Halloween Fun

Here are some Pictures of cute people in their costumes. We have already gone to the Ward Halloween Party and a Halloween Treasure Hunt at my Mom's house. It has so far been a fabulous fun Halloween Season.

Noah is a Frog Prince. Thank you to my dear friend Kieran for lending us this adorable costume. He had to hop the whole way to church for the party. He loves it. And I personally think he is the handsomest frog around

Noah as The Frog Prince and Josh as a Vampire

Audrey as Goofy Pajama Mom, Kara as Supergirl, Danny as Superman and Christopher as SuperBoy

Kristin as a Good Witch, Noah as a Frog Prince, Emilee as Jack Sparrow and Spencer as Jango Fett

Cute Allie as Bedtime Bear

Nik as Hugh Hefner (My grandpa's jacket and Lena as a naughty angel

All the kids at the Treasure Hunt at my Mom's


Happy Halloween!

All the Happenings

Life is calming down but also getting more chaotic (at least if only in my head).

Kersten started back at work part time yesterday. I think from my perspective, it was really good for him. It made him feel productive and back to the norm. Everyone at work seemed to miss him and welcome him back, happily The only down note is now he has a new boss and so far Kersten is not that happy about it. So we shall see how this all pans out. He is trying to figure out what to dress up for Halloween. It wasn't our top priority and now he needs a costume for tommrow. The rest of his team are being Nuns so he thought he could be the devil. But we can only find glittery horns, so it is not working

Noah is doing really well. He (not to jinx it or get to hopeful) has been wearing big boy underwear since last Wednesday. He has a least one accident a day but overall is doing pretty well. It is all I can hope for right now. He is having a hard time pooping on the toilet. Does anyone have suggestions for this? He waits until he has a nightime pull up on to poop. Or does a tiny bit in the toilet and finishes in his underwear. He got in trouble last tuesday after school for his teacher pulled me aside to talk to me about how Noah would not let her change his pull up when it was wet. He threw a huge temper tantrum and hit her leg. Well, we don't put up with this in our family. No hitting allowed and we respect our teachers. They whole way home I talked to him about how if he wanted to still wear pull ups he had to let his teacher change them at school. He never ever acts like that to his teacher, etc etc. Then when we got home we told Dad what happened and Noah had his dad and mom talk to him about it. He hates being in trouble. That night when it was bathtime, he just walked up to the toilet like it was not big deal and went to the bathroom. The next day he insisted that he wear Underwear. He had one accident that day as he ran up the stairs to the potty. On Sunday he used the urinals in the boys bathroom at church with his dad. He thought it was really cool that only Boys could use these toilets. I am a little hopeful that this is the beginning of the end. But, I am not counting my chickens before they hatch.

My next appt with the doc it next Monday Nov 5. This is also the week that starts my Non Stress Tests twice a week. So the insanity begins until this little girl comes. I am really trying to focus on my time with Noah right now, just us. I have been feeling lately that I will really miss him and our time. He is so joyful and fun (most of the time) and I just Love being his mom. I know I will love this little girl also. But it is kind of an idealic time with just me and my boy. And dad comes home at least for the next month a little early. So I am counting my blessings

The Great Baby Pumpkin

We bought a little pumpkin for Noah at the grocery store a couple of days ago. He is so funny about this pumpkin. He named it "The Great Baby Pumpkin." He carries it around the house and sings to it. He changes it's location in the house quite often. He wraps it in a blanket and rocks it to sleep. He puts it in places so that it can watch tv. He loves his baby pumpkin. He took the beautiful picture you see up above. With one of his other favorite decorations for Halloween, a ghost. He really is proud and happy to have his very own pumpkin. He is such a funny boy. He had to take it with him to Grandma's house to play with Josh. And cute Josh acted just as thrilled and awed by the pumpkin as Noah. He understood why Noah would have to bring it with him. He takes such joy from the little things. It is a good reminder for me.

