About Me

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I am a Mom of two young lads, a fitness fanatic and wife to a die-hard Packers/Brewers fan. I worked in corporate america for 12 years. Now I am on a new adventure - raising my sons and working part-time in the fitness industry as a Personal Trainer and Group Exercise Instructor. I hope you stop by and read my updates- family, fitness, or life related!

Monday, June 27, 2011

June in A Nutshell

 Riding the Choo-Choo at Como Zoo.
 Checking out the animals at the zoo.
Twins game for Father's Day. Braden did a lot of clapping and eating of snacks!

Wow, June is wrapping up this week- where has the month gone? We have been staying busy and enjoying summer. On the weekends, we had a weekend in WI for Joe's cousin's graduation party. Joe coached a baseball tournament or two, I can't even remember how many. We celebrated Father's Day with a Twins game, BBQ and some pool time. Then, this past weekend we did some major car shopping (something bigger for when baby arrives) and we had a wedding of a good friend of mine. The only non-fun part of June was that Braden was pretty sick for a couple of days, but it was his first official sickness so we are pretty lucky! He went 21 months without a fever, so it was bound to happen sooner or later- it just happened to hit on the 102 degree day (same temp outside as his body temp.) It was a bit scary for me since I was home with him for the 3 days that he was sick, and then we traveled for the weekend, and then Joe was out of town- so after those two weeks I was one exhausted preggo mama!

During the week, Braden and I have been enjoying many summer activities. We have visited Como Zoo twice, went to Lake Elmo on the 103 degree day, hit the pool a few times, and of course visited many parks and played with neighbors outside. I also managed to paint Braden's bedroom and put up some sports decals - so his room is transitioning out of a baby room and into a toddler room slowly but surely.

July is approaching fast and today marks the two month milestone of my due date- we celebrated with a visit to the hospital that we will be going to this time around. It's close to home and very nice. My favorite is the complimentary massages and acupuncture! :) Although the dessert menu looked pretty nice, but you never know with hospital food!

I hope everyone is enjoying June...even if the weather hasn't been the best. July is quickly approaching and that means summer is going to go by faster than we know it! Enjoy.....

Friday, June 17, 2011

10 Weeks and Counting....

So I just realized that this week I am 30 weeks into my pregnancy and there's only 10 left! It's crazy how you feel like these 9 months are taking forever at times, and then all of a sudden you hit the final trimester and it seems to fly. At my 28 week appointment they had me schedule all of my remaining doctor appointments. I start going every two weeks for the next month and then at the end of July, I start to go every week. Writing all of the remaining appointments in my calendar freaked me out a bit. Although I am eager to meet this baby and learn the gender, I also know how fast summer goes by with all of the other activities and commitments we have going on. I know a lot of us women are anxious for the last part of pregnancy to pass us by because we get uncomfortable and well, honestly it's hard to be pregnant for 9 months...BUT I think the end of August will be here before I know it, so I am trying not to wish it away! (Even if I am starting to feel a bit more tired, bigger and it's harder for me to sleep comfortably in this last stretch!) This past week, Braden was pretty sick, then we traveled 5 hours to WI for the weekend and then this week Joe is traveling- and I am exhausted. Oh, I am also painting Braden's room during his naps...so I am looking forward to slowing down a bit in this last stretch...slowing down for me anyway. I need a little rest before life gets really crazy w/ a newborn!

So what is there left to do before baby arrives? We already have the room painted so that is a relief. Now, I just have to add furniture, wash some newborn clothes, buy some diapers and wash and install the car seat. We are considering buying a bigger vehicle before baby arrives so that two car seats can fit comfortably and we can have more storage room. So, we'll see what happens with that. It's funny how with the second child, you really don't do much preparing in advance because you have everything. Plus, you are way more laid back and feel like you can wait until the last minute. With your first child you want it all done by the month before (at least) JUST IN CASE. :) I guess the most important thing to have done is a plan for what we will do when it's time to go to the hospital- where Braden will go, how to get him to/from to visit the hospital, how much time Joe will spend going back and forth, etc...so that is different this time around. This time we will be at a different hospital too, so we have to set up a tour to learn where everything is. It's close to home, and I hear it's very nice!

I am very eager to learn if Braden will be a big brother to a sister or a little brother. I am also curious to see how he reacts to a baby. I am anxious to see what life will be like with two kiddos - a toddler and a newborn. I am excited to not be pregnant anymore- he he. :) I am looking forward to expanding the family. I am NOT looking forward to the labor part itself, or recovery..but I was pretty lucky the first time around so I don't have a lot to worry about. I also can't wait to um, drink wine again and feel "normal" when teaching classes...instead of teaching w/ a bowling ball attached to my mid-section. Ha! Anyway, there are lots of emotions as I head towards the home stretch.. I want to spend quality time with Braden up until this baby arrives and make sure I completely enjoy the stage that he is in right now and don't miss a thing. I know having a sibling will be so good for him, but I also get a tiny bit sad thinking that he will have to share us and how busy I will be with a newborn. I know these are all just natural thoughts for a Mom to have as the family expands, and I will be fine and everyone will adjust...but with any change, you welcome and fear the unknown a little.

