"February Can Freaking Suck It" and My Subsequent Attempt to "Shine Bright"

That first part of the lovely blog post title is a quote from when my sisters and I were group texting yesterday. We're all just done with February.

February doesn't have a 30th, so there is not an "official" 10 month date from when my dad died.

And to that I have to say...GOOD. GOOD RIDDANCE FEBRUARY.

Because this particular weekend is the crappy icing on the stupid cake that has been a long month. That probably doesn't even make sense, but I hope you get my drift.

To better explain my crankiness and sour attitude I should probably let you know that we were all in Mexico exactly a year ago for Laura and Craig's wedding.

And, honestly, it is hard to think back on that wonderful time.  Which sucks.  Especially for Laura and Craig.

But.

I am working on being BRIGHT. And SHINY.

And there's still that whole GRATITUDE thing that my dad was all about.

So.  Attitude check.

We HAVE to remember that it was an AMAZING trip, filled with fantastic memories with family and friends, and a time that none of us will ever forget.

And so, with that, I'll post a few pictures from that trip, and say (a day early):

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY LAURA AND CRAIG!

It was a time of so much love, laughter, guacamole, tequila (thanks to Dad), celebration, and BRIGHT SHINY moments.  I'm so very grateful for that time we had all together, and I know that in time the sharp sting of grief will fade and those bright shiny memories will remain.

A Picture Update

This week.  Full Moon + Sickness.

Ready. To. Be. DONE. with it.

As for pictures, Maya had a great time with Boom, as usual.

Kona spent the week at our house, as G-ma and Pa were in Mexico.

My mom, sisters and I went to the last Gopher women's home game on Wednesday for our monthly GNO.

Maya spent today with G-ma and Pa while I stayed home with a sick Callie.

She's a trooper- had a super high fever all day with one puking incident in the evening.  She took a couple naps and watched lots of "Sophia the First" on the iPad... As of bedtime her fever was below 101 (hooray!) and she seemed in better spirits.

Maya and I went out for a little walk after dinner so I could get some fresh air.  The sky was lovely.

I ended the evening with some snuggles with a happy 2-year-old, so I can't complain about that.

Here's to hoping tomorrow is a better (and healthier) day for all of us.

Timehop Tuesday: 31-Months-Old!

It is the 23rd again and this one is officially closer to 3 than 2!

To sum up her hilarious personality, I'll paraphrase what she told my mom yesterday when asked what she was going to do: "I'm going to boss Boom around!"

We're in for a wild ride with this one!

I found a picture comparison I did with my toddler picture and Callie a few years ago, so I used the same picture with Maya:

Love my girls!!

Weekend Wrap-Up

So it is Sunday already.  The big event of my weekend was Mari's first bridal shower!  The wedding is exactly 3 months from today, so it was fun to get the celebration started.

The shower was hosted by Barb and Amy and it was amazing!

There were 20 lovely ladies there, we ate VERY well, played a couple of fun games, and Mari got a lot of great gifts.

One of my favorite games: making Mari eat a piece of gum when she answered a question wrong about Josh.
Jill made the chocolate cakes.  They were amazing.

Thanks to Barb and Amy (and Emily and Jill!) for hosting a wonderful afternoon.

Besides the shower, we got to hang out a little with Uncle Larry and Aunt Mary.

While we were at the shower, the girls and Chris hung out with Pa.  Maya was so stinking adorable in her little outfit and pigtails.

Today.  I developed an awful cough over night.  Therefore I was crabby.  And the girls were crabby.  We were all just crabby.  So, despite the cute pics, it is a day that I'm glad will be over soon.

Time to start another week.

A Picture Update

Happy Weekend! I have a LOT of pictures and videos for you today.

We actually spent a lot of time outside this week, which was LOVELY. Callie and I were both off on Monday, so we went sledding in the afternoon with Auntie Cat. It was awesome!

Here are a couple videos:


IMG_3101 from Baby Goose on Vimeo.


IMG_3120 from Baby Goose on Vimeo.

Maya (my summer baby) even loved it.  Until she got too cold, and then she just got mad.

As for the rest of the week, I got some one-on-one time with Ms. Maya, and it is ALWAYS entertaining.


IMG_3085 from Baby Goose on Vimeo.

On Monday she fell asleep in my arms.  It was lovely.

IMG_3174 from Baby Goose on Vimeo.

Hanging out at Boom's house and G-ma and Pa's house:

Hanging out at home:

Callie's new favorite game is "Guess Who"

Yesterday we went on a winter walk so we could play in the snow again before it melts.

Speaking of melting...Callie had fun in the puddles today. And the sun was bright and beautiful.

Today was Callie's 100th day of Kindergarten! They had a fun day celebrating.

Have a great weekend!

Timehop Tuesday

Happy Tuesday!

Bath girls:

Boom and Callie:

Valentine's Day activities (pre kids: I did a 5K, with kids: we get a quick dinner date)

The cutest cheeks:

And toddler girls:

Weekend Wrap-Up: The VALENTINES Edition

First off, HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY.  There was A LOT of love this morning.

I regret the decision to say "Ok, now give each other a hug!"  You can see it didn't go well.  Poor Maya still has a bad cough and stuffy nose, and just wasn't having it this morning.

But let me back up to yesterday, when she woke up still rocking the constant stream of snot under her nose.

We kept it really low key...she wore pajamas all day.  Callie had dance, and then later wanted to do a "Spelling Bee."  So we did, and she rocked it.

Uncle Dan babysat the girls for us last night so we could go out to dinner.  He took them to Southdale to play and have dinner.  While they were there, both girls wanted to pose like the model on the picture.

On our date, it was hard to go wrong with wine, margaritas, and fancy cheese curds.

So back to this morning...the girls were excited about the little Valentine's Day gifts I got them.  At first I was thinking about having them be from the "Valentine's Fairy," but then I was like...NO!  I should get the credit for giving them these gifts.  So that's what we did.

We went out for breakfast bagels, where poor daddy was across the booth by himself because it is ALWAYS 3-to-a-seat-with-mom for these girls.

This afternoon I went on a lovely snow shoeing adventure with my mom and Mary.  It was truly awesome, and what I hope will be the start of more outdoor adventures together.

Our posed shots (including a hot chocolate break when we were pretty much lost in the woods):

Because we were a little lost part of the time (we like to blaze our own trails, ya know), we spent lots of time snow shoeing UP hill, and then back DOWN hill.  At one point going up a very steep hill, my snowshoe slipped off, so I had to carry it up with me until it was flat enough to put it back on.  It was quite the adventure!

But in the woods it was quiet and peaceful, and just what we needed today.

Later on, the girls got some Valentine love from Boom, G-ma, and Pa...

 ...and then Boom took Callie home for a SLEEPOVER!!!

Maya got Mom and Dad to herself tonight, and I think she kind of loved it.

I'll leave you with Callie reading one of the jokes she got from a Valentine's card from Aunt Mary and Uncle Larry:


IMG_3043 from Baby Goose on Vimeo.