"I'd Really Like to Eat a Child"

We found the book "I'd Really Like to Eat a Child" by Sylviane Donnio at the library a couple weeks ago and WE LOVE IT! This was one of those lucky finds, that I saw just as we were leaving. Noah has been really into dinosaurs and crocidiles lately. The title was funny and it had a crocidile. Well, we hit the jackpot. We laugh and laugh.

It is about a little crocidile named Achilles, who eats bananas for breakfast. One morning he decides that he does not want to eat his breakfast and he wants to eat a child that day. His parents are beside themselves trying to get him to eat something, they tempt him with all sorts of treats etc but he is only wants to eat a child. He goes to the river for he is not feeling well and there meets a little girl. This is our favorite part about what happens to Little Achilles when he trys to eat a child. You really need to check this out at the library if you have any children.

It is a big joke at our house now, Mom or Dad will be overcome with the desire to eat a child. And we go in search of a child at our house. Noah thinks this is hilarious. We pretend we want to eat diffrent body parts of his. I give this book 5 stars for fun for adults and children alike.

October Real Simple Interview

I saw this on Carrie's blog and have seen it on Natalie's. I really like the questions, it is a great way to journal, for you write down things you normally don't think of. So I hope it is okay that I want to do it also. Sadly, I do not get Real Simple Magazine although I would totally love it.

1. What's the last thing you do before going to bed at night? Read, whether it's my scriptures or my current book I always have to read before I can fall asleep. And the I say my prayers.

2. How many books have you read in the past year? I actually made a goal this year to write down every book I read. I have a list in my journal. I have almost 3 letter size pages full. Will post all of them at a future date at the end of the year.

3. Someone should invent... I agree with Carrie on this one. A faster, less expensive way to travel from place to place.

4. I feel the most beautiful when....I feel all put together. Which lately is not often. And Kersten gives me that look that no words could ever express.

5. What is your favorite physical feature? I have always liked my legs. They are long and slender, except when pregnant. I also like my eyes. The guys in high school called me "sparkly eyes" for they look like a cat's in certain light.

6. Name as many of the costumes you've worn on Halloweens past. Batman, Gypsy, Princess, 50's girl, Wonder Woman, Willy the Rabbit, Lion, Dancer, Package of Peanut Butter M&M's, Miss America, Betsy Ross, and a scarecrow.

7. The big decision I'm currently wrestling with is...What to name this new baby girl, I know she will be called Shaak-Ti by Noah but I think she should have a different option for everyday life and as she grows up.

Us MeMe

What is his name? Kersten Rolf
How long have you been together? Married 9 1/2 years,
How long did you date? 4 years that included his mission (I did write him every week), Engaged for 5 months, Married 10 months after he returned
How old is he? 31, three months older than me
Who eats more? Right now it is a toss up, Usually he does at meals and I snack more.
Who said I love you first? I did, it spontanously burst out of me and he then Enthusiastically responded back
Who is taller? Kersten by 2 1/2 inches
Who sings better? Probably me
Who is smarter? Depends on what you are asking about, Kersten sounds a lot smarter
Whose temper is worse? definitely Kersten, he has the German Blood
Who does the laundry? Mostly me, but he chips in a lot. He is very particular about his clothes
Who does the dishes? Mostly me, but he's been doing them a lot lately
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do, we switch according to who is closer to the bathroom.
Who pays the bills? I do mostly, he has a couple he always takes care of
Who mows the lawn? Kersten does. With Noah out there with his own lawnmower
Who cooks dinner? We both do. Kersten enjoys it more but I am home so I try to have it mostly ready when he get home.
Who drives when you are together? Kersten drives
Who is more stubborn? I am.
Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? I calm down faster so usually me
Whose parents do you see the most? Probably Kersten's. His parents live around the corner
Who kissed who first? Kersten kissed me
Who asked who out? Kersten did and then we did not have another "official" date for quite awhile but we hung out all the time
Who proposed? Kersten did
Who is more sensitive? Both of us are. Depends on what it is about
Who has more friends? I have a lot more close friends I keep in contact with
Who has more siblings? We had the same amount, I have 3 sisters and 1 brother and he has 3 sisters and 1 brother. If you count all my step-siblings I definitely do, I have 7 steps-siblings with my mom's husband and 4 with my dad's wife.

