Long doesn't cut it

The kids LOVED staying at the hotel and while Korri didn't sleep the first night (that kid has NEVER been a good hotel sleeper!), we all got sleep the second. Friday was a BIG day. We said goodbye to our house and signed all the paperwork. We are no longer home owners (for the short term, anyway). It was sad for me when we walked out of the front door for the last time and it was sad at the closing when we were talking to the wonderful new owners. Sad but good. Then we went to daycare for Finn and Korri's going away party. I did well for a little while and then I just lost it. I LOVE that place and they LOVED my kids. I took lots of pictures and we promised to come back for a visit once life settles down (will it ever?!?!).

Then we left for Ortonville (via the Lowry Bridge, of course, so Finn could say goodbye!). We stopped to eat in our new town, Waverly, and it was really good food made entirely from scratch (good sign of what is to come, I think!). Then we got into a car accident in Darwin! Seriously, the saying "when it rains, it pours" doesn't even come close to the roller coaster we have been on for about two months. We, thankfully, are fine, but our van is not.

Even though it doesn't LOOK that bad, it was un-driveable and potentially totaled (haven't heard back on that yet). It was 100% the other driver's fault, so we won't have that headache to deal with. We were stuck in Darwin (a nothing town with nothing in it except a ball of twine) for over FOUR hours. The kids did great and we were able to get back on the road with a rental.

To say Friday was a long day doesn't even come close to how long it felt. But we survived and had a great weekend in Ortonville. The kids are there now, most likely having the time of their lives. I miss them but it was so nice to be able to go to a movie on a week night last night without having to make plans for who is watching the kids! And a huge thank you to Kelsie for letting us stay with her until we can move into our new house...closing on 8/16!

Transitions

Our house is almost empty! We officially close on Friday, but we are moving out tomorrow and staying at a hotel for a couple days until the weekend.The kids, Korri specifically, is having a hard time with the change. She just doesn't understand why our house looks the way it is, why we are packing everything up and why we aren't sleeping in our new house already?!?! It is tough. She keeps asking me where the new house is and then saying, "really far away?" But I think they will love staying at the hotel, so we just have to get through tonight...the LAST night at our house.

Well, the jerky sellers rescinded their offer to let us store our stuff in their garage! We were SO mad, but bounced back and made a contingency plan. We had more portable storage boxes delivered on Monday and we are still having movers load our things, but they will just load them into the storage boxes instead. Kinda stinks, but a pretty good plan B. Jim was able to fully load one of the boxes last night with all of our remaining boxes, so now they will just need to load up all of our furniture. Other than the excitement about a new place, there is nothing fun about moving...all the last minute throwing things into a box drives me nuts. I'll be super sad tomorrow but also kind of happy to be putting it behind us. I don't do well with transitions, if you haven't gathered.

Jim went to the Waverly house yesterday for the inspection. Overall, he said it went really well with no big glaring problems and we should get the official report today. We are completely at the mercy of the appraisal now. We can't move up our closing date until we get the appraisal back and because of the new laws around home buying, the only thing our lender can do is request a deadline to have the appraisal back to them...which they've set as 8/2. So if all goes well between now and then, closing COULD be moved up as soon as 8/5, but I'm thinking it will be some time between then and 8/22. I guess we'll wait and see.

We decided that this Friday will be the kids' last day at daycare. Jim's mom has offered to have the kids at her house until we close in Waverly, which is very generous, but hard for me (we will obviously visit them on the weekends). I was hoping the kids could keep daycare consistent during this transition, but again, let's face it, transition is harder on me then them! It would be too hard to stay at somebody's house WITH the kids and an extended stay hotel is just too expensive. This way we save on lodging AND daycare, so I guess that is a plus. I started crying yesterday morning when I told daycare Friday would be their last day. I plan to bring treats so they can have a little going away party.

On Friday, we had an impromptu dinner at El Loro with the Motens. It was a crazy, fun time!

Little KidKare

Korri had her follow up eye doctor appointment earlier this week and things are fine! I was a little worried that her sight would have reverted back since we stopped patching, but it didn't! She doesn't need new glasses at this point (the ones she has will work fine) and she doesn't need to be seen again for 6 months! Yay!

This morning, the four of us got up super early and went out to tour the daycare center near our new home. The place is awesome and makes me feel so much better about switching. And the best part (if you ask Jim)? You don't have to pay if you don't go!!! Seriously?!?! In addition to the lower rates (we save almost $200/wk!), that is going to save us so much money. They don't have a Pre-K class like what Finn is in now, but they follow a Pre-K curriculum so he should still be challenged. The kids seemed to really love it and everybody was so nice when we were touring. We took home registration information with the soft date of 8/12 to start! After, we drove by the new house so the kids could see it...and found out the daycare is THREE miles from our house. Sweet. Finn said he liked the house, but we obviously weren't able to walk around or go in. And I found out that unless you come to our house from the west through town...you have to drive on a gravel road to get to us! Hey, I guess we wanted the country!

