so now i have a blog...

pinterest hair

2011-12-01T12:16:00.002-06:00

My friend Maria posted this hair-do she found on pinterest and I tried it out on Juliette...a little messy, but you get the idea. Cute :-)

bath time fun

2011-11-27T12:15:00.004-06:00

This kid LOVES bathtime!!!

5 years :-)

2011-11-17T12:13:00.002-06:00

Ahhhh! I don't have my pics here, so I'll have to update later, but Joey and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary. Sometimes I think it went fast, sometimes I think it's taken forever...haha jk! It's been an awesome 5 years...we've made our house a home, taken a lot of vacations (w/ and w/o family), had our first kiddo, watched friends get married and start their own families, and learned a lot.

In honor of our 5 years, here are five things you may not know about Joey:
1. He steals the covers and won't admit it.
2. I think he really loves his car.
3. He does bath time with Juliette every night...even after a long day.
4. He has owed me a foot rub for about a year.
5. Joey thinks he is/wants to be the character Jeff, from Rules of Engagement

And to be fair, 5 things you may not know about me:
1. People drinking loud makes me cringe...always. Joey drinks loud.
2. I am usually late getting home from work, Joey adds at least 30 minutes to what I say.
3. I should probably shower more, but it's just not worth my time...
4. The theme song to Psych make me happy every time I hear it
5. I usually do the cooking, but Joey does the cleaning

There is your random post :-) I LOVE YOU JOEY!!!

oh yeah, we're having another baby...and it's a boy

2011-11-16T12:11:00.003-06:00

I did drop a hint in the Halloween post, but just to clarify...Juliette is going to be a big sister to a little baby boy come March! We're very excited, as this time was not a stressful process like with Juliette. We're also excited for a little boy...Juliette can stay the princess and JOey has some to play legos with :-)

Juliette picked out some nice Mickey onesies for the baby and and is very excited. He is currently named Butter...NOT like she's saying "brother" wrong, just Butter. I kinda like it...

11-11-11

2011-11-11T12:11:00.005-06:00

Ok, so the night I have been talking about for almost a year...barely took any pics :-( It was a super fun night though! I had a little party for myself at the Green Mill (where else?). WE had the back room to ourselves and I think people had a nice little Happy Hours. I even enjoyed a glass of wine (doctors orders!!), so that was really nice! Here are the few pics I did take...

cake pops I made :-) yes, i am 32

instead of presents for me, i asked people to bring books to donate to children's hospital

quick pic of juliette having fun at the party

on the 12th we had our traditional Ichiban's dinner...can't find the pic from the restaurant, but the after party at noelle and rian's included tahitian treat and pudding pops. solid.

I VOTED!

2011-11-08T19:05:00.000-06:00

I hadn't really explained to Juliette what we were going to do in the morning (go vote). So when we were walking in to vote, I just asked her, "Who are you going to vote for?" She said "gramma"...probably a good choice!

I voted...did you?

french braid :-)

2011-11-05T12:10:00.002-05:00

i can't belive she sat long enough to let me do this...

Halloween Fun

2011-10-31T12:06:00.004-05:00

Here is Juliette outside the display at Karen's house...

Holding up her costume
decorating her pumpkin make sure it "clicks"...so proud :-)
hint, hint... halloween morning with her costume on cake pops we brought to daycare this is pretty much how the trick or treating went...pretty tired by the end!
one good family pic...and yes, Joey spent most of the night wearing the costume

Cooking Class

2011-10-30T12:09:00.002-05:00

I took a Cooking 101 class with Anna the newlywed and actually we had some success! It was on Monday nights for 6 weeks...the teacher knew her stuff, but could also be a bit intimidating at times. Here are a few of my homework assignments:

pizza...made the whole thing from scratch!

soup...italian sausage, beans, potatoes, lots of other goodies!

Chillin with some crackers

2011-10-25T12:06:00.003-05:00

Came home from daycare and she went to the pantry, grabbed some crackers, and watched some MMC :-) It was cute, so I snapped a quick pic...

Going to the zoo

2011-10-21T19:45:00.000-05:00

We took a quick visit to the zoo...she wore, what she calls, her "Lion King" hat. Adorable kid!!

How NOT to put on makeup...

2011-10-19T12:05:00.002-05:00

Trying to put on make-up like mommy...isn't this how it feels sometimes???

Ghost!

2011-10-19T12:04:00.002-05:00

I loved this project Juliette did at daycare with her footprint :-)

Apple Orchard

2011-10-13T12:09:00.003-05:00

Here are some pics from our Apple Orchard visit...I really love this tradition. I also love going during the week when it's not too busy. It was a bit chilly, but I can deal with that :-)

in the maze

photo op

daddy chasing

we bought this one...

such a good helper!

annual family pic!

new photo spot

hmmm...

Embroidery Machine!

2011-10-13T12:03:00.002-05:00

I have been wanting an embroidery machine for a while. I almost bought one from craigslist, and then when we were at the fair, there was a booth from Creative Sewing and I learned that Brother is the only manufacturer that has the Disney characters. That made for an easy decision :-) My first project was a dress for J to wear when we went to the apple orchard...i put her nam on the pocket. This dress is alos cool becasue it was my first use of a functioning button/botton hole (see black buttons by the neck). It was awesome :-)

Here is the machine in action...

Masterpiece

2011-10-11T23:07:00.001-05:00

Her first framed masterpiece :-) Three years of State Fair Spin-o-paint!

Smiles

2011-10-09T23:03:00.000-05:00

I just love this girl...

Donuts!

