SeaWorld Christmas

Our friends gave us two free tickets to SeaWorld and so we went and enjoyed all the Christmas festivities.

No amount of persuasion could convince Kate to take a picture with the abominable snowman.

But when we found Rudolph there was in instant connection.

My Birthday #30, or my second 29th Bday

At the end of September we were in Idaho for Erin's wedding, so we got to celebrate a few days before my birthday with my family.  Grammy made her famous carrot cake with cream cheese frosting.  Mmmmmm.  We drove back home via Redwood City and got to spend my actual birthday with John and Trudy.  It was the best!  We opened presents, went out (kid-free!) to a fancy pants Indian restaurant and then the party continued the next day when we had strawberry pie.

This vase is pretty special.  It belonged to John's maternal grandma, Christa Atkerson.  For our Fjeldsted reunion this past summer, each of Paul's siblings and their spouses learned about a set of their great-grandparents and one night we all sat down and everyone shared some of the highlights they learned.  Paul and I had his great-grandparents Ervin and Christa Atkerson.  Christa wrote a wonderful history and there were several other documents I got to read through- probably around 90 typed pages in total.  I felt like I really got to know and connect with her.  She was an amazing woman.  This vase is one of the few things that John has from her and he felt like it should go to me.  I was so touched!  It's absolutely beautiful.

This sequence of photos was pretty funny to see after the fact.  Parker and Kate blew out the candles before I could!

 Then Kate wanted to give me a birthday hug.

And a birthday kiss on my neck.

When we got home to San Diego I got a special present from my dad in the mail- a robot vacuum!  I've named her Rosie after the maid on The Jetsons.  She's my most valuable employee.

And Paul got me a gift card to get a water massage, which I'm saving for when I'm hugely pregnant and super uncomfortable... which feels like is right around the corner, but I still have three months left before baby girl FJ arrives!  Agh!

Halloween 2016

Han Solo, Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker and Yoda.

Baby #3 On The Way! It's a GIRL!!!

It depends on when you ask, but we're mostly excited about this!  If I start thinking about the first six months of the baby's life, I'll start to doubt our decision making skills.  The thought of those sleepless nights and hazy days makes my palms start sweating.  I literally brought up to Paul the idea of getting a night nurse one night a week. But when I can look past that I really am excited to welcome a new little person into our family.  I had a miscarriage at the beginning of this year, which also helps to keep things in perspective and recognize what a blessing this little babe is. 

However, I maintain my stance that pregnancy is the worst thing ever.  At least the first 14ish weeks.  I'm 21 weeks now and it's smooooooth sailing, but man that first trimester is a beast.  To be on the verge of barfing everyday for months at a time gets old really fast.  And this time around, it's been hard to get really excited because I keep thinking that it will end in a miscarriage.  I had a huge gush of blood at six weeks and thought that was the end.  An ultrasound a week later confirmed that the little blob was still growing and I was in the clear.  Then another gush (much more this time) came at 12 weeks and the roller coaster of emotions continued.  Hopefully from here on out we won't have any more surprises. 

The logical side of me wanted this baby to be a boy.  Parker and Kate get along so well and I didn't want Parker to be ousted by the two younger girls being good friends.  In my mind I thought if it was a boy, Parker and the baby would have a connection by their gender and Kate and the baby would have a connection by their proximity in age.  But my emotional side really wanted a girl.  Girls are just so cute!  The little shoes and dresses.  Ah!  It kills me.  Not to mention, it's much more fun to think about girl names than boy names.  AND!  I get to choose this baby's name!  Paul chose both Parker's and Kate's names, so now it's my turn.  Side story: When I was pregnant with both Parker and Kate I would bring up names that I liked and Paul would shoot nearly all of them down, but wouldn't offer any suggestions of his own.  It became a source of contention and so we just stopped talking about it.  Our solution was that I would bring a list of 10ish names with us to the hospital that I liked and Paul would choose one of those.  With Parker he ended up choosing a name that wasn't even on my list- one we hadn't discussed at all.  The same thing happened with Kate.  So this time it's my turn.  I have a peacemaker type personality and just want people to be happy, which I think is why I was okay with Paul choosing the names, but I really want to choose at least one of our children's names.  I can see myself giving in again, which is why I've started telling Paul so early that it's my turn and so I can convince myself as well.  

Parker and Kate are sweetly excited.  Parker randomly kisses my belly several times a week and told me the other day that when the baby is born she will like him best because he gives her so many kisses.  