So, I've been feeling crummy with sinus pressure all week but didn't have any other symptoms of a cold. I've been popping nasal decongestant like candy. Finally yesterday my coworker mentioned something about allergies and a light went on in my head...I have allergies, duh!! I've had allergies my whole life, but they are mild and usually in the spring, so it didn't even cross my mind. I guess more nasal decongestant for a while!

And because a blog post without a picture is boring, here is Korri and Prancine yesterday morning:

Prancine was involved in a poop accident last weekend which lead to her first trip through the washing machine, so the kids thought it would be best to put a diaper on her. You never can be too careful when dealing with unicorns!

Movin' movin' movin'

Movin' movin' movin'...the Thomas' are movin'! (don't even pretend you didn't sing it to the tune in your head!)

We made an offer on a house in Minnetrista (a low ball offer to be fair) and they didn't bite. So after a full day house hunting blitz last Saturday (literally ALL DAY...our poor realtor!), we decided to make an offer on a place in Delano. It had just come on the market and was over priced. We made a fair offer but they wanted to wait it out for a better offer. Good luck with that. Then after some soul searching, we decided to make an offer on a property in Waverly (about 15 minutes west of Delano on Hwy 12). After several rounds back and forth, we now have a signed purchase agreement! Now we just need to get passed inspection, appraisal and closing and it is all ours!

The owners don't live there, so we are pushing for the soonest possible close date to minimize the length of time we are displaced. In the meantime they have agreed (verbally!) to let us store our stuff in their garage until then, which will save us SO MUCH TIME AND MONEY!!! That being said, we are moving out of our house 7/24, cleaning on 7/25 and closing 7/26. I am so sad to be leaving this house, even if it is for good reasons. We were married there, had lots of great times there, both of our kids were born there, etc. And we LOVE the neighborhood. But hopefully we will love our new house and neighborhood just as much (oh, it is on a cul de sac and the rumor is that I LOVE cul de sacs!).

Here is some info on our new digs:

The address is 7000 62nd Circle, Waverly, MN 55390 (change your address books!). It is on Carrigan Lake but isn't "lake front" property as there are wetlands between our house and the lake, even though we own the wetlands. It is on over 2 acres of land, which is what we wanted with LOTS of outdoor living space. I told Finn he could play baseball and football in the yard at the same time! Here are some pictures:

The thing that I am struggling with the most is daycare. We are touring a daycare center in Montrose (the town just east of Waverly) tomorrow morning. I'm sure it will be fine, but leaving our daycare is going to be SO difficult for me. As you all know, it was hard for me to decide to go back to work and put my kids in daycare, but we were so fortunate to find such an amazing place that really and truly loves our kids. Korri's teacher mentioned us moving last night when I picked her up and I instantly started crying. Sheesh...its going to be a tough transition...for mommy!

Anyway, the closing is set for 8/22 right now, but our lender is pushing everything through so it can possibly be sooner. Keep your eyes pealed for our house warming invite if/when we ever get moved in! Can't wait to share it with all of you. We'll bribe you with beer to get you to come all the way out in the boonies!

Minnetrista?

Life doesn't stop just because you're sad...

Since we will be homeless in three weeks, we've kicked house hunting into high gear. It was with trepidation that I finally agreed to expand our search outside of the Delano school district. We just weren't finding THE house there and Jim absolutely refuses to build (which in principle, I agree with him on...). So, after doing research on schools in the western "metro" and beyond, we added several and are now on overdrive to look at all the new options.

That being said, do any of you have any thoughts, impressions or feedback on Minnetrista? We looked at SEVEN houses there last night and found three that we really liked and could see ourselves living in. The three houses are in the Waconia school district, which is one of the top school districts that we're considering. The houses were in the far southwest corner of Minnetrista out on Hwy 7, next to St. Boni. We know nothing about the city or area so any insight would be appreciated. We are also hoping to look at several houses in the Howard Lake/Cokato area tonight on our way our of town.

My fingers are still crossed that something comes on the market in Delano that is just perfect, but being realistic, it probably won't happen in the time frame we need. Oh, well.

In loving memory

In Loving Memory of

Gregory D. Walsh

April 14, 1954 - June 25, 2013

It is such a healing gift to be surrounded by your love for my dad, my sisters and me and our families. It brings us girls all such great happiness to see how much dad affected all of you and how much he will be missed. This clearly came as a great shock, so please bear with us as the four of us are still adjusting to living in a world without a father.