(Picture taken on our anniversary this year, May 21st, 9 Years)

I've Been Tagged

You've been tagged!
A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.
B. Each player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves.
C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

Thanks Carrie! Here it goes:

1. I only have 84 days left until my due date. It is creeping up really fast. In reality it is less days than that since at the very least they will take the baby a week early. Ahhh!

2 I have started the grunting phase of pregnancy, when you try to get up or down. You make a little grunt. Noah has now started grunting also. I think this is so hilarious.

3. Since Kersten has been home we have made- 2 batches of banana bread, 3 raw apple cakes, and chocolate chip cookes. Sadly we have not even taken any over to the neighbors. We definitely need to go on diets after this.

4. I have started snoring. I don't snore unless I am really sick. But, it has gotten to the point that I wake myself up and keep my husband up all night. Poor man

5.I have an adversion to all food right now. Worse than normal, which really is saying a lot. It doesn't make me sick or anything, just no desire to eat. All I want to eat is my mom's bread with homemade yam. The rest I force down to stay nourished.

6.I am stumped on how to finish baby Shaak-Ti's baby announcements. Something is missing and my creative juices have stopped flowing.

I just noticed that all 6 things have to do with my pregnancy. Sorry, it is what totally engrosses my life right now.

Okay so now I tag, Amy, Audrey, Lena, Erin, Alicia and Shaunelle.

Treasures from Austria

As promised I have posted pictures of the beautiful things that were given to us from Kersten's family and friends from Austria and also what his parents and sister spoiled us with. Are we not so very spoiled?

Kersten's Omi Agnes knitted all these beautiful socks and booties. She is a talented amazing knitting woman. I posted these first because they are my favorite. The rest of the pics are in random order. The small white booties are amazing. They have the tiniest stiches, she even made the strings to tie them with. Noah had some blue ones like the cream booties. Now he has warm socks to keep his tootsies warm this winter. These are seriously treasures and I love having these beautiful hand made things for my children. We really do cherish them at our house. The shoes were given to us by Manuela.

This is a small part of the delicious Austrian chocolate we received. As you can see we already have broken into it. There really is nothing better the Austrian Chocolate. Also, is the cute Beef Eater Bear that Virginia got for Noah and the cute wooden Beef Eater Guard she also brought back for us. She was in London for awhile visiting Monika's Aunt Liz.

I am so very excited about this baby sling. Noah took the picture. He was very proud of it. Sorry about the blurriness of the letters on the box. Didymos is the company name and Manu search high and low to find me one. I am so grateful to her. Last summer when they visited she used one of these with her daughter Enora and It was very cool. Basically it is a piece of really durable fabric that you can tie and wrap around you to hold your baby in different positions. You can use it for a long time, it grows with the baby. This pattern is called the Jakob. Here is there English website
http://www.didymos.de/english/index.php

This is the Christmas Tablecloth that Heinz and Monika gave us. Omi's town in Austria is famous for their textiles and linens. I look forward every year to see what beautiful piece they will bring back and count them as some of my treasures.

These are cute baby girl clothes for Shaak-Ti sent to us from Omi Agnes, The Erlachers, Manuela and Martina from Austria.

So there you are. What fun presents. We will treasure them and enjoy the chocolate for sure

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Grateful Sunday 10-21-07

This pic was taken today as I was in the process of getting ready for church. I LOVE Noah's outfit and think he looks as handsome and grown up as can be in it.

