Lauren's birthday party

We celebrated Lauren's one year birthday today by having a party at Grandpa and Grandma Quast's house. Grandma made one of her special birthday cakes, and Lauren came away with more gifts than I can count - lucky little girl! I highly doubt Lauren knew that the celebration was for her, but she did her part by entertaining the guests and playing with all the great gifts she received. When it came time for the cake, we got her naked and were ready for a mess, but like her brother was at his 1 year party, Lauren was a little hesitant, and took some time to warm up to the idea of digging into the cake. Once she got a taste of it, she did eat it all, but still managed to come away very clean (what else would I expect from my kids). It was a great way to end a very busy and long weekend. Here is a slide show with some highlights from the day.

Happy Thanksgiving

We hosted our first Thanksgiving Day at our place this year, although, it would be a real stretch to say that I actually did anything to help with the food preparation, or was even a good hostess as we had a bit too much fun the night before, and I was really feeling it. Lucky for me, my mom was staying at our place so she picked up the pieces and pulled together another great Thanksgiving Day meal/celebration. We also had a mini-birthday celebration for Lauren (whose actual birthday was the following day) - she got her first baby doll, a Princess suitcase (a necessity for any one year old), and some birthday money - not a bad day for a little girl. Ryan managed to sleep pretty much the entire day away as he was up late the night before while the rest of us enjoyed spending some time together. The day wrapped up pretty early as we were all tired and another big day was coming - Auntie's move into her new house! Unfortunately, Trav and I were not able to help out as we had to stay in town so I could work that evening, but the rest of the family made their way to Buffalo to help out with the big move (not sure how it went yet, but I'm sure I'll post some details later). We spent the following day telling Lauren "Happy Birthday" about a hundred times, and working on some projects around the house with Grandpa Doug's help. That evening the kids headed home with Grandpa where we will meet up with them again on Sunday to have another birthday celebration for Lauren - the fun just never ends! Here are some pictures of the babe opening one of her gifts and a couple to show how much she has changed in one year - so sad to think she is no longer our baby girl.
See how much your eating skills have improved in one year - now only the lower half of her face is covered instead of the entire thing - we are so proud.

Here she is getting ready to come home for the first time from the hospital - hard to believe it was a year ago already.

I want shorts

"I want shorts" - this is the answer I get every time I ask Ryan what he wants to wear lately. Unfortunately, it is winter in Minnesota so wearing shorts probably isn't the best option. I've been able to convince Ryan that wearing shorts during the day isn't a good idea because you can't wear a winter jacket and shorts - it just looks too funny. Luckily he thinks about this statement and usually gives up his desire for shorts and will pick something else out, but lately, he has been wanting to wear shorts to bed as well. This poses a problem as my usual answer of winter coats and shorts looking funny does not apply. So instead of trying to think of some other reason he can't wear shorts, I told him we could compromise. He of course didn't know what that word meant so I told him that it would make both of us happy - a simple answer which got me easy results. He agreed to the compromise, and this is what we came up with . . .
He thinks it looks cool, I know he'll stay warm all night long = happiness for both of us!

Is it Christmas already?

So Trav came through big time this weekend! On a whim, we decided to go to some furniture stores and check out some tables for the basement bar area. Anyway, after just two quick stops, we found a table both of us liked. It was reasonably priced, but still a bit too high for our liking so we had a quick conversation with the salesman who informed us that the table would be discounted by 20 percent on the day after Thanksgiving - now that is more like it - the price suddenly became more what we were looking for so we headed home and agreed that we would go back and get it on Friday. Well, when we got home, I of course went through my usual questions when it comes to making any large purchase . . . do we really need it?, will we even us it?, can we justify spending money on it? After my own personal question and answer session, I called my mom to get her opinion as she is always very practical and usually tells it like it is. To my surprise, she said that in the 32 (I think) years that she has been married, she has never bought a new table - kind of amazing isn't it? Anyway, after hearing that, I started to doubt our need for the table and decided that we could hold off for a while. As it turns out, I wasn't the only one thinking about the table. Trav brings it up as he was getting ready to head out to the gym. He says, "if we could get the table today for the reduced price, would you want it?" Is this a joke, of course I want it, but there is no way we'll get that price, at least not today. Well, Trav has other plans and says he is going to stop by the furniture store and see if he can work something out. I agreed to this with the realization that he'll never get it so I wouldn't get my hopes up. About a half hour after he leaves, I get a call from Trav with some good news. He was able to sweet talk a lady into letting him get the table today at the price we wanted - YEAH!!! So as it stands, we will get the table the night before Thanksgiving, just in time for our first Thanksgiving celebration at our house - how fun! I must say, Trav has become a much more savvy buyer in the past couple of years. In the past, he would just go and buy whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, regardless of the price. Now, with my encouragement and teaching, he has proven that he can get a good deal when he needs to - what a guy! We both decided that the table will be our gift to each other for Christmas - maybe not the most sentimental gift, but a great gift non-the-less.

