New settings

Welcome to everyone who now wants to be a part of our family blog.  Up until recently, I've wanted to keep this blog open to everyone in the hopes that someone would look at it!  And it seems that over the past couple of years there are at least a few of you who stop by regularly and I've even been asked to update it more often.  I recently noticed that I had a follower from Indonesia, someone I didn't even know.  I can't imagine why someone from the other side of the Earth would want to follow my blog when they don't even know me but I started to get a bit spooked at the thought of my children's pictures being open to the world to see.  I have also had comments left by advertisers and it just made me realize that I should only open my world up to those who truly want to be a part of it.  So, if you are reading this it is because you know me and want to keep tabs on what we're up to!!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.  I will update soon with pictures and all the fun stuff we did over the holidays.

A mish mash of what's going on

Oh it has been a busy Summer, Fall and now Winter! (well, almost Winter)  I had great vision and big expectations of keeping the blog fun, interesting and updated but as you can see, it hasn't happened.  Something about having kids, and working and well you know...life.

We're gearing up for Christmas although you wouldn't really know it by the looks of our house.  No Christmas tree to be found, no decorations.  I've had several people make comments like "oh you have kids, you HAVE to decorate!".  Well, ya, i'd like to decorate.  But well, you see, we have this dog.  I would show you a picture but I think I have one.  She doesn't sit still a whole lot except to sleep.  And she's a puppy.  Still.  And anyone who has had a puppy knows what puppies do, they chew.  She has ruined countless pairs of MY shoes including Birkenstocks, my favorite pair of Bass brown boots and Nine West heels.  She has basically ruined any shoe that matches any pair of pants that I like to wear to work.  And I suppose I could sort of handle that.  I mean, it does give me a reason to shoe shop BUT I don't exactly have loads of cash floating around for a trip to DSW to replace my shoe wardrobe.  At least it is now Ugg boot weather and she has yet to chew those.  And God be with her if she does.  The other day I got home first with the kids.  Matt was working late and I walked through the door figuring i'd find the usual chewed up piece of paper she found somewhere and maybe a toy that didn't make it behind a closed door.  But nope.  Didn't find that. It may have been there but I couldn't see it under the pile of feathers and foam that WAS the couch cushion!  She shredded a whole couch cushion.  So here's where i'm going with this;  I'm not in the mood to clean up shredded Christmas tree this year and spend my evenings saying "Nathan, NO, don't touch" so the tree will have to wait.  Don't worry, we'll still have presents!!!

We took the kids to see Santa this year too!  It was the first year and I wish I had the picture electronically in a format I could post on blogger.  It was pretty sad.  And kind of funny.  I can remember being afraid of Santa and apparently my children are too.  They both cried and it was almost impossible to even snap the photo!  But they survived and Nana and grandpa were happy to be a part of the day.  Here they are before seeing Santa:

Aren't they cute?  I think so!!!

We're here! And the story of my knitting

I'm around! Work has just been busy and blogging really isn't something i'm great at. I'm doing it so family can see pictures and get updates on the kids. I'm not a writer, i'm not witty or clever in my wording, but hopefully you'll stick around and watch the kids grow up.

Recently we went to a cider mill. It was an okay day. Fun to get out with Nana and bampa but it was crowded. And not much to do besides wait in line for donuts or cider or buy way overpriced apples. $8 for a bag and you could probably fit 4 apples into a bag. But we did get pictures while we were there!!! As you can see, the kids weren't in the mood for a photo shoot.





Often when I tell people I knit, I get giggles and smirks. I've even had someone tell me "I wouldn't tell people you do that". Really? Why? Occassionally I hear "wow! I wish I could do that" but that doesn't happen very often. I think people have the idea that knitting is for old ladies. Images of crocheted toaster cozies always come to mind I think. But knitting isn't all about little old ladies knitting doilies (although the lace knitting on this particluar one is pretty awesome!). These days we're "fiber artists" and I prefer to be thought of as such. Here is a small sampling of some of the work i've done recently. (and by recently, I mean the last few years because with small children i've hardly had time to sit and knit a stitch)

Dale of Norway ski sweater made for Katie when she was about a year old. My first attempt at Fair Isle knitting.




Philosopher's Wool sweater that I made for myself!


A mohair cardigan I made a long time ago...



A cable knit hoodie for the kids...


And of course grandma has made several sweaters for the kids! Here is just one of my favorites she made for Katie when she was born.