- I am grateful for this so called quiet time in our family. I know there will come a time when I long for us to be together this much doing quiet activities. It is really nice when I have reached beyond to have the choice to take a nap while Kersten plays or reads with Noah. There are times when I feel so content looking at my small little family all gathered together, healing and doing the best we can. My heart just swells with love for my two men and for this sweet girl that is coming.

MY WARD- I am overwhelmed by the kindness of my ward. They have really helped make life a bit easier. They have brought in so many yummy meals. I can't tell you the relief I have on the days I don't have to worry about what I am going to feed my family. I really hate that I do struggle with food so much and I just feel so blessed.

MY IN-LAWS- Really at this crazy time, I don't think we could have survived without the help, support and love we have received from Kersten's family. They live just around the corner from us. They have kept us very well fed, when the ward has not come they have totally helped with dinners etc.

NINA-There has been so many times that Nina has kidnapped Noah to play with Josh. The whole weekend we had strep, she kept him for us. Noah loves Josh so much that he cries when it is time to come home. She really helped out so much more than she needed to while Heinz and Monika were in Austria.

BEAUTIFUL AUSTRIAN FARE- It really felt like Christmas when Heinz, Monika and Virginia returned from Austria this week. Omi Agnes knitted beautiful booties for the baby and socks for Noah. The Erlachers sent cute baby girl clothes and shoes. Manu found me my new favorite carrier for when the baby comes. Virginia brought back the cutest bear beef-eater from London for Noah and we received a beautiful Christmas tablecloth from the parents. And Lots and lots of yummy Austrian Chocolate. Wow, we were spoiled. (Pictures to come later this week)

Shaak-Ti

I am so sure all of you have been dying to know who is this Shaak-Ti (pronounced Shock Tee) that Noah thought was cool enough to name his sister after. Well in these wise words

"...and Shaak Ti's the most cunning Jedi I've met. She's even taught me a few tricks."
―Obi-Wan Kenobi

Mace Windu once described Shaak Ti "as beautiful as a flower, yet as deadly as a viper." The hollow spaces in her decorated montrals allowed her to ultrasonically perceive her surroundings, especially in bustling crowds. Unlike most members of her communal species, she was solitary by nature. She was also rewarded as one of the most cunning warriors of the Order. Windu and Yoda felt that she was one of the greatest lightsaber duelists ever, and one of the Order's most powerful members over history. Shaak Ti's lightsaber skills were almost unparalleled and she had great domain in the Force.

Shaak Ti was a Jedi Master of legendary power and strength in the Force. She was regarded as one of the most cunning warriors in the Jedi order. She was trained as a Consular, allowing her to focus more on mastery of the Force through knowledge than through physical combat. Shaak Ti's montrals helped her detect movements around her, an ability that was drastically increased beyond others of her species by her Force abilities. She used this ability during the battle of Brentaal IV, where she evaded blaster bolts instead of deflecting them. As with many Consulars, Shaak Ti had the Force ability to deflect Force lightning.

Shaak Ti's lightsaber skills were at a level few other Jedi could rival or match. She earned a reputation as one of the greatest lightsaber duelists of the Jedi Order's history. She was also known to be a skilled hand-to-hand combatant and excelled in multiple weapons practices. Shaak Ti's physical skills were critical in the defense of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine during the Battle of Coruscant, during which Shaak Ti buys time for Palpatine's escape from Grievous and his MagnaGuards by battling the entire group with her lightsaber, an electrostaff, and her bare hands. Grievous thought of her as a most gallant warrior.

She first appears in "Star Wars Episode II- Attack of the Clones" and continues on in the animated series "Star Wars-Clone Wars" and the last time we see her in movie form is in "Star Wars Episode III-Revenge of the Sith", she is believed to be killed in the onslaught or Jedi purge. But she shows up in video games and books that are approved by the creators of Star Wars between "Revenge" and "New Hope".

Well I hope this helps a little bit, Sorry, if it was a bit like an encyclopedia. I told you Shaak-Ti was cool. Noah can't wait to get his baby sister, her first light saber.