Besides our furniture shopping, we spent the rest of the weekend cleaning out some baby items that we no longer need, baked some treats, picked up the lawn toys and put them away for the winter, and just hung out. We even got outside a few times as the weather was pretty decent (by MN standards at least).

Licking the brownie batter

It's time

It's been a while so there is a lot to catch up on. For starters, Trav was in California most of the week for work, so the kids and I were left to fend for ourselves. As usual, when Trav leaves, Auntie usually comes to keep us company - no different this time, she came up to spend one night with us and do some shopping for her new house. Yes, I said her new house. Ash and Mike close on their house this Wednesday so the family will be spending most of the Thanksgiving holiday helping them out (we all owe her for all the times she has helped the rest of us move so it is time for payback). We're very happy for Ash and Mike, but will be sad the next time Daddy leaves, and Auntie can't come stay with us because she has her own life to live (she also got a new job which she starts on Dec 4th - yeah!), and her own responsibilities - sad, but good. With Trav away, I made an executive decision that it was time. Time for what you ask - time for both Ryan and Lauren to kick some old habits. With Lauren coming up on her 1st birthday in less than a week, I thought it might be time to get rid of the bottle. The decision was kind of made for me on Friday morning when Auntie used the last bottle liner that morning when Lauren got up. I had two decisions, go buy more bottle liners (the easy choice), or take the bottle away and hope for the best - I went with the second option and to my surprise, it wasn't awful. Lauren was a little confused when I filled her sippy cup with milk for her morning nap, but she drank it down just the same, and headed off to sleep. The afternoon nap was a bit more challenging (maybe she was starting to figure out that her bottle wasn't coming back), but we got through it, and she has been bottle free since. Another sad (she isn't my baby anymore), but good thing. With Lauren's situation under control, I figured it was a good time to get rid of one of Ryan's bad habits - the sippy cup, once and for all. He really doesn't need the sippy cup, but it is convenient and keeps the spills away so I like it. Once I finally came to the realization that a spill here and there won't kill anyone, I was ready to help him get rid of his sippy. Again, I was surprised at how easy it was (with the exception of nap time when he gets a cup of hot chocolate when he lays down), but we got through it, and he has now been sippy free for three days (and only one spill) - yeah! So that is that. Daddy goes away and takes care of business on the road, and Mama stays home and takes care of business at home - a good deal for everyone.

Oh yeah, one more big thing happened while Trav was out of town. Ryan and I watched, "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" which got us into the Christmas spirit so we decided to put the Christmas tree up. I know it is a bit early, but I figured with everything going on next week (my first Thanksgiving at our place, Ash moving, and Lauren's birthday), it might not get done for a while so we took the opportunity while we had it. Lucky for us, we already wrapped Lauren's birthday gift, so we had one present to put under the tree (which Ryan did with the utmost care - such a good big brother). Here are some random pictures form the past few days.

Sibling love
Showing off her new outfit

Almost walking by herself

Putting on some final touches
Putting the present in the perfect spot

Just like Dad

Ryan was digging into some clothing bins today and pulled out Trav's old AAU jersey. Lucky for him, Grandma Connie had re-sized it so it fit perfect and he was one happy kid! All day he went around saying, "Dad wore this when he was little like me." I tried to tell him that isn't quite how it went, but he didn't seem to care and stuck with his original story. He is currently debating if he wants to wear it on Thursday for show-and-tell, or if he should bring one of his many toys - tough decision.

I had a bad day

Lauren has been having some bad days lately. The problem stems from the fact that she thinks she pretty much owns everything in the house and should get whatever she wants, whenever she wants it. Ryan, unfortunately does not agree, and puts up a pretty good fight (albeit, a very gentle fight) to keep Lauren from his things. I can't blame him for getting upset at her considering she usually just bulls him over if he is in her path, but I can, and do get annoyed at the constant whining that comes with it. Anyway, Lauren was having an issue today with Ryan not letting her sit in his camping chair. There were two other chairs for her to sit in, but she of course wanted the one Ryan was in. The result . . .
What a sad little face, and just to make sure Lauren knew who won this battle, Ryan did a little song and dance . . .He better savor the victory, I think he has a long road ahead of him with Lauren as his babysister!