London Ladies Reunion

Study Abroad changed my life.  I wish I knew exactly what it was about the experience, but I don't.  All I know is that I came back as a better version of me.  I felt more confident and more comfortable in who I was.  I think the friends I made while there were a big part of it.  Back in July a few of us got together for the weekend to rekindle our London love.  We all met up at Lisa's house, who lives about 40 minutes north of us.  It was one big, wonderful gabfest.

Happy Birthday, Kate!!! #3

Kate has been looking forward to this birthday for a looooooong time.  Most of her friends are three and she was so excited to join the club.

Paul and I went to a Dave Matthew's Band concert on Kate's birthday (Friday, the 26th) to celebrate our anniversary (Thursday, the 25th), which I feel a little bad about, but only kind of.  We didn't even acknowledge on the 26th that it was her birthday, instead we just pretended that Saturday, the 27th was her birthday.  I doubt there will often be a conflict with her birthday and our anniversary (we can celebrate our anniversary any time, this year was just tricky because the concert was scheduled on a specific date), but it was nice that neither she or Parker are old enough to understand dates.

On Saturday we had lunch at McDonald's and she opened presents... SO MANY PRESENTS!!!  Man, that girl is loved!  From us she asked for a ninja turtle backpack and an Elsa book.  We were planning on having cake with friends on Sunday, but Paul was appalled by the idea of no cake on her actual birthday (which is funny because it wasn't even her actual birthday!), so he lit a match and shoved it in a Twinkie.  She was in heaven.  Kate loves food in almost every variety, but she loooooooves sweets!

For her real cake she requested chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and strawberries on top.  It was a huge hit and I (who am not a fan of chocolate) even thought it tasted good!

Paul commented yesterday that Kate is almost a Sunbeam!  Crazy!  I remember that three was a tough age for Parker, but four was a breath of fresh air.  I can see that being true for Kate as well.  She is mostly wonderful and sweet, but she cries a lot more now than just six months ago.  She likes to do things by herself, except the things that I would really like her to do alone like putting toys away or putting her shoes on.

Here some more wonderful things about my favorite three-year-old:

*She loves to snuggle and likes to tell me that she loves it.

*She likes hugs and kisses and when she kisses me she holds my face with both hands.

*She misses Parker when he's at school.

*She's potty trained!

*She LOVES dogs!  She loves to pet them and let them give her kisses.  Whenever she sees a dog she gets so excited and starts talking in a high-pitched squeaky voice.

*She is very concerned about whether or not her choices make Jesus happy and asks about it daily.  "Mama, I put my buckle on.  Does that make Jesus happy?"  "Mama, I ate all my chocolate.  Does that make Jesus happy?"  "Mama, I didn't have a pee pee accident.  Does that make Jesus happy?"  

*She loves to swim, go to gymnastics, watch Dora the Explorer, eat and play with her best friend Sierra.

*She loves to color but CANNOT be trusted to do it unsupervised.

*She likes to play this game where she tells you she loves you and then you have to say it back, more emphatically.
Kate: "I love you!"
Me: "I love you!"
Kate: "I love YOU!"
Me: "I love YOU!"
Kate: I love YOOOOOUUUU!!!!!!"

*Recently she started crying (angrily) when we shut the door after putting her down for bed.  It was happening over and over again and we just couldn't figure it out.  Initially I thought she just didn't want to go to bed, so we let her cry a bit, but then when she wouldn't stop one of us would go in there and try and calm her down.  She does not communicate well through tears, so mostly there was no progress.  We finally deciphered what the problem was: she wants us to wait by the door before we walk out so she can blow a kiss.  However, you CANNOT blow a kiss to her at the same time.  You first have to catch her kiss with your hand, and then you can blow a kiss back.  It's so sweet that I can't argue with it, but sheesh!

Kate is so darling and I'm sure glad she's ours!!!

Certificate of Recognition

Parker was recognized at school for his "outstanding accomplishments in making connections and retelling with details." Hmmmmm, okaaaayyyyy.  It's a good thing I'm not a kindergarten teacher.  I think I'd run out of ideas after "outstanding accomplishment in zipping up pants after going potty" and "outstanding accomplishment in not picking nose this week."  But Parker's teacher seems very involved with the children and he was thrilled by the award, so yay Parker!