Long winded updated Information

It is not often in a mother's life when her child actually asks her to take them to Dr. Katie. I knew Noah must really be feeling yucky if he said that. He did make sure to say "No, ow" He has had a horrible cough for days and recently it sounded in his chest. He has had a stuffy nose since birth and that has just gotten worse. It keeps him up at night. So we took a trip to see Dr. Katie today. Our appointment was after lunch and when Noah finished his lunch after asking all night and morning to see the doc, he says "No more Ow. No doc. I'm Okay". Isn't that always how it works, when you finally get them into the doc, they are feeling just fine. Can I just say that I love his peditrician. I guess more importantly Noah likes her too. She is just the right kind of doctor for the kind of parents we are. She is great with Noah and it was such a relief to actually see her and not someone else.

Noah now weighs a total of 31.5 lbs. He is on antibiotics for his sinus crap and yucky cough. We discussed the whole potty issue with her and our frustrations. She thought we were pretty creative. A good sign is that he is happy and excited when he actually goes potty and felt like he accomplished something afterwards. I expressed my concern that he only went actual pee if we caught it with the timer and how he holds his poo in. He still might not be completely recognizing the signs in his body that he is going to pee, he know when he will poo cause he hides. She said his mind might be so occupied with all the adventures in his head and all the fun things he is learning that he is not paying attention to it. Plus, it has never been a concern before now and to be patient. So we are not going to stop the potty training, just scale back. Keep the timer going to remind him that he needs to keep trying and be patient. I think that is the hardest part.

She also is going to help us fight the insurance company to get them to cover Noah's speech therapy. Oh, this is a huge answer to our prayers. I know that he has needed a bit more than he is getting. She teased that we should move into Jordan District, since they have a better program. But, now we know that we have some people behind us on this front.

I feel so much better. It sounds so silly but just knowing that his doc thinks we are doing okay and that we have done all we can has quieted my mind about all the stuff swirling in my head

Baby Girl- Shaak-Ti is doing fantastic. I had an ultrasound yesterday and she is growing spot on. She was at exactly 27 weeks. Babies of diabetics usually get really big and grow to fat, to fast. So it is nice to know that she is doing so well. During my exam, after my doc spoke with me and said that another would review the results and I would see him next week, I had 3 other doctors come in and comment about how beautiful her heart was, including my doc. Oh, comfort again. I had 4 docs act astounded, I was not on full bed rest yet and commented how strange that things were progressing this way. They were all really throuogh with my chart. I am still on moderate bed rest. The only reason I am still only moderately on bed rest is that I had a blessing and the Lord is watching out for us. RELIEF and starting in 2 weeks I start going for Non-Stress tests weekly for 3 weeks, bi-weekly after that and to the doctor once a week. And I still have 2 or 3 depending ultrasounds. So the craziness has just gotten a bit crazier. The receptionists were teasing me that we will see each other so much, that we will be best friends. At least all of these appointments are at the Brand new hospital by Costco. Fun fun fun

Potty Update

Oh, the joys of teaching my son about the potty. I am so tired of potty training. He might just not be ready. I feel at this point it is just a matter of something he can control. We have had some struggles over the weekend. He was doing really well about keeping dry during the day. We realized he had not gone poo for 2 days, So he was holding it in. On Friday, Noah gave us back his helicopter and all of his Star Wars toys he earned. All while making a smirk. Usually, just threatening to take the helicopter to Mommy's closet is enough to motivate him to keep trying. Kersten had totally had it with this whole thing. And went extreme. He said if he was going to keep being a baby, he would only let Noah do things that babies would. It was close to lunchtime and we had some Rice cereal Amy left here. So for lunch he made him some baby food and gave him a bottle. During this Kersten ate Cheetos and some of his other favorite foods. Oh, the fit throwing that happened on Noah's part. He actually went upstairs and went pee in the potty after that. Kersten was worried he went a little over board, but It seems that we now have to take this to the next level. We all had a huge talk about how this potty thing needs to be HIS decision. And it is his choice if he wants to be big or not. We now just remind him of the baby food and he slowly walks upstairs to the bathroom. We have been doing the naked thing (Again) this weekend and through the week. All it has done is made it so we have a lot to clean up and he waits till nighttime to poo. I worry that if we back down now, it will completely blow up in our faces later. So we need to be consistent is what I keep feeling. One of the hardest part of being a parent is being consistent.

