 inches of elevation. Now she just needs a silver shrug, shoes, and jewelry. The summer calendar is already filling up with baseball games, a concert, a lake trip, and wedding festivities. I am so excited to be on maternity leave, I hope I can juggle it all!

Beware the thorn

Performing on stage at a dress shop for ALL to hear

notice the zombies in the background?

Today we cashed in Nori's birthday present with Papa & Nana...a trip to the new Sea Life Aquarium at the Mall of America. We saw jellyfish, sea turtles, stingrays, and sharks! We even broke the rules by giving our wristbands to some lucky souls who hopefully got in for free.

Cousins learn about the deep sea

Taking in the sharks with Papa

Completing the underwater theme with lunch at Bubba Gump!

Happy Birthday Jill!

Is this really me?

30 weeks

pre-pregnancy hurdler

p.s. we got our 4 pack of Twins tickets for five games. I'm all jock-ish now.

Grandma saves the day!

Thank you to Grandma Liz who drove to town to save my feeble career by babysitting Norelle on Wednesday and Thursday! On Wednesday they took a nice walk to the library and Liz even babysat her in the evening so I could meet up with my Winona girlfriends (Erin, Ann, Jill, Katie, Kristi, Chelsy, Susie and honorary Winonan, Penelope Faye) to catch up on life. I didn't even get home until 11:00 p.m. On a school night! Why do we always forget to take photos? In honor of St. Patricks' Day, Grandma Liz & Nori visited to the Children's Museum where they drank green beer (only 3:2) and blew bubbles. Jake returned home cooler than ever from a week on trendy South Beach. Is it weird that he is now tanned and waxed?

Note: I am in LOVE with the smell of my car's A/C. No matter the temp outside, I crank it up and sniff away like crazy. I can not get enough of it! I even think it about how great it smells and write about it on my blog. I also love that musty basement smell, specifically the aroma of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disney. I would kill for some of that smell right now!

Not only did Jana have Baby Adira yesterday, but our other friends Brad & Sarah also had a baby girl, Cora Violet! What a great day to squeeze one out! I made up a draft of my birth plan online, however I am supposed to call it my "Birth Preferences" or as I entitled it, "Getting The Baby Out My Way". It's pretty flexible, my main request being that someone go get me fresh sushi immediately following delivery. I am overdue for a spicy tuna roll.

After talking to lots of people about their birth experiences, I am realizing how different each one is (even first births) in terms of time and pain. Some women take hours and hours to dilate halfway and others can barely get to the hospital in time. Seems like if labor progressing quickly enough, maybe I can cope/suffer through the contractions. If it is long and slow with the "worst pain of my life times infinity", some comfort measures may need to be taken. Keeping my options and pelvis wide open...

Congratulations Jana & Tyler!

Welcome Adira Rene' Molstre

March 16, 2011

2:00 am

7 lbs 10 ounces

20 3/4 inches

Jana had an all-natural home birth which started Tuesday morning and picked up intensity Tuesday afternoon. Endurance athlete Jana stated, "it was the worst pain of my entire life times infinity", but she did it! The name Adira is Hebrew for strong, Rene' is Jana's middle name, and no one is quite sure why they chose Molstre for the last name. Jana is planning a 20 mile bike ride around town to pick up some organic baby supplies this afternoon. Stay tuned for photos...

daylight savings

naked Popsicle eating, a sure sign of spring

Don't you just feel more energetic already? The stronger rays, longer days, and warmer weather are a saving grace. Just when you think you can't live in MN one more day, spring starts to appear.

In between applications of anti-viral lip ointment in amounts not approved by the FDA, we had a wonderful day! Puzzles, finger puppets, ice puddle jumping, cookie baking, suitcase hiding, faux inter-species marriage ceremonies, nudie bootie yoga, sun naps, reading, snuggling...you name it. True, we had one "tink disaster" and one "poop disaster", but we still made the most of a day off together. This day made possible by the letters C & S.

breathe in, breathe out

Notes to self:

• Being 7 months pregnant is no excuse to not carry 90 lbs of groceries all by yourself.
• You can not possibly be the ONLY normal one.
  
• Relaxing weekends away from home are not.
  
• You can not squeeze through small spaces like you used to.
  