So, the last 10 weeks...here we come!

PS- my laptop monitor crashed so it might be a while before I can post pics again.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Braden's New Love: Yoga


 Downward dog- while holding a baseball bat.
Not sure what pose this is, but it involves holding a bulldozer.


The family that namaste's together, stays together!

I did a little yoga the other day and Braden wanted to join me. So, I pulled out another mat and put them side-by-side. As I flowed through various yoga poses, he did his own toddler version: poses WHILE holding a baseball bat and a construction truck. Now that is what I call talented! He ran around that day saying "yoga" and would suddenly go into a downward dog. His version of downward dog consists of putting all his body weight right onto his head instead of his arms. Hilarious.

Needless to say, I had no idea that I could share my love of yoga with my 20 month old son. Although I think it's funny, I do hope this opens the doors to more "fitness" time together as a family (since it is one of my greatest passions). We already have a good fitness basis I would say. We take jogs and bike rides and Braden rides along.  We go to the YMCA swimming and to shoot hoops together, not to mention when Braden comes with while I teach classes and he goes to the daycare- so he sees people working out a few times a week. Plus, Joe has exposed him to an abundance of sports already. So, you may be wondering how much more acttive can a family get? :) What I mean is: I look forward to a family lifestyle where we can enjoy activities together such as golf, swimming, canoeing, hiking, biking, etc.... I am all about having relaxing time, but I also like to be active and enjoy the outdoors. I am not sure we'd be a family that would run a 5k together or anything, but I think building memories together while staying healthy and active is important. Plus, it's also fun!

I thought I'd have to wait a lot longer for Braden to be able to partake in any activities with me, so I am happy that he has a love for yoga. What's next- maybe some kickboxing moves?!?

Friday, June 3, 2011

Memorial Weekend: Party Hopping

 A visit to Teddy Bear Park (Stillwater, MN)
 "One minute" says the Captain. "I am testing the wind to see which direction to go!"
 Taking his Captain-ship very seriously.
Chillin' at the cabin, eating LOTS of snacks and no true meals. :)

We had a fantastic Memorial Day weekend. It was busy but we got to do and see a lot in just a couple of days! Braden and I kicked off the party weekend on Friday morning with a visit to Teddy Bear park in Stillwater along with a stop at the local hot-spot, Nelson's, for ice cream - hmmmmm, my favorite. Then, Friday night when Joe got home we went to visit our friends Kamie and Matt in MPLS. Braden got to see their dog Stella, played the drums with Matt on pots and pans, ate a lot of snacks and stayed up past his bedtime. The major bonus was all the airplanes we saw on our way to and from their house. He talked about airplanes all night long since their house is right under a flight route so the planes were zooming by nice and low. It's fun to see his excitement at all of his favorite things- airplanes, construction trucks, dogs, baseball, etc...


Saturday we made it up to Balsam Lake, WI to hang out with our friends the Wilson's, something we try to do every long weekend in the summer even if it's for a day or a night. We stopped over at Bapa's house in Turtle Lake first for some digging in the sand, playing with buddy Cole, and Braden's favorite- a boat ride. He got to be Captain of the ship for a bit and took his job very seriously - as captured above.

After our night at the Wilson cabin, we headed to Joe's sister's house in Maple Grove for their annual Memorial Day party/BBQ. We got to hang out w/ Braden's two aunties on the Hammond side, Uncle Todd and sit at the bar and eat lots of chips. Oh, the two pugs were also a big hit and strangely enough so were their doggie beds that Braden kept laying in.

Needless to say, we returned home late Monday night and we were all tired! Braden partied hard- staying up until 10:00 both nights, played in the sand and water, took just light snoozes in the car while we traveled, and filled his belly with chips, cupcakes, Popsicles and who knows what else. Monday we spent getting things done around the house and out in the yard. It's always nice to have that one day to catch up on things after you've been gone.

I hope you all made some time for fun over the Memorial Day weekend. I sure needed the break and a change of scenery. I had spent the past 5 days before Memorial Weekend painting three rooms in the house and I couldn't stand looking at another can of paint! I hope you all enjoyed the long weekend as much as we did. It's always nice to have Joe around for an extra day of fun because regular weekends go way too fast and seem to get filled up with running around.


Now we are ready for June! Bring it on....