Noah's Favorites

I recently had to write a page about Noah for his speech therapist at school, so she would know what he is talking about and his interests. Miss Libby has commented that she keeps reading it, for she found it so entertaining. I wanted to put this in a place I could find it and with the original day I wrote it. The pic was taken on Sept 25, the same day I wrote this. Kersten had gotten home from the hosital after his surgery and Noah wanted to help Daddy feel better. I took a picture. He has been so cute and as helpful as he can be. I love my boys

September 25, 2007

Favorite Foods:
I asked him his favorite food and he said “Eeese”- Cheese, Grapes are number 2, Root Beer, he calls any soda, “Coke” so it is Root Beer Coke and sprite is green coke, orange coke, red coke etc, Fish crackers, Green Juice (apple), Cookies, Chocolate milk (he can say this so you can understand), Fruit snacks, Peanut butter sandwiches, Watermelon, cantaloupe, Strawberries and of course Cheetos. Fav candy: Swedish fish, M&M’s peanut, Skittles

Favorite Toys:
Absolutely obsessed with Star Wars, He can play Star Wars related play all day,
His blue light saber is his favorite, he calls it his “mo haw”, and his green light saber is
“Eee haw” although he can say Green better than that, He has some Star Wars figures and vehicles that he will talk about for hours in his way, Ex: Yoda, X-wing fighter plane (ee-ween), Obiwan Kenobi, Darth Vader, Luke, Anakin, Stormtroopers, Battle Droids, etc. He will pretend he has the force with automatic doors or in his pretend play.

Random fact about Star Wars: He calls his baby sister who will be born in January,
Shak –T pronounced Shock T, She is a Jedi fighter that is in the cartoon Clone Wars and first 2 movies. She is a great fighter and very powerful with the force.

He has a favorite stuffed dog named, Pal, that goes on all adventures with him. He is a grey dog. He has a high-pitched bark and we recently discovered he could fly. This is his comfort object. They are the best of friends. He tells him all his secrets and he loves to give people big lick kisses. Noah has even been known to put Pal in time out for misbehavior.

He also has always loved Trucks, especially scoop and dump trucks, He loves garbage day for a truck comes to our house. He can watch trucks work forever. He will say “Scoop and Dump” as he plays with sand and water

He loves Tools (all kinds), dinosaurs, loves to read books, Buzz Lightyear-Zurg (bad guy in Buzz), loves Trains (says choo choo), Donald Duck (thinks all ducks are hilarious), airplanes, all weapons and guns and he loves to play cooking or help make food.

Favorite Animals:
Loves dogs, because of Pal and all his grandparents have dogs,
ducks (a Donald Duck stuffed animal was his fav before Pal and they both have to sleep with him and Donald rides Pal like a horse), Fish ( has a blue beta fish that he named Ernie Fish, ask him about him), elephants, alligators, any baby animals

Favorite Games:
Pat a Cake (at the end you take it out of the oven and eat it like cookie monster), Candy Land, Rescuing mom from evil villains with dad, they go around and point at things and shoot them with lasers or guns (we never shoot at people or animals), walkie talkies, “What’s that” and describe it, He is imagining fixing things, putting them together and explosions all day long. He is playing Star wars, army, Buzz or something in his head all the time. He also like Pirates, They say "Arrgh"

Finish the Sentence

My roommate and I once: taught the boys that lived downstairs how to crochet.