2011-10-08T23:01:00.001-05:00

Yeah, it may be an obsession (note: for Halloween, Juliette is going to be a donut...), but I made some homemade donuts for Juliette and me for breakfast this weekend. Yummers!

Someday when I am rich...

2011-10-07T22:58:00.000-05:00

Being rich is a relative term...on many levels I feel rich. HOWEVER, my "true" richness will be defined by the day I can shop at Byerly's, without concern for coupons or sales, and I can buy whatever meat I want. THAT is when I will be rich. (Yes, this is a pretty pathetic post if you think about things that are REALLY important, but that's not the point). Anyway, I also love that Juliette gets a nice cookie there :-)

Ice Cream

2011-10-07T22:53:00.001-05:00

She is just like her Gramma...loves her some ice cream!

Zoo!

2011-10-06T22:47:00.000-05:00

This kid also loves the zoo...and I sooooo love having Como so close! It's perfect...we can go kill half an hour and it's not a hassle...this trip was actually last minute to kill some time before lunch...here she is inside the Polar Bear exhibit:

Hide and Seek

2011-10-05T22:44:00.000-05:00

Our current favorite game is hide and seek (mommy likes it because we get to practice counting!)...her hiding is HILARIOUS :-) Here she is "hiding" at my parents:

Pirate Ship Fun!

2011-10-04T22:50:00.000-05:00

Naked Baby

2011-10-04T14:19:00.001-05:00

So this is what I woke up to...technically she was in her crib, but I waited to take "nice" picture. Apparently she doesn't like these pj's (they are new and she's taken them off twice, so I am saying it's the material). Still so cute though...tough to be mad!

High Class

2011-10-03T14:15:00.000-05:00

She likes to wear my necklaces...and I think she looks nice in these pearls!

Joey

2011-09-29T13:49:00.001-05:00

This is what I deal with when I come to bed late...he *tries* to deny night, but I got myself some proof :-) I love him!

Random Phone Pic Catch Up...

2011-09-28T13:48:00.003-05:00

another caribou date eating some yogurt for breakfast, showing her smile in the crib...
papa sent this picture when she was napping at his house one day...

Surprise! Meghan and the kids came up!

2011-09-22T14:08:00.002-05:00

Meghan called when they were in Wisconsin and said they were on their way to MN. Ok, well, I'll meet you at my parents! It actually worked out well! The kids got to play, we got to talk, and we got some pics...a successful few hours!

my dad's best investment...rocks

I asked Juliette is she wanted her picture with Harrison, she said no. I asked if she wanted on with Grace, and she said yes...

Harrison still got in!

weeeee!!! pushing Grace...it was more enjoyable than it looks here... my little thug she was actually laughing at H jumping off the wall behind her

Show Me Your Smile

2011-09-20T13:38:00.001-05:00

So I have not been able to successfully get Juliette to look at the camera on command...it usually takes a few shots to get a good pic (or at least one where she is looking). Then one time I said "show me your smile" and wa-la (hehehe to Meghan) she did and it was cute. Then she asked if she could show daddy, so I took a picture. The "show me your smile" started to get a bit more cheesy, but it's still pretty funny!

(note: this shirt was for "talk like a pirate day")

Mamma's Cup

2011-09-17T13:34:00.002-05:00

My child is branded. She can identify a Caribou from miles away...ok, maybe not miles, but all she needs is the logo and she quickly says, "Mamma's Cup" And yeah, I kinda love it. Joey was golfing this morning, so we went up to Caribou for a muffin and a coffee.

Grandma and Papa go to Disney World

2011-09-16T13:28:00.000-05:00

Yeah, they went without us. I still will ever understand it, but I happy we get to go every year. Juliette did send a pic of her playing with her princess dolls...and she did make out with some pretty nice stuff when they got back! Also, everytime she say a plane, she would say, "Gramma, Papa, plane, Mickey's house, December." I am pretty sure her head is going to explode!

Music Class Playdate

2011-09-15T13:58:00.003-05:00

Our Music Class was on hiatus for a few weeks this summer, so we got some of the kids together for a playdate at the pirate ship...they were all so cute playing together...

sitting at the table eating some snacks

emma and eva looking out the window

weeee

swings

cleaning up

5 adults, 5 toddlers, and a baby...and a surprisingly successful dinner out!

We love the park...

2011-09-10T20:38:00.002-05:00

Summer has been great...it's so nice to have the park right by us...

she like to pull the wagon herself (doug is getting a ride)

rock wall

success!

misc pics from my camera phone

2011-09-09T20:37:00.005-05:00

Some random pics from my phone...

she said she was talking to Unkie B

she kept this headband on for about as long as it took me to take the picture

smiles

homie "i do it myself" sleepy girl

Happy Day Gramma!

2011-09-08T20:38:00.005-05:00

Just in time for Gramma's birthday, Juliette can finally say gramma! We went to my mom's on Thursday night for some cosetta's and cake! Juliette was way more into the candles that she was on her birthday...we had to light them twice so she could blow them out again!

Mamma's trip to NYC

2011-09-07T20:37:00.004-05:00

I went on a vacation by myself. It was awesome! I love vacationing with others, don't get me wrong, but it was kind of fun to walk quietly through the airport and just go at my own pace for everything. I have always wanted to go to the US Open in New York, but it was always durning tennis season and I was coaching. When Joey and I were in NYC in April we met up with my friend Maggie for drink and she said, "yeah, you should totally come back". I told her I hoped she was serious and not just being polite, because I would! And I did :-) So I flew out Sunday afternoon (after Anna and Chad's wedding on Sautrday!) and got in around 9-ish. We walked down the street and grabbed some dinner...that's one thing that is cool about New York. The next day was the open...I had been watching the forecast before the trip and it was basically rain everyday I was there. I was a bit stressed about this because I only had a short trip and didn't want to miss the chance to go! Monday ended up being the best day (even got sunburned!)! The rain never came and we got to spend the whole day there!

us open duckie I got for J

Louis Armstrong Stadium

inside...