Greg was known as Son. Brother. Father-in-law. Nephew. Uncle. Cousin. Business Owner. Friend. But the two names he held dearest were Dad and Grandpa Egg. He would tell anybody who would listen how much he loved his girls. Growing up, he would nap on the floor in the living room...with four small children. Yeah right! We would climb all over him and wrestle with him and play this one game...try to put your finger in his hand while he was "sleeping" without him grabbing it. I think he won every time, but that was the fun part...getting caught by him. 

Occasionally when mom would have to work late, dad would have to figure out meals (which he never actually "figured" out). This is how "garbage stew" was invented and I don't think the world is a worse place for it now becoming extinct. Basically, I think dad's thought process was, "put all leftovers from the fridge in one pot, open a can of beef stew, heat, stir and voila: dinner." Yum?

And he was ALWAYS there to fix any and everything: the toilet, the rutty driveway, the rotten garage door, the squeaky floor, the car when "somebody" crashed into a telephone pole, the OTHER car that stayed in our family for WAY too long and had something break every week, it seemed. And dad (even once we were in college and beyond) would figure it out. He loved being needed and if he showed his love through acts of service and helping others, he really truly and deeply loved us girls. It is funny how things that annoyed you, now become what you hold onto. Dad liked things quiet and orderly and when they weren't, he would let us know with a "say girls!" Oh, that irritated me so much but now, I'd give anything to hear it one last time.

Being Grandpa Egg. While many probably think being called "Grandpa Egg" is a little weird, I think he secretly thought it was the neatest thing because it made him special. After all, who else is a Grandpa Egg? It wasn't because he had a weird shaped head or anything...Austin, the first grandchild, couldn't say "Greg" and shortened it to "egg" which stuck like glue. In fact, I don't even know if my kids know dad's real name! He wasn't one of those grandpa's that took the kids fishing or threw a ball in the backyard. He preferred to sit back and took great joy in watching them have fun and run and laugh and play. When Jim and I talked to our kids about Grandpa Egg going to heaven, Finn was worried that when Finn goes to heaven, he won't know anybody there. But Jim told him that he wouldn't be alone because Grandpa Egg would be there.

We would like to thank each and every one of you for coming. The support that has been offered to us over the last three days has been amazing and a blessing. We could not have done it without the continuous presence and support of Grandma and Grandpa, Vicky, Lisa, all of dad's siblings and the funeral home. They've held our hands, answered questions, given opinions and recommendations, done things that we weren't able to do and took care of things that we may never even know they did. 

No, dad was not perfect. Who of us is? He was terrible at communicating, had questionable grooming habits (at best!), he always had a beer in one hand (usually on ice?!?!) and he rarely made an effort to keep in touch or get together. He was however, a great listener, a thinker, a handsome son-of-a-gun when he cleaned up, a hard worker, a man of integrity and more than anything, he was my Dad. For that I am ever grateful.

You will be dearly missed, dad. I love you for who you were and who you weren't. No matter your short-comings as a father, you were MY dad and I wish you were still here and able to watch your grandchildren grow up. And I wish more than anything we could have looked at you, said goodbye and given you one last kiss. But you are free now and can be happy. I will miss you forever. Please watch over us and give us a helping hand whenever you are able, just like you did in life. I love you, dad!

My dad

As most, if not all, of you know by now, my dad passed away. He was 59 years old. He was found at his home on Tuesday, June 25 around 1:30 pm. My mom called me with the news at exactly 4:05 pm (isn't it weird how certain details like that are burned into your brain). An autopsy was performed and we should be getting the preliminary results of that in the next day or so but it will take 5 weeks to get the full report, although "natural causes" are suspected.

Visitation is at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Murdock, MN tomorrow, Friday, June 28 from 5 to 7 pm, with a parish prayer service at 6:30 pm. After the visitation (probably around 7:30 or 8) my sisters and I (and our significant others) are planning on going to the DeGraff Liquor Store to have a drink to salute dad. Please come and throw one back with us if you are around! He would have loved having us all there. His funeral will be at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Murdock on Saturday, June 29 at 11 am, with visitation one hour before the funeral. A light lunch will be served immediately after the funeral, followed by burial services at Saint Francis Cemetery in Benson, MN.

We've been going through lots of pictures over the last day and a half and here are a few:

Dad with Finn and Korri at Austin's birthday party, April 2012 - Now one of my all-time favorite pictures!