Never in my life have I: changed a tire by myself. I can do it and I have, but I always had someone like my little bro or sis or a friend with me to help out a bit.

High School was: up and down. The highs and good were way up there but I also made some of the stupidest choices and mistakes in life. The best part of high school was that I found Carrie and my husband Kersten there.

When I am nervous: I pull out my hair, literally.

My hair: needs help. It is a curly, frizzy mess right now.

When I was 5: life was spent running around the neighborhood in barefeet. I was also in Nancy Hobbs preschool with all the kids in my neighborhood and had decided by then we could keep Nik, He was already 1.

When I turn my head left: I see our old kitchen table with the scatterings and makings of Shak-T baby announcements

I should be: sitting with my feet up on the couch. I do have my feet on the chair next to me if that counts.

By this time next year: Kersten will almost be graduated and we will have a 4 year old and a 9 month old, (strange)

My favorite Aunt is: This is not a fair question for I cannot chose. I love them all.

I have a hard time: with inconsiderate people. I find it so sad that everyone is so self absorbed and contained that they don't notice what is going on around them. "Yes, I am a big fat pregnant lady that should not be at the store anyway and my 3 year old is throwing a fit and I can't pick him up, could you please help me out to my car."

My ideal breakfast is: Texas toast french toast, , bacon with syrup, strawberries in milk, scrambled eggs & cranberry juice.

If you visit my home town: you would still see me. Sadly I have not moved that far from where I grew up.

If you spend the night at my house: My husband would not rest until you had eaten at least enough to fill you up. We would spend the night talking, playing games and laughing until late. In the morning Kersten would have to make a big yummy breakfast.

I shouldn't have been: so stressed out in college. I wish I would have enjoyed the learning a bit more instead of worrying about tests etc. I probably would have gotten better grades and I would not have taken the fastest way out.

Last night I: did flashcards with Noah, went and bought pink paper, watched Heroes with Kersten and had a tickle war and then read my book Scorpia (An Alex Rider Adventure) until midnight.

I've been told I look like: my mother, especially lately. It has kinda been freakin me out a bit to look in the mirror, I have even noticed this resemblence. I look a lot like my mom did when I was little. I also have been told I look like my Grandma Blanche, we have the same face shape. She is my hero and totally beautiful so I like that.

(painting is "Monarch" by William Whitaker)

What kind of Flower are you?

I am a Sunflower What Flower Are You?

When your friends think smile, they think of you. There is not a day that goes by that you can't find something good about the world and your fellow human."

One more thing

I woke up this morning feeling like total crap. My back hurt,my body ached, I had a migraine and my throat killed, I felt like a walking zombie. Kristin and Spencer had slept over and so I tried to stay away. We are lucky enough to have a weekend clinic and I have strep throat. What more can we handle.

Potty Training 1.2..3...

Warning, this post has the words Pee and Poo in it frequently. So if for any reason those words offend, STOP reading right now.

Noah should have been potty trained forever ago, according to me and Kersten. After all he is 3 1/2 in a bit over a week, he has started preschool and we have a new diaper bum to change in 3 months. We have talked about it, encouraged, celebrated, bribed, begged and anything else you can imagine to get him to think the potty was cool. His teacher at preschool even commented about how violent he gets when you ask him if he wants to go. Only Aunt Ginny could get hime to go on the potty on a regular basis. We asked her to move in for awhile to help out. Luckily for her, but not for us, she is right now in Europe on a month long vacation. Ginny even bought him Star Wars Galactic Heroes to earn as he goes potty. For example: he would earn Count Dooku if he made a poo on the toilet (We laughed Dooku if he made a dook)and Anakin if he made a pee. And we chose this by what ones were more desirable to him. And that stinker would stare longingly at toys in our bathroom and sigh that it was to hard. He did go about 4 months ago for 2 days to earn his Spiderman and Dr Octopus guys and after that decided he was done and never would sit on the toilet after this.