Djokovic...eventual winner! We also got to watch a 16-14 tiebreaker- awesome!

Maggie and me...apparently in our matching outfits

On Tuesday, I had a "Jaclyn Day" since Maggie worked and taught that day. The only bummer was that it was raining...but I had a pretty umbrella that worked out just fine. I rode the subway to midtown and dropped Maggie off at work. Then I had to decide what to do! Surprisingly, I didn't have the day planned out...I just knew what I wanted for lunch :-) So I wandered around NYC for 12 hours...here is what I did...

walked down to ess-a-bagel...yum

Did some shopping...got Juliette and I some matching tennies for DW :-) Here is my most random thing of the day...my old hair guy from mpls works at the Plaza in the Warren Tricomi Salon, so I dropped in to say hi and asked if he was there, then asked if he had any openings. He had one. Right then. So I took it...having no idea what it was going to cost me :-) He did give me a great deal (a third off!), so it wasn't too bad and it was vacation money so it was ok! It was also super fun to catch up! And I am lucky I even saw him because he's only at that location Tuesday/Wednesday and then he's on 83rd at the ohter location Thu/Fri/Sat...so yeah, it was super fun to catch up. Here it is in action :-)

After getting my hair did, I went to pick up cupcakes at Crumbs....which was also lucky because my paper bag form the Nike store was getting wet and breaking and the Crumbs bag is a nice plastic handle bag!

my lunch at ruby foo's. general ruby's chicken. one of my favorite things in the world to eat.

After lunch it was about 3 and still raining. I had originally thought about going back to Maggie's and taking a mid-day nap since I knew we'd be out late, but I just went to a movie instead. I saw Horrible Bosses. The movie got out about 5:30 so I thought maybe I'd catch a show. On Tuesdays they start at 7, so I could watch a show and still meet Maggie for dinner late (she teaches until 9 anyway). I waited in the TKTS line, but didn't want to spend $70-$80, so I just walked around and looked up and down the streets and saw the Memphis sign. My cousin Noelle had recommended this one before so I walked down to see what they had left, and the cheap seats were $41 so I took it! Memphis won the Tony Award for best musical so I knew it would be good. After the show, I went back to Maggie's and we took a cab to a Tapas bar and were there until 12:30! That was one long day!! I took the subway and train to the airport the next day and barely made my flight (2 people working the counter is not enough...), but I got home and was greeted by Juliette running up to me with flowers. So cute :-)

State Fair: Take 2

2011-08-31T16:40:00.008-05:00

Juliette and I made a quick stop at the fair on Wednesday morning...a nice quiet time! It was also kids day so the kidway was cheaper :-) AND, for some nice coupon karma...I had already used my kidway coupon from the blue ribbon book, so I was looking for some old people with a coupon book thinking they wouldn't need that coupon. Not a lot of old people by the kidway...so I jsut went up to the window and said, "I was trying to find an old person with a book"...the lady selling tickets was like, "I have one here that someone left!" So I got it :-) It was also fun because Juliette was TOTALLY into rides today. Not as much on Saturday, but apparently in 4 days she became a ride girl! We started the day with the annaul spin-o-paint stop, checked out the animals (no pics this time), and went on some rides. Here are some pics from our day...

hmmm, this looks cool

or not? she wanted me to help her :-)

i did paint, she pressed the button

she did paint, i did the button

more paint!

final product! she now has 3 :-)

quick stop at Green Mill

on the swing all by herself!!

honestly, i teared up at this...the swings were always my favorite ride and watching her on them made me so happy!

horsies!

getting her to look at me is not easy...

bumper boats...the first ride she went on all by herself- she did awesome!driving away!

looking for traffic

ok, i took a lot of boat pics...

and the obvious result...

My dad the groupie :-)

2011-08-28T20:47:00.001-05:00

Wednesday night I went to the fair to see the Midtown Men with my parents. Who are the Midtown Men? I didn't know either, but they are the four guys who were in Jersey Boys on Broadway (who we saw with my parents when we were there...). The guy below in the white t-shirt is J Robert Spencer (but we're tight...I call him Bobby, that's how he introduced himself!). He was also nominated for a Tony for his performance in Next to Normal (which my parents saw in NYC). So point is, my dad loves him, and just as we turned the corner to get our seats (over an hour before showtime) he was on the stage. So my dad went and talked to him. And you know what, he was super super nice and now I love him too :-)

State Fair: Take 1

2011-08-27T20:34:00.005-05:00

My mom and I took a quick trip the fair with Juliette on Saturday morning...had to go early to avoid those crazy weekend crowds!! Juliette LOVED it :-) She loved the animals! It's so much fun to go and see it through her eyes...here are a few pics from my camera phone...

it was the morning...so mini donuts!

mom, this is a cow piggies oink, oink hawaiian shaved ice with gramma
riding on the puppies! wheeeeeee!

Hanging with Papa

2011-08-16T20:50:00.006-05:00

My dad's mom isn't doing well and is currently in transitional care, so we went to visit her one day. They have some really nice little gardens in the back and papa and Juliette checked them out!

Eats!

2011-08-13T14:37:00.001-05:00

Yes, my girl loves food...and I love to watch her eat, something about her mouth is just so darn cute! One of her current fav phrases is, "mmmm, mmmm, mmmm, yummmy, yummy, yummy". Here are some phone pics (some are fuzzy) that I have snapped in the past week or so...

tacos :-)

yogurt...if you can't see it, trust me, it's all over her face
cookie time at byerly'shomemade blueberry muffins from mamma...mmmm

all that eating tires a girl out!

