Flying By

I haven't written anything in the blog world for a while because I honestly don't know where to begin - so much to write about. So I'll just be random for now and keep random posts coming until I feel like I'm caught up, which will probably be never. I was just looking through some pictures and thinking man, David is growing up way too fast. With Michael it was all about, humm... which stage is he in? Let's read up on everything. What toys does he need? Does he need more interaction? Is he on schedule? etc. Now with child number 2 I have to make sure to pull out more toys for him. Oh, he's probably at this stage in life now. Wow, he's already crawling... and pulling up on furniture. No way. This is going too fast. Life and my perspective are so different. I never understood why people told me, child number one always gets the most pictures and it just goes downhill from there. I always thought, well I will love number 2 just as much as number 1, why wouldn't he have just as many pictures. I don't think that will happen to me. Wrong. Wow, now I completely understand what everyone was saying. Life is just busy. So in honor of child number 2, here's David in a nutshell.

March 19: Sitting and pushing forward.

Trying his first lollipop.

Eating mouthfuls of sand in Florida.

Finding his feet. Enjoying his cousin's exersaucer.

Getting to know cousin Maia. First time on the grass enjoying the sun.

First carousel ride at Walt Disney World.

Strawberry picking.

Playing with his cousin Joseph. Back to the beach... can't keep him away from the sand.

Some shots on his first Easter.

Chilling on the backyard deck.

April 15- First model rocket launch. Yes, the sun is out back at home!

At the Wisconsin Dells. He's a pro at solid foods.

Will it Ever Come?

Spring is taking WAY to long to get here... we had a horrible -20 degree day last week and I thought I was going to die.  It looks beautiful outside, but it is FREEEZZING!  I keep saying, one of these days I'm going to take a picture of a -20 degree day to show you how nice it looks outside.  So deceiving.  I am getting sick of the indoors and as great as our basement is, Mikey can only handle so many hours of sliding across the treadmill and jumping in his ballpit/jumper. 

Okay, he loves it and can't get enough of playing in the basement.  Can you tell by that huge grin?  Maybe it's just me who's ready for the outdoors.  

Mikey actually took this picture of David and me.  He loves taking pictures.  What kid doesn't?

 

Anyhow, I can't complain.  Today it was 50 degrees outside!!  So warm.  Perfect for a little BBQ action.  We pulled out our grill from the garage, cleaned it up, and threw on the coals.  Dan cooked up some heavenly food.  I love, love, LOVE it when he cooks.  It was a bit chilly, but so nice to get outdoors.   

Backyard Sledding

It finally warmed up enough (to a whopping 20 degrees) to take the boys outside to play in the snow. Compared to the -18 weather we've been having it was relatively warm. We were hoping to make snowmen but it's just too cold out. The snow won't pack. Some day it will warm up enough. Instead we tried out our new sled. There just happens to be this perfect hill right in our backyard, thanks to the snow plow. Too much fun.

Mikey lying in the snow- being the first time in many days, he was loving it.

Super bundled up.

Mikey at the top of the hill waiting for the sled.

Mikey in action.

This is Davey.

He was actually smiling under there.

Loved it.

I know, we are crazy. We put him down the sled with Mikey.


I wasn't planning on including this video, but uploaded it accidentally, so here it is.

Last time down.

The boyz.

Dan pulling the boys back home.

Mikey kept rolling off the sled after each run. I'm not sure why. He must have thought it was fun to land in.

We actually did pack the boys up in the car a few days later to sled on an actual hill. The place we went actually has huge hills and in the summertime it looks so steep. For sledding, however it just wasn't what we were expecting. We couldn't get the sled to make it down the hill in one run. Bummer. From now on, we are sticking to our little backyard hill.

Oh, and by the way, Happy Chinese New Year!

Reading in 2008

2008 has been a year of reading for me. Don't get me wrong, I've always enjoyed a good book, but its seems to have become my new hobby this past year. Maybe it is just because I've been documenting what I read, not to mention I've joined a book club that keeps me reading a variety of books. I went with Dan to Barnes and Nobels yesterday and realized how much I enjoy book stores. While he was off searching for some med school book, I was browsing the New York Times Best Sellers. There are just too many things I've yet to read. So here's my recap of what I devoured this past year.