Well, we have had a breakthrough and hopefully now there is an end in sight. He saw this Rescue Helicopter at Costco and Dad talked to him about earning it for going to the Potty for 4 days. He promised he would. We made a chart when we got home and hung it on the bathroom door to put a sticker on at the end of the day. The first day went really well, we also had an egg timer in the bathroom that we set for him to go every 1/2 to hour. And when that bell went off he ran to the potty. And for more bribes, even if he did not go we would give him 3, M&M's just for trying. I mean what else can we do here people. So day number 2 arrives and Noah throws a huge fit, first thing in the morning as I escort him to the potty. He even told me to take the helicopter back and it was too hard. So Kersten figured out a compromise, he could have the helicopter pilot. He named him Hank the helicopter man. So for the next three days, in the haze of M&M's, timer bells, wet pants, two 45 minute events trying to go poo to only have a tiny lump come out and Hank the helicopter man escorting Noah to the toilet. Noah earned his helicopter yesterday. Oh it was a proud moment. This is a picture of him on the potty first thing in the morning with his helicopter. He is very aware that if he stops trying to go potty all the time, the helicopter will go in Mommy's closet untiil he is going again. Oh my, this is such a headache and he is not even close to being completely potty trained. We are trying and will continue this event. There probably could have been a better time to go hard core about this, but as I read everything it would say, "do not potty train during first trimester of pregnancy, or when big changes are going on" etc and blah blah blah and it would just frustrate me further. I totally agree with what Carrie wrote about how the mom need to be ready and commited to this also. I am clear now until the 16th of Oct to be on moderate bed rest so I figure better now than later.

Name Game

Kersten and I have been talking a lot since his surgery and we both agree that we have not found our favorite girl name for this little one yet. We have a couple we both like but neither of us love them. And I admit that I am a bit funny about names. First of all I know I am not going to have a lot of children so I want to absolutely LOVE their name.

Now, I personally LOVE, adore, cherish my sweet Noah Lawrence. I think his name is fantastic. It is a name that will help him become a man of integrity, strength, hard working with a bit of a sense of humor. Kersten also loves it, but it mostly came from me. For you see, with my sweet boy, a couple of months after we were married I had very vivid dreams about a baby boy that would be ours. In each of these dreams I would call him Noah. I knew without a doubt that someday that baby boy would be ours. Kersten worried a bit that he would not come. I would assure him that even if it was in the millineum that we would have this boy. His middle name is my Grandpa's name and he is an amazing legacy to have as part of his life.

Also with a girl, I want it to be very feminine. I love my name because it sounded like a princess, Laurie Elizabeth. I want it to be pretty and not to out there but not really plain either. I don't need her to be just a princess but I want her to be well rounded. She can play dolls and climb trees. We both don't like names that could be either a girl or a boy, for example, Kelly, Taylor, Riley etc. We also don't like names that could also be last names, Bailey, Jackson, Madison etc. We have a middle name we like that we could also use as a first name. We don't care if it is a family name but we want it to have a great meaning.

So I am sending out a plea to the blog world to give us ideas for beautiful girl names. Thanks for playing you guys

October

October gave a party,
The leaves by hundreds came -
The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples,
And leaves of every name.

The Sunshine spread a carpet,
And everything was grand,
Miss Weather led the dancing,
Professor Wind the band.

- George Cooper, "October's Party"

Okay, I saw this on Kristi's blog and fell absolutely in love with it. It sang to me and made me smile and forget everything I have to do. For you see October is my favorite month and October 1st is my favorite day. For starters it actually feels like fall by now. I get all tingly thinking about the crisp air, sharpened pencils, jumping in leaves and the beauty of the mountains that surround me. Kersten and my first kiss was on October 1st and now my niece Allie has a birthday today. She is 1 years old already. So here is a little tribute to my favorite month and day. Happy October everyone. Enjoy!