Playdate :-)

2011-08-10T13:55:00.001-05:00

Juliette and I headed down to Eagan to visit my friend Erin (from high school and the good old Como neighborhood). Her daughter Addie is about 5 months older than Juliette and she just added another little girl, Elise (who was about 2 weeks old when we saw her! She was eating during our photo shoot, so she is not pictured!). They enjoyed some play time out on Addie's new swingset and a nice lunch of strawberries and veggie mac and cheese! At the end of our playdate we realized we need a pic so I asked the girls if they wanted to go on the couch or the stairs and they picked the couch...

say cheese :-)

Juliette giving a hug...

Addie giving a hug...

Antie K's B-day

2011-08-07T14:27:00.002-05:00

Today we were going to celebrate Antie K's birthday, so we had to get her a card at Target...Juliette wanted to carry the bag herself :-) So big!We had a nice little birthday dinner for Antie K and gramma and papa's house...Juliette didn't disappoint as our entertainment with her pure joy in eating her piece of ice cream cake...

getting every last drop!

so happy with her ice cream face

bringing antie k her presenthelping her read the card

checking out the goods

Just like her daddy...

2011-08-05T13:54:00.002-05:00

I told her to put her hat on...I guess she does have some Joey in her :-)

School Supply Shopping Day

2011-08-04T13:52:00.005-05:00

Ahhhh, my favorite day of the year...HAPPY SCHOOL SUPPLY SHOPPING DAY!! Those closest to me actually know the date :-) Alex and Mychal got packages in the mail this year with some of the basics...colored pencils, kleenex, a folder with Peyton Manning on it...I did skip the protractor, though :-) Joey came with us this year, and it didn't disappoint! He even got some pens for himself! Here we are in pictures!

With the ad :-)

yes, Juliette, we like mechanical pencils best

cars folder...check really thinking it over... hey! when i told her to say cheese, she screamed it...

check us out!! her favorite part...riding in the back on the way to the car

This is what happens when someone is not ready to come inside from playing...

2011-08-01T13:53:00.002-05:00

Mamma's Shoes

2011-07-31T21:09:00.005-05:00

I wish I could just photoshop these pics together, but you'll get the jist...

Swimming!

2011-07-30T21:09:00.002-05:00

While Joey was at golf on Saturday, Juliette and I headed over to Amy's house to enjoy the pool. I snapped a quick pic of her in her cute Minnie coverup before we headed down to the pool :-)

Teddy Bear Park

2011-07-29T21:05:00.006-05:00

We had a little playdate yesterday after swimming with our friends Laney and Lucy :-) We went to the Teddy Bear Park in Stillwater. We had never been there before and it was really cute! Juliette was REALLY into following Laney around and Laney was nice enough to enjoy it! I love when I get the chance to watch Juliette "play" with other kids. She looks like she has so much fun!

playing in the sand

working hard

all three of them...this lasted about as long as it took me to take the pic ;-)

the girls and Nolan (Andrea's friend Amanda's little boy) on one of the big teddy bears

so studious

2011-07-28T21:04:00.002-05:00

She wanted to read her Toy Story book before she got out of her crib in the morning...

Donuts!!

2011-07-27T21:03:00.003-05:00

Meghan thinks my family's obsession with donuts is a little over the top. I say, "what's wrong with you for not loving donuts?!?!" hehe! We stayed at my parents on Tuesday night, so Wednesday morning Juliette and I headed to the bakery, which was actually a fun little trip! We got Papa a donut too!

bringing the bag in herself

hurray for donuts! note to self...always get her 2 donuts :-)

Anna's getting married!

2011-07-24T12:51:00.007-05:00

Oh how I love Anna...she just goes with the flow with all the wedding stuff! I am a crazy list maker/time tabler/excel spreadsheet person and she's MUCH more mellow. I am sure I have told her more about my opinions on weddings than she cares to know (I also pretty much invited myself to be her personal attendant). The cool thing is that she is doing what she wants...and like she said, a wedding at 30 is different than at 23! As soon as she told me she was engaged I wanted to throw her a shower...I love a good party! So, as I do with most parties, I held it at my parents house.

The Details.

I wish I had pictures of the food...guess I forgot that! Anna's fav foods are pizza, pasta, and chocolate (is this why we're friends?). So for apps we had mini pizzas, some spin dip and some veggies. For the main course, we had a pasta bar...I had never done one before and now it's all I want to do, it was so cool! We also had salad and bread. For the dessert we had cake pops...my current rage! Anna has a little bluebird on her invite and so I made little bluebirds :-) We also had some yummy chocolate cake! The party favor was pretzels dipped in the blue and white colors from the bluebird...looks kinda like a babyshower...hehe. The other detail I don't have pictured is the "brown bag" theme. When Anna and I first went to the paper store she thought the paper bag style paper was cool...I said, yes, but not for your wedding. So I used it for her shower...and had everyone warp their presents in paper bags! Funny...

favors

cake popsanna enjoying her bluebird

The Games.

If you know me, you know I am not good with games...too competitive (that said, I do win a lot at showers). So for Anna's day we did an activity and a game. The activity was everyone got a card and drew a number 1-10. Whatever their number was, they had to write a card to Anna (and Chad) for that anniversary (I did this with a baby shower before, but it works for weddings too!). The game was one I stole from Brenna's shower...it doesn't involve any real skill, so it's hard to get mad. You get a marker and a piece of paper and you have to draw a picture of the bride in her dress. But wait, there is a catch :-) You have to draw the picture with the piece of paper on your head...it's pretty funny. Bride picks her favorite!

the "masterpieces" hanging on the mantle

Anna and her mom, who won :-) I'd say it's pretty close...