The Dark is Rising*
A Mango Shaped-Space
A Slow Walk Through the Gardens of Hell
The Painted Veil*
Everyday Parents Raising Great Kids
The Last Lecture
A Thousand Splendid Suns*
The Goose Girl*
44 Scotland Street
My Name is Asher Lev
Three Cups of Tea*
Twilight*
These is My Words*
The Scarlet Pimpernel*
The Lovely Bones
Anthem
You Can Be Happy No Matter What*
Ender's Game*
Silas Marner*
Pope Joan*
The Woman in White
(*I recommend it)

21's not bad, eh? That's almost 2 a month. I've been trying to decide which one would be my top recommendation for you to read in 2009 and I'm having the hardest time deciding which one. I've written up a few of my impressions on some of the books at goodreads.com. I've found goodreads to be a fun place to keep track of books I've read and books people recommend or I'm interested in. Previously it seemed like whenever I wanted a good book to read I'd think, and think of nothing. Then that led me to reading nothing at all. But now when I think that thought, I look at all the books on my "to-read" list I get super motivated. If anything, reading keeps me learning. As said in the words of Dr. Seuss, "The more you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go." Or said more harshly by Confucius: "No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance."

So here are my top 5 recommendations, in no particular order, since I just can't decide on one.


"Through literacy you can begin to see the universe. Through music you can reach anybody. Between the two there is you, unstoppable." -Grace Slick. Happy reading!

I Am Now a Fan

Ever since moving here I have always wanted to go to Ikea, the store up in the cities. It is just so huge and inviting and I've heard people rave about it for years. Yesterday I got my chance. Dan had an interview in the cities with the citizen department (the final leg of getting his US citizenship; fingers crossed) so we drove him up there, stopped by a yummy Chinese restaurant, and then stopped at Ikea. Wow. What a store. There was way too much to look at. An hour was about all the whole family could handle but I'd have been there for days. So much to look at... and dream about. I think I will have to go to their website to get a catalog to come in the mail (hopefully that's an option). Then I can continue my Ikea expereience from home... my browsing and dreaming of all the possibilities for decorating my home.

Morning Smiles

This is what I wake up to every day- super smiles from David. He is such a happy kid we love talking to him and making him smile.


Here's a little video too taken on October 2nd. The quality isn't the best, so it is a little hard to see, but he gave the cutest little smile one afternoon when we were outside playing.

My Boys

I am completely loving taking care of my two little boys. I snapped this picture yesterday morning when the boys were still in their pajamas and we were just chillin' in the basement. Well, I really was just taking pictures of David, but Michael wanted to be in on the fun as well and I am so glad since I don't have many pictures of the two of them together. Life is so busy and so much fun.




Here are a few pictures from last month. More from this month will be coming soon.

Cookie Addiction

I have a new favorite cookie that I am totally in love with- the Reese's chewy chocolate cookies. While I was pregnant with David I craved cookies like every day, so I been making cookies quite regularly for the past 9 months. I finally found one that is perfectly soft and chewy and freezes really well and this is it. (I have a weird habit of freezing half of the cookies I make. This way I won't eat as many and somehow think I can have some for later). This time they didn't last in the freezer very long- they were so addicting. If you'd like the recipe you can find it at my new website: http://dinnerfusion.blogspot.com. It's my latest work in progress; a collection of all my favorite recipes. Basically it's suppose to aid me in deciding what's for dinner since I never seem to know what to make.

By the way, one of my favorite songs growing up was C is for Cookie. Maybe that's why I love cookies so much. I never watched Sesame Street much, but always loved this song because Carolyn and cookie start with C. I'll admit, I have a huge sweet tooth. Are the rumors true that Cookie Monster's been replaced by some vegetable guy now?

3 Days Old

Check out his little smile.

Mikey is loving his little brother.