January 23, 2011

Go Green Bay!

January 4, 2011

New Year Recap

The first day of the New Year was actually pretty great.  Despite the fact that I woke up with the same headache I went to bed with the night before, I managed to swallow some 12-hour Sudafed (magical stuff right there) and gulped half a glass of Pepsi.  Gradually I felt much better.

I spent the morning watching Dawson play his new Lego Star Wars game on the Wii.  My mom gave it to him for Christmas and since that day he barely remembers our names because he is glued to the TV.  I know that sounds terrible, but I really wanted him to enjoy his Christmas vacation so I totally bent this past week.  Today was his first day back at school so we are falling into the old routine once again. 

While Dawson attacked the Clones on his video game, Owen and I played with all his new toys.  His favorite is a race car that makes music and spins it’s wheels.  I love watching Owen dance to the songs it plays when he pushes the buttons. 

My baby is not a baby anymore.  He’s always on the move.  Running is his transportation method of choice, and lately he’s become quite good at climbing on the furniture — especially the coffee table which gives me a heart attack every time I see him do it.  I am constantly picking him up off of things because he is determined to become the next Evel Knievel.  I swear he thinks it’s funny when I freak out.

Part of me thinks I should stop him from climbing at all, but I also think he needs to learn and explore.  I don’t want to always say no and inhibit him, but I also want him to be safe.  And so he climbs up and I take him down and we repeat this all day long.

When Doug arrived home from work early in the afternoon we all got dressed and went to our friends’ house to watch the Badgers play TCU in the Rose Bowl. Sadly, the Badgers lost and it was kind of heartbreaking, but they played the best they could.

Our friends have have three kids close in age to Dawson and they love playing together.  I love that Dawson has playmates that he gets along with.  Owen is still little and there are five years between them so he’s not the easiest toddler to play with it.  He pretty much throws toys all over the room and Dawson just sighs and rolls his eyes.  It’s actually kind of cute.

We went home shortly after the game ended because I was feeling mighty tired and I could tell the boys were getting crabby, too.  We all fell asleep before ten. 

Sunday was a pretty laid back day.  I went to church while Doug and the boys stayed home.  It was super cold outside and they were overtired from the day before.  I just didn’t feel like dragging them out only to deal meltdowns during Mass. 

Later I hit the grocery store for a few ingredients, and Doug made a delicious taco casserole for supper.  We stayed home to watch the Packers win over the Chicago Bears.  We’re in the playoffs, baby!  This makes the Badgers’ loss so much easier to bear.

I was so anxious during the game.  I get so emotionally invested in my sports games.  I know that’s crazy, but I just can’t help it.  I love my teams.  The thing that I hate is that I can’t control what happens and so I watch closely and the adrenaline just courses through my veins.  I’m totally a diehard fan.

Monday morning at work was the pits.  Dawson woke up with pink eye; his eye was goopy and red.  I freaked out.  Pink eye is highly contageous and I was nervous that the whole house would get it.  Thankfully my parents agreed to watch the boys.  Dawson still had one day left on his holiday break, and he couldn’t go to daycare with pink eye.  I scheduled an appointment for that afternoon and my parents met me at the doctor’s office so we could get this taken care of.  Dawson looks much better this morning, so I sent him off to school.

I’m hoping this is the only “illness” he has this year.  I resolve to make this a healthy year instead of one full of colds and coughs and sniffles.

How did your New Year begin?

January 3, 2011

Are you ready for 2011?

Two-thousand ten was a rough year.  I have been looking back on all the things that happened during those 12 long months and I’m quick to leave them behind.  I’d rather forget them.

I spent most of the last year just trying to cope.  Last January, my grandmother’s house burned down.  That was a hard thing to deal with.  I still cannot believe the house is gone.

The first part of last year was tough financially.  Just after Owen was born in October of 2009, I was without a job and spent most of my “maternity leave” worrying about paying for medical bills and mortgage payments.  It wasn’t until last February that I found a job through and employment agency.  It started out very part time, and in June I was given full time hours in another department.  In November the company hired me on permanently and while it’s fabulous to have a job, the work is stressful and there is so much I wish I could discuss about it, but I’m not about to be Dooced.  Let’s just say I work my ass off but I’m treated poorly (as are a few of my co-workers).

We’ve had a lot of illness in our family, too.  It seems like 2010 was a host for mega viruses that pretty much wiped us out.  The kids and I had the flu in June.  It was just awful.  Dawson was stricken with pneumonia in October, a month after kindergarten started, and missed a week of school.  Owen had his first nasty cold that lasted a month, and Doug and I both caught bronchitis in September.  Even my parents were sick right before and during Christmas.  My dad had the flu and mom caught walking pneumonia.  I’m praying 2011 is a year of good health.

We lost loved ones last year, also.  A family friend passed away from cancer.  He was a patron of my dad’s tavern, and a good friend to my father as well.  I called him “Uncle Bernie” because for so many years I saw him almost daily.  He truly was a part of the family.  Another friend died from liver failure, just last month.  It’s devastating when those we love leave this world too soon.

But instead of dwelling on the negative parts of last year, there were some wonderful things, too.

Just before Easter my friend Greta was welcomed into the Catholic church.  She had converted from Presbyterianism, and she had asked me to be her confirmation sponsor.  It was such an honor and I’m so lucky to have a friend like Greta.  She is always so positive, even when it seems like the whole universe is taking a dump on life, she can find the good.  Being her sponsor made me realize how important my faith is to me.  It truly renewed my belief in Catholicism and I’m so grateful to Greta for giving me that opportunity.

Then, in early November, my best friend Amanda’s son Gunnar was baptized.  Gunnar was born 5 weeks early, June 14 and Amanda asked me to be his Godmother.  Once again I was so honored.  I have such wonderful friends.  Gunnar is my first Godchild and I look forward to watching him grow in the Catholic faith, just as I do with my boys, too.

Christmas was wonderful this year.  This is the first year I did not go overboard in the present department.  We got the kids only a few presents and only the things they truly wanted.  Just to see their faces as they opened their gifts was enough for me.  The holiday went by too quickly.

We had Christmas at our house this year, and I spent Thursday and Friday (I had off at work) cleaning like a mad woman.  Then Saturday my parents, siblings,  aunt and uncle came over for Christmas dinner.  The day was over before I knew it.  Sunday was depressing.  I think it was the post holiday let-down and the fact that I had to go back to the stress at work the next day.

I’m so glad 201o is over.  2011 will be great — I’m determined to make it the best year yet.

January 2, 2011

Not Always Roses

Photo Courtesy of JSOnline

More photos here.

So, the Badgers lost the Rose Bowl game, and while I’m really sad about that, I did enjoy seeing the Badger marching band at half time.  They are truly phenomenal.  

Bucky’s crew did the best they could.  Congrats to TCU.

Now on to the Packers winning against the Bears!