Dad and Mom practicing walking me down the aisle at wedding rehearsal, October 2007

Dad and Mom walking me down the aisle at my wedding, October 2007

Dad (with Grandma and Grandpa) visiting when I was in the hospital before Finn was born, January 2009

Austin with Grandpa Egg (sorry, not sure when!)

Me, Finn and Grandpa Egg, April 2009

You will be dearly missed, dad. I love you for who you were and who you weren't. No matter your flaws as a father (because doesn't everybody have them?!?!), you were MY dad and I wish you were still here and able to watch your grandchildren grow up. But you are free now and can be happy. I will miss you forever. Please watch over us and give us a helping hand whenever you are able, just like you did in life. I love you, dad!

Lil Slugger

Last night was Finn's first night of t-ball! He had mixed feelings about it and after his lack of participation last summer AND Jim not being able to attend, I did too! But Coach D does an amazing job of getting the kids to pay attention and participating. Last year, Finn had a really hard time running around. The grass is tall, his legs were so short and he wasn't very skilled at running yet. However, last night, he joined right in and ran with all the other kids even if he was one of the slowest...I don't care because he did it with NO complaining!!! After warming up, coach was talking about the bases and asked Finn to demonstrate how to run the bases. Finn was SO proud, you could totally tell and he did a great job. I have a feeling T-ball is going to be much more fun this summer!

Here Finn is batting and running the bases. I think the bat was a little too heavy, but he managed. I love how deliberate he is about stepping on each base!

Oh, and Korri did a great job of sitting and watching, even though she was very upset with me that I "forgot" to bring snacks. Oops! I didn't think it was necessary since they had JUST finished dinner, but I'll remember next week :)

Dry again!?!

We didn't pressure Finn about potty training, but did mention it once in a while and had standing incentives in place, should he decide he was ready. One of said incentives was if he was dry for 24 hours (that means one nap and one overnight), he could go to Chuck E Cheese's or Choo Choo Bob's. He earned this incentive six weeks ago (and we are/were SO proud).

All that being said, Korri basically potty trained herself just after she turned two. I realized she was often dry during the day and switched her to panties with very few accidents! I wasn't ready since Finn was about a year older when he daytime-trained (although I've been told girls train earlier). We hadn't even put any incentives in place to get her to do it (perhaps having an older brother who does it is incentive enough!)! Same for the above mentioned scenario...which she accomplished YESTERDAY! She was dry for nap on Sunday and she was dry when she woke up yesterday morning. I was shocked and made a HUGE deal of it. I just can't believe it. She might be nighttime-trained before Finn (which is fine and NOT a competition).

But since I wasn't even THINKING about Korri being able to do this, we hadn't put in place any incentives, which Finn immediately said to Korri, "Now you can go to Choo Choo Bob's!" Huh. I guess he was right, but I thought he'd forget about it. Nope, we had a showing last night, so I had to come up with something to do with the kids and immediately, Finn said that we had to go to Choo Choo Bob's because Korri had a dry diaper...and Korri agreed! I even tried to steer her in the direction of going to the mall or park or something else. Nope. So we headed over to Choo Choo Bob's and played for about an hour before going next door to the cafe for dinner. The kids were great. Korri got to pick something to take home and she picked...Koko from Chuggington! LOL. I think this is her very first train that is her own and she did NOT want her big brother to even touch it.

These kids of mine keep growing up so quickly! Where is the pause button?!?!

P.S. They both had potty accidents at daycare yesterday which NEVER happens. In both cases, they were playing too hard and didn't want to stop. Who can blame them?!?! LOL

Oh how I've missed you

After a rather dreary morning, a much loved friend that we've missed dearly visited us yesterday. Her name is Sun! Holy moly. It was so nice to be outside and it be sunny and the kids could play without getting all wet and full of mud! Finn informed me after picking him up from daycare yesterday that he needed a bath because of all the sunscreen and sand because it was REALLY hot today. Um, Finn...75 degrees is not actually THAT hot...we've just become accustomed to 55, cloudy and rainy!

The kids and I headed over to Costco after daycare to get a few essentials (I don't remember the last time we had milk at home...shame on us...but we do now!). The kids were absolute ANGELS so they were rewarded with getting to eat dinner at LeeAnn Chin for some chinese chicken, as Finn calls it. They were amazing there, too. I really think they can tell when I'm hurried and rushed and I wasn't last night. I need to remember that. Jim had just gotten back from a trip up North when we got home, so we all played outside for about half an hour before the aforementioned bath needed to be had!

We started with roller skates and blades. They are still learning, obviously, but are able to walk very well on the grass. Korri falls constantly on the sidewalk, but it getting pretty good at catching herself and being able to stand back up...only to fall right away again. Finn can "step" on the sidewalk but not roll yet. Then we moved on to bike and scooter. Oh what fun it was to be outside and enjoying the beautiful weather. I NEEDED the sun!