Also, for her gift, I had everyone submit a picture and a recipe and I made her a book...it will be helpful as Anna is going to need to practice with all of her cool new stuff!

The People.

anna and me anna and her mamma

maid of honor (sis, Kira), Anna, bridesmaid (Autumn) The whole group of fun ladies...

purple flower!

2011-07-23T12:31:00.003-05:00

Juliette and I had to stop in at work on Saturday and Lois gave Juliette a purple flower- she thought she was pretty cool!

i wish you could hear her sniffing...i love her sniff!

Don't you wish you worked in my office?

2011-07-22T21:02:00.002-05:00

This was what my boss brought me on Friday at about 3...can't complain...

Cookies

2011-07-18T16:46:00.001-05:00

Just a nice little Monday night...after dinner Joey was enjoying some cookies and Juliette wanted in...she is currently REALLY in to sitting the the "adult" chairs...

cookie?

dip dip dip

ahhhhh!

Random Pics from my phone...part II

2011-07-16T16:45:00.001-05:00

Each picture doesn't need it's own blog entry, but they are all fun...so here are some pics from my phone...

enjoying some sweet potato fries at green mill

seats at the twins game with Brent
onion rings we had at hrbek's before the game..

sleepy girl

NKOTBSB

2011-07-15T16:32:00.002-05:00

As you may or may not know, NKOTBSB was in town...and it was fabulous! I was a little nervous because I was going with some seasoned professionals who were VERY excited, but I previewed the set list and felt good (I am more of a NKOTB fan and wasn't a die hard BSB fan so I wasn't sure how it would go). But the concert kept me dancing and singing and having a great time :-)

Noelle practicing her crying...

after dinner at 508...where a nice worker brought us shots. twice.
noelle stole a poster off the door they opened the men's bathrooms for the girls...
literally 10 minutes after asking kristine, "who would buy cotton candy", here is elizabeth:
opening act: mr. schu in our seats reaction when they saw them...reaction when they actually SANG... nkotb

the right stuff

step by step

cute girl, cute outfit...

2011-07-13T14:46:00.003-05:00

I seriously got out my camera just because I loved this outfit and she was beig super fun!

Cute shirt, shorts, and shoes...what a doll :-)hey!
hurray!

this is how much i love my daughter...i look HORRIBLE here, but she was so cute i had to post it

a little better :-)

Bedtime

2011-07-12T14:45:00.002-05:00

One night Juliette and I stayed at my parents house. I put her down around 8 and mom and I went to get Creamy Cone. When we came back my dad was in his bed and I asked if she was asleep and he had a big grin on his face (translation: he went in when we were gone and got hugs). Anyway, she started yapping so I went in to get her and thought I would bring her into their room. I put her down between my parents and she sat there for about 20 minutes watching tv with them...it was pretty adorable :-)

dun-dun

2011-07-12T14:06:00.002-05:00

So apparently Juliette would make a great guest star on Law & Order :-)

my sweet 16?? nope....just some sweet wheels!

2011-07-11T13:57:00.005-05:00

Juliette has a great second birthday...she also got some new wheels! Two to be exact...fitting, I suppose!

On her new bike from mommy and daddyyay! i like it!

testing out her new wheels from unkie B and antie K (unkie B was nice enought to assemble this, which is even better considering it's a pain and took a few hours! thanks B!)beep! beep!guess she needed a tow?

Party #2 Mommy's Buddies

2011-07-10T20:32:00.006-05:00

Party #2. This could probably be dubbed mommy's party :-) This was mostly my friends and their kids! It was on Sunday and the heat index was about 100 degrees, which you can get a feel for from the faces of the kids in the pics. I didn't take a ton of pics myself this party because my awesome photographer friends were there to help out! Here are some snippets from party #2...

juliette and danielle (ok, juliette actually knows danielle from swimming, so that was nice)

gracie helping danielle and juliette find some treasure
juliette eating with cooper, lucy, joe and ainsley this is what hot looks like not so much into blowing out the candles the fam on the ship credit to studio laguna for this one...could be an ad for my pirate pop! credit to studio laguna for this one too! a group shot...all the kids on the ship, most of them in the shot :-)

Things I learned from party #2:

1. Mid-day July is hot (tehnically, i knew this, but this was a serious reminder...)

2. The best money I spent was on $1 water bottles at the store for the kids to squirt

3. Have someone take pictures for you so you don't have to worry about it (Thanks John and Katrina)

4. Have helpers for the food, etc. (Thanks mom, dad, B & K)
5. Take pictures of all the details you did so you can document them together!! I didn't get any pics of the map or the goodie bags...oh well

6. Just have one party :-)

Party #1 Daycare Buddies

2011-07-08T20:28:00.004-05:00

Party # 1 was Friday night. Why two parties? Because (surprise) mommy got a little carried away and realized the list was too big, so it got split in two :-) The first one was with her daycare buddies...this party was probably more for her because she know all of these kids. And OMG it was so fun to see them all play together! There were even sharks attacking the pirate ship! :-) Imaginations are so cute! I wish I would have taken more detail shots of some of the things I made, but I was too busy playing :-)

getting ready to go outside

i had to bribe her with a sucker to keep her tutu on...worth it!
kids on the ship

the pirate punch may have been her favorite part!

my awesome 2 year old!