• Maybe it IS you?
  
• Just smile and just say "uh huh".
  
• You can sleep when you are dead.
  
• Too bad you don't drink...

Thank goodness for grandparents and aunties! We are having some major issues with daycare not allowing Norelle to attend when she has a cold sore. Oh, the horror!! We really appreciate the babysitting skills of Aunt Wendy, Aunt Jill, and Aunt Ellen last week and potentially Grandma Liz & Gramsie Hol this week . Despite two doctors' notes saying it is safe for her to attend, she is banned. Ugh! We have to stay home again tomorrow but I am looking into other child care options since cold sores reoccur and can last several weeks each time. Just when you think you have it all figured out . As they say on Twitter, #stressful #inflexible

snow connoisseur

This weekend we rented a huge "cabin" in Emily, MN with eight friends, four little girls, and two Labradors. We ate carbs, watched each other communicate on mobile devices, and played strategy games. My child did not sleep well and was overstimulated by all the action and excitement. While some strategized on boards, snowshoed, kiteboarded, read, and napped, we mainly issued Time-Outs, bribes, distractions, and mandatory cuddle/please stop fussing time. Oh, child! Age 3 is equal parts adorable and feisty. I will try to remember these feelings when I can't stop crying the day she leaves for her free-ride at Harvard (August 20, 2026).

this is me

moment of peace

gamers

eaters

Oh, Toodles! pancake

p.s. Jake is leaving for Miami for the week, send help! SOS (not the blog)

Welcome Baby Naranjo!

Andrew Francisco

March 8th, 2011 at 3:26a.m.

7lbs 10oz, 19 inches

Congrats Sarah & Francisco!!

March forward

My daughters

Dora jammies are the only acceptable pajamas in the house, luckily she has two pair. All other pajamas are "too nubby" or "too silly". In fact, Dora pajamas are the only acceptable clothes, short of tutus and dresses. After a few impressive tantrums, Norelle is starting to mellow and return to the sweetheart we are used to. Can't deny her independent spirit...

Nori came to the midwife with me and helped listen to the heartbeat which clocked in at 142...still waiting to hear if I passed the glucose test. We got the nursery 85% done this weekend so now we just need some shelves, closet storage, and decor. We made chicken enchiladas, dined with friends, and tasted chocolate from famed Mast Brothers Chocolate (one of the brothers was Jake's college roommate, Ricky). Not bad... all green, organic chocolate imported on sail boats. Gearing up for another work week and then a long cabin weekend with our Life Group to eat, play games, and commune with nature from the comfort of the indoors.

I broke 150lbs by .4 (all boobs, I'm sure).

8 years ago today...

was 03-03-03, my mom's last chemo treatment to cure her Diffuse B-Cell Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Grateful to celebrate this milestone!

feisty as she wanna be

Upon returning home from a tropical vacation it is only natural that your perceptive three-year-old, who by all accounts was an angel while you were gone, may have some behavioral issues readjusting to real life. It's called payback. While we have been processing the emotions of us being apart for a week, she gives no overt signs of feeling sad that we left her, saying things to us like, "it broke your heart when I was gone in Winona, but now I came back!". Or vice versa? She is a self-proclaimed "feisty little shyster" as tantrums and yelling have peaked this week. So, as we regain consistency and structure in our daily routine, I am being extra loving and patient. A moment for the highlight reel included her demanding "ten Smarties!!" in tantrum instead of the typical one Smartie for going tink on the potty. Oh, child.

Honey McBear's (yes, we will have a Tootie McBootie and a Honey McBear, get over it) bedroom was painted today! Colors? Raspberry and pale blue/turquoise! It was painted by a Santa Claus impersonator who was a Catholic, then a Lutheran, but now attends the Free Evangelical church and goes to weekly bible study. He also happens to have a girlfriend, but don't worry, there is no "hanky panky" because he wants to get her know first (unlike his last wife who started drinking like a fish two years into their marriage, sloppy drunk in the middle of the day)! BTB, he has two dogs, a yellow lab and black lab/pittbull mix. Luckily, the pittbull has never bitten anyone. Santa was recommended to me by Missy whom he says is a "social butterfly" and he is also currently working on my other friend "Angel's" house. Angel who?