More videos on our video webpage (link to the right).

Oville weekend

We had three showings and an open house last week. Hopefully something comes from all of it! Jim edged all of our sidewalks before we left on Friday and while it was a LOT of work, they do look really nice. You never know what could make the difference.

This weekend we went to Oville. It was a little warmer than it had been for Memorial weekend but not by too much. I brought winter coats for the kids and me because I HATE being cold (and I actually used mine). Ron and Lynn graciously watched the kids so Jim and I could stay out at the cabin for a little down time. John and Kelsie were around and were able to hang out with us most of the weekend...it had been a LONG time since that happened.

We picked up FIVE bundles of firewood for the weekend and used almost all of it Friday nights. Oops! So Jim and John forayed the shoreline for sticks and driftwood Saturday morning. They actually found a lot. However, I do NOT recommend doing so with sandals on, like Jim did!

Sunday morning was a lazy morning (since the adults MAY have drank a bit too much the night before). Aunt Kelsie braided Korri's hair and Korri barely moved at all! Maybe we need Kelsie to come do Korri's hair every morning :)

Thanks for the hospitality and company Ron, Lynn, John and Kelsie! We all had a great time, but I am also looking forward to a weekend at home this weekend!

Stranger Danger

This is a topic that I haven't really focused on with Finn. So when I received the following email from the daycare Director, I thought it was a good idea and relieved they took it upon themselves:

"Your preschooler has been taking short walks around the property-when it is not raining! Along the way they encounter many people who want to talk to – give handshakes to – or give high 5’s to your child. Some children will actually walk away from the group to talk to strangers. (I HIGHLY doubt it was Finn...he is too shy and a rule follower, but you never know!) This is a serious concern for Shannon and Debi (preschool and pre-k teachers) who have been diligent talking to the children about personal boundaries and the difference between a stranger and someone mom or dad know. Your child’s safety is our primary concern. As a result, Shannon has contacted the NE Precinct’s SAFE program. We are pleased to have Officer Juarez coming to talk to the preschoolers about Stranger Danger and personal boundaries."

So, that was this morning, and I received this notice afterward:

"Officer Juarez came with several of his fellow officers to talk to the children today about Stranger Danger and staying safe. Please note: They brought a coloring booklet for you to read with your child and said to be sure and read the parent tips at the bottom of the pages. Those will go home with you tonight.


NECDC presents Officer Juarez talking about Stranger Danger!

Some of the very important information that was presented included:

• Children should know their last name and phone number if they can. However you do not need to tell anyone or everyone this information. Finn and Korri know their full names, but not a phone number...hard when you don't have a home number any more! 
• It is very important to tell your child – if you are playing with a ball and it goes into the street – DO NOT run out for it. Get an adult to get it for you. We've told this to the kids often, since we live on two busy streets and Finn ACTUALLY did it one day. We were so proud of him. 
• If someone you do not know tries to offer you candy or a puppy or a toy – tell your child to go get an adult.
• NEVER take things someone offers you unless Mom or Dad are there to say it is ok.
• Bikes and scooters stay on sidewalks and always wear a helmet. Finn is fanatical about both!
• Have an adult with you when talking to strangers.
• If someone you don’t know wants to give you a High-5 -remember hands have lots of germs that can make you sick. So unless it is your teacher or someone in your family no HIGH-5’s.
• If you get lost you should look for another mom with children or a worker from a store, park etc. I never thought about it but what a great idea to have them look for a mom! 
• And lastly keep your doors locked at home.

Anyway, I thought these were interesting and wanted to share with you! I love our daycare!

Chuggin' along

After Baby Steps on Saturday, mom graciously agreed to watch the kiddos so Jim and I could go out on a date! We went to see Hangover 3 at our favorite place (ShowPlace at West End) and then we went to dinner at El Patron (same menu as El Loro). I think we are getting old because we both agree that we like to go to the early movie (we went to the 5pm showing) so then we don't have to rush for dinner and are still home at a decent hour. Old folks, I know!

Sunday was crazy busy! First, Kristine and I met Becky and Renae in St. Cloud to try on bridesmaids dresses. We tried on a lot and I think Renae knows which one she likes the best, but in Kristine-like fashion, wants to make sure she has seen them all! It was fun. Oh, and Becky made Rhubarb Crunch. Um, yummmm-o!