Riley showing off her bag full of gold (notice the cool pirate headband)

Jackson reading his map, telling us there is more treasure by the water fountain

walking the plank with Shea

mamma's dessert creations...

family photo op

this was cute...as soon as i walked out with the cake, one of the kids yelled, "it's time to sing, everyone sit down", and they all did...just like that!

everyone singing "happy day" to her

enjoying the desserts

back to the punch...

opening presents...this lasted about 10 seconds

So, things I learned from the first party:

1. Have a July party in the evening...much cooler and there is more shade (this wasn't really learned until party 2...)

2. Don't forget to get a group shot of the kids...

3. There is no need for a 2-yr-old to open presents in front of everyone

a few more from the 4th...

2011-07-07T13:56:00.002-05:00

our breakfast...notice the blue plate and red placemat :-) juliette approved!
hey :-)

yeah, i know i am cute..

Britney!

2011-07-06T20:19:00.002-05:00

That's right...I still love me some Britney! Yes, I realize she doesn't do that much actual singing at her shows, but the songs are catchy and I like to see the production of it all. Last time I went I was 7 months preggo with Juliette and I went with my mom. This time, I was not pregnant and I went with Brent and Kristine (got tix on groupon for $30 and we were in the bluc level at the xcel, so totally worth it!)

my dates

met up with noelle and eliz...we will be going to nkotbsb next week! it's basically 2001...yeah, this was the only pic i took...lame-o

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-04T20:26:00.002-05:00

Playdate

2011-07-04T20:19:00.003-05:00

On a hot, Sunday July afternoon, we headed over to Joe and Lucy's house for a park playdate and picnic! I didn't take a lot of pics, but we had a fun time and fell asleep right away on the ride home!

Here are Lucy and Juliette on the swings

(they are 3 months apart, but will probably be different grades...)

Juliette gave doug a stroller ride to the park

2nd Annual We-Don't-Have-A-Cabin 4th of July Picnic!

2011-07-03T20:18:00.005-05:00

Last year we decided to start a tradition of having a picnic on the 4th of July because none of our families had a tradition, and with Owen and Juliette being cute together, we thought it would be cool. Also, none of us have cabins, and none of us married anyone with a cabin (this must be some sort of Minnesota record). This year we invited my grandparents too :-) It also happend to be on Juliette's actual birthday, so it was a special treat for her!

Note: Elizabeth, Bryan, and Owen were going to miss the picnic because they were going to go to a cabin with friends...but the karma of missing our "no cabin" picnic got the best of them as they eneded up not going to the cabin. I am glad Elizabeth and Owen were able to make it!

group shot from the end of the night

owen spraying rian

nana and papa with owen inside the ship! charlie climbing the wall she is a pro at this... my papa on the swing playing with the water blowing out her candles with help from unkie B sharing a cake pop with owen "cheers" she LOVES these! with all her presents...and the squirt bottle!
politely opening the card firstchecking out her car from unkie B and antie Kmamma, jammies, nookie, doug...perfect end to a night!

Juliette is TWO!

2011-07-02T20:19:00.004-05:00

Happy Birthday to the most awesome little girl in the world!

Here she was last year in her birthday shirt..

...and here she is this year :-)

reading her shirt...showing us how old she is with mamma the fam :-)

(and she's not THAT heavy, i had just jumped to try to get her to smile!)

party practice

2011-06-26T20:14:00.001-05:00

I am REALLY getting into this pirate party...this week I practice my desserts...pirate cupcakes and pirate pops...

here is the cupcake... Juliette checking out the pirate pop...

approved!

girls night :-)

2011-06-22T20:13:00.002-05:00

In the middle of the craziness of my life, I was able to enjoy a nice night with some girlfriends! It was a night little Wine Tasting hosted by Twisted Fork. Even though we got "shushed" by a crabby old lady at the next table, we managed to have a great night!!

Father's Day 2011

2011-06-20T21:24:00.003-05:00

Happy Father's Day to all the daddies out there. I know that all my firends are lucky enough to have great husbands who are also awesome dads, and it's really been something that fun to watch as I get older. Of course, I think my hubby is tops...he does such a good job with Juliette and I really love watching them together! We had a busy father's day...Joey's family came over to our house for a lunchtime BBQ, and then we headed to my parents house for a little more of the same. Grill season is DEFINATELY here!

The fam...Doug included

A few outtakes...

4 generations (Brent said it was harder to get my grandpa to look at the camera than it was to get Juliette to look...)"I'm running!"she loves Papa, but must have been distracted by a car...

Poulsoms Really Quick Visit

2011-06-19T20:23:00.003-05:00

Meghan was in town for about 48 hours...NOT enough time. Juliette and I latched on to a Felicelli Como Zoo outing so we could see everyone. It was fun (FINALLY got to see baby Gracie), but it needs to be longer. Meghan, I am dropping some pretty big hints here, so get on planning your next trip and allowing for more Jaclyn time. Thanks.

The following 3 pics are my attempt, in real order, to get a picture of two 2yr olds...

She LOVES riding the Choo Choo Train :-)

Just LOVE LOVE LOVE this one!!

Flag Day Observed

2011-06-18T20:23:00.003-05:00

Enjoying Unkie B's 10th Annual Flag Day Party!

She LOVED the cooler! Chillin'

Having a blast...

Hey, come check out my ship!Crossing her legs with Antie K :-)

BB3

2011-06-16T20:21:00.002-05:00

Juliette and her friend Danielle are now in BB3 (Baby Backfloat, level 3)!! This means she's passed 2 levels...which is two more than I have passed! ha! She'll be in this one for a while...they have to be 33 months for BB4 and that's when I get out of the pool for a bit! OMG! Crazy! We have the same teacher, Melanie, who Juliette loves....so it's been great to have that consistancy. And...they wear GOGGLES in this session...my face hurt from smiling after this lesson because the goggles were so damn cute (when I get someone else to come with me I'll get a picture!).