Baby loves her bath!

What's not to love about running (or crawling in this case) around the house naked in anticipation of getting into a bath full of toys and bubbles (for the first time). It's a dream come true if you are almost one and don't mind baring it all in front of your big brother - I'm guessing this may come to an end as the kids get older - but for now, it is tons of fun. I swear Lauren lives for taking baths. The minute you get her naked, she just gets giddy and can't control herself. And then, when you turn on the bath water, she stands by the side of the tub and watches and waits for the fun to begin. She reaches her hand out trying to touch the water, turns to laugh at you, and does over and over again until the bath is full - endless excitement. Tonight I used some Vick's vapor bath wash to help with her congestion, and the added bonus was the bubbles it produced! At first Lauren didn't know what to think, she kept her hands floating above the bubbles, after a bit, she finally dipped her hands in and sort of picked at the bubbles. Once they got stuck to her hands, she felt the need to eat them, which seems like the logical thing to do I guess. After everything checked out, she loosened up and did some splashing. Bath time was fun, getting her out was not, but I guess that is the price you pay. Check out the little lady in all her glory - she has a real swimsuit body don't you think!

Not much . . .

Not much going on here lately. With the kids at Grandma and Grandpa Quast's house for the weekend, Trav and I were left to entertain ourselves for a few days. We went out to a Mexican restaurant on Friday and spent some time catching up on some adult conversation. Unfortunately, I had to work on both Saturday and Sunday so Trav had a "free pass" to do whatever he wanted. He took the opportunity to hang out with some buddies and catch some weird concert he wanted to go to - he said it was fun, I'm pretty sure I would have hated it - good thing I didn't go with. After the weekend, we managed to catch a cold in the household. Ryan was first, I was next, and Trav and Lauren are currently teetering - let's hope they just have a cough here and there and that the bad stuff passes over them - we'll wait and see.

Here are a couple of pictures of Lauren all bundled up in her winter gear. As you can tell, she is still getting used to wearing her hat, but at least when she does get it pulled off, it keeps her entertained with all the ribbons it has to play with.

Another video

So I've got another video to show everyone today. This one happens to be of our little lady standing by herself for the very first time - yeah! After capturing this, I started to wonder, either I am super lucky and it just so happens that the kids break out the good stuff when I'm ready to film, or, and this is a big OR, I could have the camera out a little too much so no matter the day, time, or place, I'm going to capture it all - hmmm. . . I'm going to go with the super lucky, but know in the back of my mind that more than likely, I have the camera out a bit too much. Whatever the reason, I have caught some great "firsts" for Lauren - rolling over for the first time, talking for the first time, and now this. Let's hope this good luck keeps up and I can catch all of her other firsts - first steps, first day at school, first date - just kidding, if I keep this up that long, I'm pretty sure my kids would disown me. Anyway, here is the video of the little gal (she also does some dancing in there as well).

Ryan rocks!

Just a typical Tuesday morning in the Quast household. We are just finishing up breakfast and Ryan wants to "rock" a little before heading out to school. Luckily his loving mother just downloaded his favorite song - a Pat Benatar classical, "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" - the other day. Check out our little rock start and listen for Lauren laughing in the background - she loves his dance moves, but then again, who doesn't?

Farmer Ryan

I would have to say Ryan's day on the farm was everything he expected and more. Not only did he get to ride in the combine (something he has been talking about non-stop since getting home), but he also got to ride in a "real big semi-truck" and help Grandpa Doug fix a broken tractor - what more could a kid ask for. Ryan also learned about how the corn goes from the field to the truck, and then to the big bins (although the story gets mixed up sometimes), he still gets the basics right. Grandpa Doug was nice enough to take the camera along to get some pics of the boy enjoying his day - check it out.

And finally there was this picture. When I saw it, my heart stopped a little - is that Ryan sitting by himself at the edge of a truck filled with corn? I mean, think of all the things that could happen, he tries to stand up and slips in (I know, what a horrible image), or he turns wrong and falls off the ledge (trust me, I don't like to think these things, but I do)- what is he doing up there? That is when Grandpa Doug assures me that Ryan was fine and that he was right them next to him the entire time - okay, maybe I was overreacting a little.