While I was gone, Finn had his first "friend" birthday party to go to! It was a girl from daycare, Elizabeth, who turned 5 and is one of his close friends. It was hard for me not to be there (my baby is growing up), but in true Super Dad fashion, Jim took some pictures for me (and even chatted with the other moms that were there!!). While they were at the party, NeNe came over to play with Korri. I'm sure neither one of them had any fun ;)

Then basically, right when I got home, we packed up and brought the kids over to Lilly and Levi's house to play so Jim and I could go look at houses. Lilly and Levi have the best toys and lots of room to play (oh, and a new swing/play set had arrived earlier that day!!). Jim and I almost didn't want to leave! But we did and looked at 6 places. It is hard to look and seriously consider houses when your house hasn't sold. When we got back, we hung out and the kids played. It was so nice. Finn said, "I for sure want to come back here!" And Pam said that Korri is/was super sweet...Pam knows the key to my heart :) Lilly gave Korri a pair of really cool shoes that Lilly out grew...and Korri hasn't wanted to take them off since. They are pretty neat, so I can't really blame her.

Here is Korri driving one of the amazing toys Lilly and Levi have:

Kristine: I see one of these in Zander's future!!!

Baby Steps

Yesterday we had a fabulous time at Baby Steps 3K 2013. Baby Steps is an event to celebrate, educate and fund raise for the neonatal program at Children's! I can't help but be a little melancholy, but also so joyful and thankful at this event. It is so personal to me because it is obvious the place that kept Finn alive and took care of him for the first 85 days of his life. They had a record turn out of over 1700 walkers in their third annual event. We could not have custom ordered more perfect or beautiful weather (especially considering all week it said 70% chance of rain!!). In this case, I'm glad when the weather folks are wrong.

In a demonstration of her never-ending support and love for our family, grandma came to join us for the walk. As you know, we participate in both the March of Dimes walk and Baby Steps walk every year. This year we fund-raised for March of Dimes, but still participated in Baby Steps. We've said it possibly one thousand times, but I will say it one thousand more, thank you to our wonderful family and friends. We are truly lucky to have the amazing support system that we do.

Here are some pics from the morning (Jim was sick and wasn't able to join us):

Messy soccer

Tuesday night was sports class. The previous week had been bitterly cold so I prepared for that and had the kids wear winter coats (seriously!). It ended up being warmer than that, but I think I was traumatized by how cold it was. Korri kept taking her coat off but Finn left his on (hmmm...the one running around and probably sweating!). Regardless, I literally stripped the kids from head to toe when we walked in the door, put them in the tub and their clothes in the washing machine. Next week is tennis, so hopefully that will be less messy than soccer has been!

Marcus, Laena and Korri walking to class from the park:

Finn's team at the end of class (mommy forgot to take pics DURING class, oops!):

Finn is the red blob running toward the camera to the right. They wore pinnies which were WAY too big for them. Finn's big winter coat helped his stay on, though :-)

Where has the sun gone?

We had a GREAT Memorial weekend. Kind of last minute, we decided to go to Oville Fri-Sun. Even though the weather was terrible (I wish I had brought winter coats!), we had a blast. Ron rented a cabin for the summer, so Jim and I stayed out there and got some much needed alone, relaxing time while Memere graciously watched the kids back in town (which they LOVED, by the way). Here are some pics:

Around lunch time on Sunday, we headed back home because we were meeting with our realtor Sunday evening. We just discussed some of the developments on the selling side and went into more details on options for the buying side.

On Monday afternoon, we had our ECFE friends over for a Memorial Day BBQ. The weather was slightly better than it had been in Oville, but not much. At least the kids were able to play outside for a while. Jim did a great job on the food and drinks (as always). A big thanks to our friends for coming over and playing. Here are some pics:

Update on the house: We've had five showings and two offers. I think that is pretty good considering it's been on the market less than two weeks. Nothing has panned out yet, but fingers (and toes) are crossed. The stress of the back and forth will do me in. I told our realtor to just call Jim and then let me know when everything is final!

Pics are ready!

Okay, to be fair, they have been ready for a while, but I had the link on my phone and kept forgetting to send it to my computer. Lame, I know, but true.

So, for those of you who want to see, here are Finn's 4 year pics:

jessicahislop.com/finn
passoword: finn4

As always, Jess did an amazing job. It helped that Finn was Mr. Model and was pulling out poses that made us crack up. Feel free to order whatever you want or let me know and I can order something for you. In the spirit of full disclosure, I won't be ordering until we move or decide NOT to move, so it could be a while.

Here is a little preview:

A Little Red Box

We've had two showings so far. The feedback from the first one was that they LOVED everything, but felt the house was too expensive for the market. I know everybody thinks their house is the best, but they will not find another house like ours in NE, so good luck with that! No feedback on the second one yet. I hate the waiting game (and keeping the house clean in the meantime!!).