And I recently attended Stitches Midwest with my mom. I know, pretty nerdy right? But that's okay. I'm comfortable and happy to have a talent that not everyone posesses. I was also able to buy enough yarn to have projects to keep me busy all winter!

I bought some yarn from a wonderful lady at Creatively Dyed Yarn


And bought some beautiful alpaca for a sweater. Well, my mom bought this for me for my birthday!! Thanks mom!!


Time to get back to it. I'm home ALL day without kids!

They grow up so quickly...

Sorry, no pictures today but I felt compelled to post. Now that i'm back to work I don't have the time to do photo shoots with the kids like I used to. And I guess that's fine considering I have hundreds, probably thousands, of pictures that need to be organized and put into photo albums (and not just kept on the computer!!).

Nathan continues to amaze me every single day. Lately i've noticed that he will repeat words you say. He can even say words like "horsey" and "zebra". If I hand him crackers he will say crackers. He can also ask for juice! My little guy turns 16 months old today and I just can't believe it. Where did the time go? I miss the newborn days of oohing and aahing over a teeny tiny little baby but don't miss the every 2 hour feedings, round the clock care, and complete helplessness of a newborn baby. Cute yes, do I want another? NO.

Katie is developing in her speech as well. We asked her what sport Nick plays and she responded with "Nick plays soccer". That may not seem spectacular to many, but for us it was. We were so proud she could answer a question with a full sentence! She still just repeats what you say quite a bit, but she's slowly moving towards initiating conversation and answering questions. She'll be 3 in about 7 months! Yikes.

And let the count down begin...5 more month ends and i'll be off for the winter!!!

Vacation

We're back from "down South"! Took a nice week's vacation to French Lick, IN and had a pretty good time. I was a bit shocked to discover that Southern Indiana is the start of southern accents and sweet tea. French Lick is pretty far off the beaten path and not close to any "city" life so we all had a bit of a culture shock as well. On the way down we had the opportunity to stop in Coldwater to see my mom and Mike and drop Hunter off. Next stop was Carmel where we were able to spend some time with dad and Jan before heading off on the final leg of our journey. It was about 2.5 hours between each stop which was perfect timing for crabby babies in the car. Both kids did very well though and were able to nap some of the time. I'm also thankful for the portable DVD player which at least kept Katie occupied for a bit both ways.

Our condo was nice but hadn't been updated since about 1982. It had a HUGE jacuzzi tub which Katie called a pool and also a sauna in the main bathroom. It was a very nice place but I was a bit upset that the kids had to be watched so closely on the loft. The spaces between the slats on the railing were large enough for Nathan to get his whole body through so we ended up having to block off the steps. Other than the wasps nest in the chair on the deck, the unsafe loft conditions and the slippery tub, it was a great place. I guess not everyone thinks of child proofing unless you have toddlers.




We spent a lot of time just lounging around, which was nice. We were able to go to a place called Holiday World in Santa Claus, IN, which was fun. I think the kids are still a bit young to enjoy that type of place and they certainly made it hard for the adults to enjoy it. I was able to ride roller coasters with the teenagers while Matt watched the little ones. Katie and Nathan rode their very first amusement park ride while we were there. I was a bit scared that Katie would melt down but she absolutely loved the carousel and the little boats. We had to actually pry them away from the rides kicking and screaming. I'm sure if Nathan was able he would have ridden the larger rides too, our little dare devil! After riding rides we headed to the water park area of the park and let the kids swim a bit. There was a little kiddie area sectioned off from the large wave pool and both babies were able to cool off for a bit.






On Thursday we rented a double decker pontoon boat with a slide and everyone had a blast. Matt and I thought we may have to pack it up early with the little ones but it turns out we could have stayed out longer. It was so much fun and Katie even took a turn tubing! Another surprise for me since I figured she'd get scared once the boat sped up.






We ended up leaving on Friday and did the drive all the way home in basically one shot. One short stop in Carmel at a mall and one short stop in Coldwater and that was it. We left French Lick around 2 and got home after midnight. It was a LOOOONG day! We were glad to have the weekend at home catching up on laundry, shopping and cleaning and i'm dreading going back to work tomorrow. Love the job, hate month end.

Summer fun!!!