That was until we got to this picture. If you look closely in the background, you'll see some people. Well, one of those people happens to be Ryan's Great Aunt Julie who took one look at the situation (Ryan up on top of the truck), and asked Grandpa Doug what he was thinking. Okay, it is official, I am not crazy, Ryan probably shouldn't have been up there. Thanks Julie for taking over "mom duties" for me while I wasn't around - it is nice to know that there is always another person (usually another woman who is also a mom works best) looking out for your kid.

Thanks to Grandpa Doug for giving Ryan his first "farm experience" and thanks to the Kahle's for letting Ryan "help out" for the day (I'm sure he was a valuable asset).

Happy Halloween!!

Halloween started early for us this year. Ryan had planned on being a cowboy, but a last minute change of heart resulted in him being Spider-Man. We bought his costume on Wednesday afternoon and he wore it from the minute we got home until late Saturday night (the only time he didn't have it on was when he slept at night - I had to put my foot down on that). Needless to say, he loved it! On Thursday, Ryan's school had a Halloween party/parade. The parents were invited for the parade which was fun as we got to see all the little kids walking around and showing off their costumes. Guess what was the number one costume in the classroom - you guessed it, Spider-Man. There were two other boys dressed as Spider-Man so when each of the boys took there turn walking across the stage, the teacher had to ask which kid was under the mask so she could introduce them. Now, if Ryan had stuck with the cowboy outfit, this wouldn't have been an issue, but he didn't seem to care. After the parade, the kids and I headed to St. Peter to visit with Grandpa and Grandma Loken. With Ryan still in his costume, we made a surprise visit to Grandma's work where he proceeded to scare Grandma when he jumped into her office and yelled "boo". Most of mom's co-workers heard her scream so they had to come and see what was up. Ryan made sure to make the most of his time with an audience by showing the ladies his webbing powers and talking their ears off - typical Ryan. On Friday we got up and got ready for a busy day. Because we were still in St. Peter, Ash and I planned a fun day with the kids. Our first stop was a surprise visit to Grandpa's work place. Ryan again made a grand entrance by jumping into Grandpa's office and yelling "boo". Grandpa didn't have the reaction Grandma did, but he was still surprised to see him. All of the ladies in dad's office came out to see the kids as Lauren was also dressed in her costume at this time. After our visit, we headed over to the mall to grab a bite to eat, do some quick shopping, and most importantly, ride the carousel (which Ryan did twice with the cash Grandma gave him for Halloween). After the mall, the kids were tired so we headed back to St. Peter, laid down for naps, and they got ready to go again. This time we were headed to Gaylord to visit Grandma and Grandpa Quast. Ryan did his usual entrance, and Lauren tagged along for the fun. We spent a couple of hours there visiting and getting some more goodies before we headed back home to get ready for trick-or-treating with the neighbors. As usual, the neighborhood provided great trick-or-treating for both the kids and the parents - candy for the kiddies, some beers and shots for the adults - what a deal. By the time we got to the last house (our other neighbors), Ryan had had about enough fun and was ready to go in and go to bed. With him asleep, we sat outside at the bonfire and chatted the night away. Saturday brought yet another event for us to attend as one of my high school friends was having a bonfire. But with the long night before, we decided that only Ryan and I would go while Daddy and Lauren would stay home (she was up way too late the night before). Ryan again wore his Spider-Man outfit, but this time I at least convinced him to wear a sweat pant outfit over the top to keep him warm - he agreed, but about ten minutes after arriving at the party, he had his sweatshirt off to show off his costume. We hung out for a couple of hours before Ryan was ready to go. We packed up and headed home where he brushed his teeth and went to bed - he really was tired! And now it is Sunday. After the busy weekend, I am due for a day of rest, but Ryan is ready to go again. Luckily Grandpa Quast offered to take him combining for the day. Considering Ryan's love of tractors, I can only imagine the fun he will have. Here are some pictures from the Halloween weekend.

Pre-school Halloween party (see the 3 Spider-Men)

The kids and the Loken Grandparents

The kids and the Quast Grandparents

Daddy and Lauren rocking out before trick-or-treating

Lauren, Sophie, Stella, Ryan, Marley (neighbors)

The last one is Ryan getting ready to head out for an afternoon of farming - doesn't he look so cute in his working clothes!