Uncle Thomas's Graduation

Doctor Thomas graduated from medical school!  Awhile ago I was thinking to myself how smart Thomas is and then a few days later Paul commented on how he has a really big brain and is basically a walking encyclopedia.  Out of the mouth of two witnesses... so it must be true!  We're so proud of him and looking forward to never paying for medical services again.

We made the quick drive to Arizona for the occasion and got to pass through beautiful El Centro and Yuma.  Oh, and Dateland.  Let's not forget Dateland.  Parker and Kate did really well.  They watched movies while Paul and I listened to TED radio.  Actually, we started off listening to a book called "How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity and the Hidden Power of Character", which sounds really interesting and maybe it's better in print, but not a great roadtrip book.

Anyway, the ceremony was great.  Paul got to hood Thomas, which I thought was really special.  Afterward we ate at Kneaders (!!!) and then went for a quick swim.  Thomas and Angela got some special goggles for Parker and Kate.  They both loved them!  We found out later that maybe Kate's were on a little too tight?

Grandma Trudy gave Parker and Kate these awesome activity books for the car ride home.  They were entertained for hours!  

4th of July

We decorated flag shirts to wear for the 4th of July.  Parker was confused because he ALREADY HAS a flag shirt that Grandma Trudy gave him last year, and could he please just wear that one instead?  Well, I forced him to wear the one he made and I think it turned out to be okay in his mind.  We had a barbecue and a water balloon fight and then did sparklers in the backyard.  Paul and Parker went to see the big fireworks down the street at the Olympic Training Center while Kate and I stayed home so she could go to bed.  Also, I think she would have hated the big fireworks- too loud and scary, but I'm hoping she'll be able to go next year.

Preschool Graduation

Parker had his last day of preschool and then a few days later, his preschool graduation.  I remember his first day of preschool... it doesn't seem like it was that long ago.  He loved preschool and I did too.  They did so many fun activities and projects, he made lots of friends and he learned to spell his name.  Success!

School here starts in less than two weeks and I feel this sense of urgency to make our short summer as fun as can be before Parker leaves us for five full days a week.  I think the length of the school day will be a hard adjustment for him, but I'm more concerned about Kate.  They play so well together, I think it will be sad for her to have him away for so much of the day.

After Parker's graduation I told him that we could go get a smoothie because it was his special day (he wanted to take a picture of Kate enjoying her Jamba Juice for posterity.)  A few hours later he told me that he wanted me to go buy him a nerf gun and go to Buffalo Wild Wings (he likes the iPad they give to kids, not the food) for dinner because it was his special day.  Ha!  Nice try, bubs.

Father's Day

I'm afraid this Father's Day was one that made Paul long for the tranquil days of yesteryear when we were child free.  I don't know what their deal was, but Parker and Kate were ON ONE.  Hopefully even through their back to back to back meltdowns, Paul was to enjoy his special presents from the three of us and the delicious food we ate. 

Moments before I took this picture Kate was "tonguing" (licking) the pie and Parker was in tears because he had to go to timeout.  I got him to smile by telling him that I just tooted.  :)

I'm so grateful for Paul.  He definitely pulls his weight with these two and is often the favorite parent.  I like to think of myself as more of the daily grind parent, while Paul is silly and fun and is truly the perfect dad for our little monsters.

Suzie's Farm

A couple weeks ago I signed up through the YMCA to take Parker and Kate to Suzie's farm for a tour.  I wasn't exactly sure what it entailed, and I kind of forgot about it until I saw the reminder on my phone a few days prior.  My dad came into town the day before our scheduled farm tour and it was a really nice outing for the four of us.  In fact, it was incredible.  I was blown away.  The farm is 70 acres and full of all sorts of produce and egg-laying hens as well.  We toured the whole farm and got to pick any produce we wanted.  Each person was given a bag and was told to fill it up!  We got several varieties of lettuce, squash, green beans, carrots, beets, radishes, basil, and flowers.  We ate all the green beans and carrots that night for dinner (plus Kate ate at LEAST six carrots while we were at the farm) and I made zucchini bread the next day before Paul and I left for our Washington vacation and Grandpa Bob watched the kiddos.  I couldn't really see the three of them eating beets and radishes while we were away, so I gave the rest of our goodies to a vegetable loving friend.

After the farm tour, a local chef did a cooking demonstration.  He made grilled cheese and tomato sandwiches on artisan bread and roasted some squash and grape tomatoes, which we then ate for lunch.  For dessert we had melon sorbet.  After lunch all the kids got to plant some seeds in little cups to take home.  Such a fun day!