We sure have been keeping busy around here this summer. Between going back to work full time (plus...), two toddlers, two teenagers and their sports and just trying to maintain a home and a rental home, we've hardly had time for much "fun". I'm really looking forward to July though, we'll be going on a week vacation down near Indianapolis at a nice resort. We'll be taking all of the kids this time and are looking forward to a week of pools, relaxation and everything else vacation has to offer.

My job has just been nuts and my boss certainly keeps me busy. Although some might argue, my going back to work has been the right decision for the family. I am able to get out and use my degree (at least one of them), bring home a paycheck and help out with the finances. The kids absolutely love their daycare center and I really think they are thriving. Katie likes to talk about playing with the other kids and Nathan seems like quite the social butterfly. I guess they call her "Ms. Gateway" at school since she like to greet anyone who is there on a tour with a big smile and a hello. I miss them during the day but have a lot to look forward to when I get home! My new mission this summer is to get them out on a walk at least a few evenings a week. I guess I didn't realize how much exercise I got staying home because i've put on a few pounds since going back to work. Nothing like sitting at a desk all day and eating out to sabotage a healthy lifestyle.

Well, i'm not a photographer by any means but here are some recent pictures of the kids to keep everyone up to date! Sorry for the blurs and crappy quality, but you get the idea...

Where have I been?

Where does the time go? I come back here when I think about it and realize it has been months since the last post. I've been meaning to keep up better but when I get online I get lost in the world of Facebook and what my online mommy group friends are up to.

I am back to work. I've been back to work since April 20th and will be working full time until about mid January. Since my job slows down (or so they say...) I will be laid off for the winter and then come back full time again in April. For now that's the plan with my job but we'll see how that actually goes. Another accountant quit and her work load has fallen on my shoulders so i'm not sure how they think the winter will be any less busy. Between audits, SOX audits and miscellaneous other things it's easy to stay busy all the time. I've been doing okay back at work and enjoy the time out, using my brain and getting paid. Although daycare is expensive it still gives us some extra cash we didn't have while I was home and visiting Target more regularly :-). And to have the option to have a few months off during the winter to spend with the kids is something I don't think I could find anywhere else. I am thankful for this opportunity!

Taking the kids to daycare is a lot less painful than I thought it would be and I think they rather enjoy the company of other kids and "new" toys. We had a very very rough start though and after the first week both kids were out a significant amount of time very sick. Runny noses, temperatures, throwing up, ear infections and lots of antibiotics later I think everyone is relatively healthy and doing great!

Nathan is now almost 14 months old and Katie turned 2 in March. I can't believe how big they are getting. I keep hoping Nathan decides to sleep through the night on a regular basis but so far he just hasn't. I'm still up 2 times per night, usually, and think i've adapted pretty well to not getting a full night's sleep since about March of 2008. Katie was so laid back and slept so well and Nathan is a wild and crazy man with more energy than i've ever seen before. He makes me tired just watching him play.

That's about it from the Brunette front. I want to send a shout out to my friend Crysi who is in the hospital trying to keep her 32 week twins in for just a little while longer! I'm thinking of you and praying for those little girls!!


Nathan's first hair cut:

One and two!!!

I can't believe it, my kids are now one and two. We celebrated Katie's birthday back in March with a very small family get together. She's doing so great and starting to talk a whole lot more. We now have to watch what we say because everything gets repeated!! Nathan turned one on Easter Sunday and we had a huge family gathering to celebrate the occasion. He's really growing and started walking at around 11 months. He's now going full force and has a nice and bruised forehead to show for it. Yesterday he fell face first into the pavement and now has a terribly bruised nose. Both kids get along pretty well although there is lots of fighting over toys.

We went to Orlando for a small vacation a couple of weeks ago and had fun. Nathan did well on his first flight and wasn't as bad as I though he'd be. Fortunately I was able to feed him and he slept for a little bit. Katie was happy to watch a DVD, eat food or fall asleep on daddy's lap. And although both kids did great on the plane down there they decided to become "those kids" while Matt stood in line for the rental car. Katie laid on the floor having a full on temper tantrum while I tried to keep Nathan from walking off. That was fun. We didn't do much except lounge by the pool, take the kids swimming and visited a couple of beaches.

I am also going back to work next week! I'll be working full time again and putting the kids in daycare. I'm excited about doing adults things and earning a paycheck but starting to feel the guilt of dropping the kids off in someone elses care for the day. I'm sure we'll all adjust and be fine but i'm finding it very difficult.