Waiting for their lesson to start...

old

2011-06-14T21:02:00.002-05:00

I took this pic in the morning in the 3 seconds that she kept this headband in...then Anti K photshopped it to sepia and she looks so old...and pretty. I love her.

Flag Day Proper

2011-06-14T20:22:00.002-05:00

Had a litte photoshoot with Juliette on Flag Day morning to get a good pic for Unkie B...they are all pretty cute!! (I didn't ahve a flag day outfit yet, but her leggins do have starts on them and her shirt is red...a good attempt!)

she likes her privacy...

2011-06-13T20:42:00.000-05:00

She may not be able to see us, but we can still see her...Juliette's fav spot to go #2 :-)

Park Fun

2011-06-13T20:22:00.002-05:00

We were getting ready for our nightly visit to the park and I told Juliette to get her hat. She really wanted to wear her purple hat...not exactly seasonal, but cute enough to put on for a bit...

self pic...i kinda like this version

swing with mamma

big slide!

Where's Daddy?

2011-06-11T20:20:00.002-05:00

This is pretty accurate for Saturdays in the summer...

CLUTCH

2011-06-09T20:14:00.002-05:00

This is one of my all time fav groups of kids I coached (they other group was from '04). These clutch girls all just finished their sophomore year in college... and they are the ones who threw me a baby shower when I was pregnant with Juliette. So we try to get together once a year...we met at my parents, and wouldn't you know, pirate ships are for big kids too!

hanging out

group shot

H.O.T.

2011-06-07T20:19:00.002-05:00

It actually got as high as 111, but then I was in the shade...

stairs

2011-06-07T20:18:00.001-05:00

All ready for daycare with Doug, her nookie, and her purse...

just adorable!

2011-06-06T16:34:00.004-05:00

My mom went to get Juliette up on Sunday morning...she came downstairs and said she couldn't do it because she was too cute sleeping...so I grabbed my phone and took a pic:

in her pirate pj's, dreaming of buried treasure :-)

Grand Old Day

2011-06-05T16:33:00.005-05:00

I have never been to Grand Old Day...as a "regular" person. From the time I was 13, I think I worked every Grand Old Day until I was about 25...I had friends work with me, I had kids I coached work with me...I pretty much dragged everyone into it! After missing the last few years (Joey doesn't really care for the crowds...doesn't like the State Fair either...yeah, I know, what a weirdo!), this year we were back at it--in the parade!! Juliette made her Grand Old Day debut on the Green Mill float (which really was the back of a truck...). I sat in the back with 5 kids as they threw candy out to the parade-goers. It was fun and Juliette did pretty well for sitting in a truck for and hour and a half!! Thes rest of the day she kept talking about the "big truck" and saying "hi" to the kids :-) So cute!!

Juliette and Izzy getting ready for Fox 9

say cheese! getting into the truck stealing some mints! let's go! waving at the kids just sayin' starting to feel the effects of the heat maybe we should just rest for the last 15 minutes of the parade after some lunch, we enjoyed a root beer float
trying for a nice pic...but the allure of ice cream beats out mamma mmmmmm.....

Waterpillar

2011-06-04T11:20:00.001-05:00

Juliette loves the pool. She does not love the waterpillar. What is the waterpillar, you ask? It's a caterpillar looking thing you hook up to your hose and it sprays water all over...if you turn it up all the way it goes FAR!! That totally freaked her out, so we turned it down...and it still freaked her out :-) Oh well, we have some more time to adjust to this summertime fun...

all ready to go outside (in retrospect, maybe she didn't realize that she was in a swimsuit and water was ok...)

you can see her by the steps, this is about as close as she wanted to get! at least she looks good! going under the water to get grammathis is how she really felt... wait, this isn't so bad...mamma silly!

Elbow, Elbow, SQUEEZE!

2011-06-02T16:33:00.003-05:00

When we are at swimming, one of her favorite things is getting out of the pool to do her "humpty dumpty". The way they teach the kids to do it is to go "elbow, elbow, squeeze"...so now when we're there she says it while she does it....she even says in when we're getting close! It's super cute. She also says "elbow, elbow, squeeze" when she's at the park trying to get up on something :-)

errands

2011-06-01T10:19:00.005-05:00

It amazes me how much Juliette remembers. She knows Papa's house when we're turning onto Wheelock. She knows Cream Cone as "treat" and we've only been there like twice. She knows when we turn for Karen's (daycare). It's hard to put something by her! So when our playdate on Wednesday got cancelled and we headed out to do a bunch of errands, she knew the drill! First was the bank, which she knows when we drive by or turn in the parking lot...she also knows that she gets a sucker when we go there. Then it was off to Target where she knows she gets a sticker at the checkout. She also says "target" when she sees the stores and says "ball" when we walk up to the doors (you know those big red balls they have outside the store...). She looks a bit out of it as she was about to get pink eye in this pic... Usually at this point I would get a Caribou, which I didn't, but when we get in that drive through she says, "mamma's cup" :-) So then we headed to the mall b/c I had something to return (and let's be honest, I bought her a few summer outfits too). She knows the mall...very well (to be fair, it is super close to us so we drive by it all the time). In the mall is a big carousel so she always wants to say "hi" to the horsies. She is in a phase where she only wants to say "hi" and if I ask if she wants to ride she says, "no"...which is cheaper for me! But I really wanted to ride with her (who is the kid here?), so I semi-forced her to go on. She was NOT wanting to sit on a horse, but on the top level (yeah, double decker- maplewood doesn't skimp out!) there is a swing so we sat on that and she LOVED it...a swing AND horsies...overload!! (Sorry about the crappy pic from my phone...)

outside? wagon ride? park?