Recently, Finn is obsessed with country music! One night he asked Jim if he could listen to country music. Jim was like, "um, sure..." The next morning, Finn told me that daddy let him listen to country music and they said, "naked" in the song. Hmmm...I don't even know where he heard the term "country music" because while Jim and I both listen to it, we don't refer to it as such. As far as the "naked" comment...he probably hears worse at daycare. You can't shelter them forever.

It was Jim's birthday yesterday! He came downtown to have lunch with me and then he had to find something to do in the afternoon for the showing. Then, after a drive that made me SO thankful I don't drive in rush hour traffic on the highways, I brought Famous Dave's home for dinner with NeNe and uncle Les! It was pretty low key, but it is hard to do much on a week night when you are showing your house. The kids liked the cornbread and baked beans...oh, and NeNe's cake with strawberry/rhubarb sauce (even if Korri called it apple sauce!).

Tuesday morning, the kids were watching the construction workers outside. So cute. I was working at home because Finn's class had an ice cream social with the senior center across the street from daycare. I'm so glad I went, even though it was very unorganized. The preschool classes planned three songs to sing with actions. ADORABLE! They had the parents stand with the kids, but I wish we could have been in the audience, too, so I could watch! Have Finn sing "I wish I had a Little Red Box" some time. SO CUTE!!

Movin' on out

Again, sorry for the long hiatus...guess we've been busy. With what, you ask?!?! Putting our house on the market...which we did last Thursday, May 16.

Holy moly there is so much to do when putting your house on the market, but we did it and the house looks great. Here is the listing with pictures:

http://www.cbburnet.com/property/PropertyResults.aspx?SearchID=6901150

If you want to live in a great neighborhood in Northeast Mpls, this is the PERFECT house. We love it and love being able to walk to the grocery store, three parks, daycare and...bars restaurants! But we are ready for some country livin'! When Becky told Austin we were moving, he told her he knows a house we can move into (the house next to them is for sale!!!). LOL. Austin, I would LOVE to live next door to you, buddy, and so would Finn!!

We have our first showing tonight. So exciting, a little weird and trying not to get our hopes up (it is the FIRST showing after all!!). Sharon is baby-sitting and feeding us since the showing from from 5-6:30 and we have sports class at 6:30. We'll see what the next few months brings us. Now to finalize the pre-approval so we can start figuring out where we are going to go!

Amazing Joseph!

Months ago, Jim got tickets to Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoats at the Chanhassen Dinner Theater. He was able to get one of the two tables-for-two in the FRONT row but it was for a Thursday show. My mom graciously agreed to come and watch the kids so we could go.

To say it was amazing, doesn't even come CLOSE to how good it was. Jim had seen it years ago when Donnie Osmond was Joseph but I hadn't seen it before and wasn't sure what to expect. I'm sure it was better with Donnie, but I don't know how it could be! I think it is running through the summer, and I HIGHLY recommend you go.

As you can see, our seats were terrible...

...terribly incredible! Yes, that is the stage right behind Jim! I never noticed the actors shoes before, but I did this time! The food and wine were good. During intermission (I almost wrote "halftime" LOL!), we had grasshoppers...SO GOOD! They always remind us of Ron so we had to send him a picture.

We stayed over night at the Country Inn and Suites that is next door. I was SUPER tired when we got back, so I was pretty lame and went to sleep, but we requested a late check out Friday morning and took our time getting up and ready.

(i.e. have the champagne I was too tired to drink the night before!)

Oh and it snowed AGAIN:

Our back porch on MAY 3!

For our next show, we are hoping to get ticket to Wicked for our anniversary. We were bummed to miss it last time it was in town. Can't wait!!!

Late bloomer?

I was curious when our crab apple trees bloomed last year because it feels really late this year and they are JUST starting to bud. So I looked at some old photos...

April 22, 2012:

April 23, 2013:

Amazing what a difference a year (and couple feet of late season snow) makes!

March thank you

Potty update: Finn was wet this morning, but he wanted to let me know two things: 1. He still wants to go to Choo Choo Bob's (yes, Finn, it isn't like the deal was you had to stay dry UNTIL we went there!) and 2. He WILL be dry tonight. I guess he is determined and optimistic!

March of Dimes March for Babies 2013

This is a week over due. I hadn't uploaded the pictures so I kept postponing my recap. First of all, a HUGE thank you to each and every one of you who made a donation. It really means so much to us, since we know there are lots of worthy charities out there and only so much money to spread to all that are important to you. Thank you! We raised the most we ever have to date: $1515!! In addition to that, Kristine's team raised over $500 so combined, Finn's Team raised $2090!!!! That is a crazy lot of money.

Second of all, we could NOT have asked for better weather for the walk. Finn's Team just getting to Como Park:

Grandma, Jim, Finn, Korri, Auntie Kristine and Zander (and mommy...taking the pic, obviously). We missed the professional group pics...darn it! The kids were good, but got a little squirrelly toward the end, which is to be expected. A snuggle with Grandma makes it all better:

There was over 6,000 walkers, which is amazing.

Third of all, and perhaps most important, your gift doesn't just mean a lot to us personally, it is so important to the March of Dimes. With 1 in 8 babies born prematurely in our country, lifesaving research and programs are needed to give more babies a shot at a healthy life. I've said it before but I will say it again (and again!), I truly believe Finn would not have made it without the help of MANY devices and treatments, but specifically surfactant. March of Dimes helped develop surfactant therapy, which was introduced in 1990, and has reduced deaths by two-thirds! I just want you to know that your donations make a huge difference in REAL ways. In addition to research on how to help babies born too early, March of Dimes also does research on preventing premature labor to begin with. Your donation changed lives.

Potty time

Finn burst into my bedroom this morning to tell me that his overnight diaper was DRY! This is a first for him and he was SO proud of himself. He was also excited because we've had a standing deal with him that if he is dry for 24 hours (that means one nap and one overnight), he can go to Chuck E Cheese's or Choo Choo Bob's! And yes, something flipped and he has been dry for nap over a week! This is HUGE and we are so proud of him. He really is stubborn and too smart for his own good. I have a strong feeling that he has been able to hold it overnight for a while but since he had a diaper on, it was just easier to go in the diaper than to get up and go potty. But now, just like when he day-time potty trained, he just changed his mind and that was that! On a sad note, we did NOT get to go to Choo Choo Bob's today (he picked that over Chuck E Cheese's). We had WAY too much to do around the house and the PODS are being picked up tomorrow, so we HAD to get them filled today. He was a super good sport about it, with the promise that we will go Monday or Wednesday night instead. When he went to bed tonight, I asked if he was going to have a dry diaper again and he said, "YES!"

Korri, on the other hand, seems to have taken a slight step back. She does amazing at daycare because they have all the kids go very often (one day I counted on her daily note and it was SEVEN times!). And, maybe the bigger deal, is she doesn't have a choice. All the kids go. End of story. But when we are home, I ask if she has to go and she almost always says, "no" and refuses to sit down (sometimes reverse psychology works). She had four accidents this weekend and before this weekend, I couldn't remember the last accident she had. I try so hard not to shame her or make her feel bad but I have a really hard time with it when I literally JUST asked her if she had to go, she says "no" and pees in her pants less than five minutes later. I guess I just need to be firm and TELL her to go potty instead of asking and then follow up on that. Oh, my strong-willed and spirited baby girl!! I do have to admit, after her first accident today, she took care of it all by herself (with my instructions): she took off her wet clothes and threw them downstairs, went upstairs and got clean unders and pants (they were pajama bottoms, but pants nonetheless!) and put them all on by herself! Pretty impressive, I think!

For those wondering: all three PODS are filled to an inch of their life due to Jim's meticulous packing ability. A HUGE thank you to each one of you who helped us get organized and packed up. We could and would not have done it without your help. Now to get the inside of the house in order (with what is left!).

Moving onward and upward

Today we had Finn's annual(?) assessment follow up at Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare. We see a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner there who specializes in pediatric orthopedics. We went two years ago in February at which time she had documented several things to follow up with Finn...which was today!

Finn is doing AMAZINGLY well! I didn't know what to expect going there; sometimes no expectations are the best expectations. She was very impressed with his progress and could barely believe it was the same kid. Two years is a big gap when you are only four (and he had only been walking for two months last time)! His feet still tilt in slightly when he is standing, but when he goes up on his tippy-toes, they correct, so that is a good sign. His hips are still slight misaligned, but again, they have improved so much and she thinks the longer he is moving, walking and running, the more they will continue to improve. She was impressed with his running, jumping and hopping ability and said his range of motion for legs and feet was in normal range. Because Finn does complain about leg and knee pain, she wants us to let her know if it gets worse, as there are braces he could use to properly align him if needed. She said that she will leave his case open but unless things change, we don't need to go back!!! 

I feel like this is a big milestone in Finn's (and our!) journey. He still has gross motor delays and somewhat low muscle tone, but I feel like they aren't anything we can't handle. Maybe we can FINALLY leave his prematurity behind? Feeling very good today. You go, Finn!!