2011-05-31T16:37:00.005-05:00

These are the three most frequent things said in our house right now :-) Man, this kid loves to be outside! We're at the park everyday and she loves it! Sometimes we pick up Unkie B and Antie K on the way (we wonder what people think when 4 people show up with one kid...). Here are a few pics from some of our days at the park...

pointing at daddy

slide with unkie b...."FUN"

cute

pushing doug on the swing

hanging on the slide

weeeeeeeee!

CORN!

2011-05-30T16:36:00.003-05:00

If you have a kid you can't tell me that them eating corn isn't the cutest thing in the world!! Now in general, I HATE loud eaters/drinkers, but kids are exempt from this because they are just so damn cute!! The sound of her biting into corn is AWESOME!

picking at it

going all in

"cheese"

It doesn't get old...this kid is cute :-)

2011-05-30T10:56:00.001-05:00

Jaclyn's Sweatshop

2011-05-24T06:58:00.000-05:00

Ok, so I got some nice responses from the caterpillar shirt I made Juliette. Those comments got me to thinking that I should make shirts for ALL the daycare kids for the caterpillar theme this month...so I did! You know, with all my spare time :-)

final product!

Juliette modeling her new shirt Kristi with all the kids (Karen was taking the picture). SO CUTE!

BEER!

2011-05-24T05:36:00.000-05:00

I ordered my first beer! (not counting drunken ones in college at grandma's because they were a dollar). For our team building even we went to the Ranham/Nook for lunch and bowling. It's a place you need to order a beer. I got a Stella. I am proud of myself!

my beer!

the kiddie team (we play old vs. young)

GM Corp Staff

mother of the year

2011-05-23T21:34:00.002-05:00

Juliette wanted a cupcake before we headed off to daycare...who could say no?? :-)

choo choo at the mall

2011-05-21T21:02:00.003-05:00

Joey went out to play cards, so Juliette and I went up to the lovely Maplewood Mall with my mom for some quick shopping and a treat. I wish I would've taken pictures of her eating all the ice cream- pretty messy and hilarious. My mom kept trying to wipe her up while I said "what's the point"...I just love hearing her say, "mmmmm"! So cute!

We were going to ride on the Merry-Go-Round, aka "horsies", but she said "no", so then we say the train and she was all for that! We got a nice long ride and she waved and said, "choo choo" along the way. She also waved at the horsies :-)

choo choo

Law & Order: Maplewood

2011-05-19T21:19:00.000-05:00

This was the view Joey and I had from our window Thursday night. It wasn't the houses directly across from us, but the ones that share an alley with the houses directly across from us (follow?). You can't really tell, but there were FIVE cop cars there. That may be half of Maplewood's fleet! Anyway, I wish they had to use loud speakers so that neighbors can know what's going on without having to get right up in there. We watched for a while, saw a few girls (who may or may not have been crying) come out and hug some dudes, a guy brought out in handcuffs, and that's all we could tell. So our vote was domestic or an intervention gone bad. THEN about a half hour later a tow truck came and brought a car away...new vote, something with drugs. I fb'ed a guy I went to college with who works in the Maplewood Reserves, but he wasn't on that night...hopefully I can find out through him what was going down. Dun dun...

"Cup"

2011-05-18T21:13:00.001-05:00

Maybe I like Caribou a bit too much...every time I go through the drive through, Juliette says, "CUP", anticipating the cup that I get through the window. She knows it's mamma's cup. Kind cute :-) I also like to go into caribou with her sometimes...some of them have little kid sized table with stuff for them. She also enjoys the banana bread so she gets a little treat too!

"cheese" **

**we're working on saying cheese, but i am thinking we should start saying "smile" since saying cheese produces this weird look half the time!

Como Park

2011-05-15T11:11:00.002-05:00

We started off our Sunday at Como Park for the TSC Walk for the Cure. I grew up playing softball with Maria, and her mom, Karen, is Juliette's daycare provider. Maria's oldest daughter, Kylie, has Tuberous Sclerosis (I think I have mentioned this on here before). Well, Sunday was the walk...we didn't do much of the walk because Miss Juliette was not in the mood to sit in her stroller for the ride and she couldn't walk fast enough to avoid us getting trampled. So we hung out in the pavillion, had a treat, and then walked back for the lunch (I totally felt like on the office when they skipped out on the run...). Anyway, there was a great turnout so that was nice to see! Also gives you some time to stop and think about how lucky you are...

We were parked by the zoo, so would could resist going on a few rides??? Stuff like this is so fun for me...watching Juliette be old enough to enjoy some fun stuff is so awesome. We went on the train (twice) and the teacups. Both times she left the ride saying, "more ride"...and almost cried until I reassured her we would go again :-)

"choo, choo" lounging on the cups...she also liked when we got to turn :-)

B&K Graduate

2011-05-14T11:07:00.004-05:00

Brent and Kristine graduated from their Masters program this weekend. For a kid who never liked school and was so happy when he was done, I am very proud of Brent going back! The ceremony was nice and then we went back and enjoyed a picnic at my parents after. Nice little Saturday!

the grads

reenactment me and K the fam funny pic :-)

Target Marketing

2011-05-11T11:02:00.003-05:00

We were grocery shopping and all of a sudden Juliette yells (and she's really not a yeller), "CARS!". I am looking all over wonder what she is talking about?!? Then I see a section of 20 varities of cheez-its, and one little box has Cars on the front of the box. So yeah, I bought them...don't worry, they were on sale :-)

enjoying her snack