More 3rd Birthday Pictures

Here she is opening her gift from the other grandparents, it was the cutest turtle that turns into a pillow and a subscription to a kids magazine, she's going to love it. (Yes, my child is spoiled).

Katelynn's 3rd B-day Pictures

Katelynn open presents from the grandparents before the birthday party.

Just some Information

Katelynn's 3rd birthday party went really well. She loves having a bunch of friends over to play and it's so fun to watch them all interact with each other at this age. I will get some pictures posted hopefully this weekend from the party.
Katelynn has had her 2nd cold this week, please tell me this is the last one for a little while. She did not get good sleep at all until finally last night. The rest of the week was hell in our house, with everyone waking up from her coughing every couple of hours and Dan and I wanting the other to get up with her or just not talk to each at 2am, etc. and both of us just wishing we could take her cough away ourselves and make her better. She also picks up habits quickly, so I am positive there were a couple of times throughout the night that she just woke up and expected me to rock her and coax her back to sleep, the problem for me is then I don't fall back asleep for another hour - hopefully we'll have a repeat of last night and she'll only wake up once or none at all.

Katelynn had her 3 year check-up on Monday, her actual birthday and passed with flying colors. The doctor was very impressed with her verbal skills and understanding of everything.
Here are her stats:
Height: 38 1/4 (72%)
Weight: 34 lbs. (80%)
Head: 4.75cm (20%)
(so much for Dan and I always thinking that she has had a big head, she's only in the 20%)

After her doctors appointment it was time for mommy and her to do a little bit of shopping before going to daycare and me back to work. We stopped at Old Navy and she picked out some shoes (which she has yet to want to wear?) and I got some more maternity jeans since last time everything I owned were carpi's because it was summer (it costs a lot to buy a new wardrobe).
Next it was off to Target and this was the big deal day of "No More Nuky".
(My friend gave me this idea and did this with her daughter when she turned 3).
We have been telling Katelynn for awhile now that when she turns 3 it's time for the pacifier to go bye-bye, even though she rarely uses it, it was time to get it out of the house so that none of could use it as a crutch. So at Target, Katelynn had her "Nuky" in hand and was allowed to pick out anything in the store that her little heart desired, the cost of that item "One Nuky". So first she looked at earrings and necklaces and next it was off to the toy section and every once in awhile she would peep out "I love my Nuky" or "I'm going to miss my Nuky". In the toy section she first chose a ball (I thought great - $8 bucks, I can handle that), but then as we were heading to the checkout she saw Little Einsteins and Rocket and decided to 'trade up' to the $50.00 toy (crap is all I could think). As we were walking toward the checkout with Rocket and friends we went by the movie section and she dropped the Rocket and picked out an Elmo video (sweet, back down to $10 bucks), to the checkout we went. It wasn't too busy in Target on a Monday at 10:30am, but a nice checker opened up especially for us and once a couple of the other employees figured out what I was doing with Katelynn we had a little crowd. The checker did great with Katelynn, Katelynn gave her the video to scan and then I told her that it would cost "One Nuky" and Katelynn stood off to the side and just didn't want to let go, but finally she looked at me and said "I need just one more lick" and I told her to go ahead and lick it one last time and she did and handed it to the cashier, deal done, into the drawer it went and off we went out of the store with her new movie. So far this week she has only asked for it a couple of times and cried a little bit, but all in all the transition has gone well.
Dan and I took her out to eat and to play at Chuckie Cheese for her first experience there on Monday night, she loved it and has asked to go back a couple of times since then, the Greeley location does not quite have the atmosphere and music of the one Fargo and the characters, but we'll probably do some kind of reward system soon with her and when she reaches whatever we decide on then that may be a very good motivator and reward.

Next week is the big Ultrasound, my appointment is on Wednesday morning and we will find out the sex of the baby. I keep having this thought that baby is going to keep his/her legs crossed and not let us see because I want everything to be planned out or as my friend called me today "OCD". I will post something either Wed. night or Thursday to let everyone know what it is. Katelynn has said that we are having 1 boy baby and 1 girl baby - I think I would die.

Cassie's Big Kill

North Dakota youth deer season opened this weekend. They took Cassie hunting at the farm (Hebron, ND).
She shot at 3 different bucks and ended up with a 3x3 mule.

Congratulations Cassie. (This is Dan's niece)

Baby Belly

Here are a couple of pictures of the baby belly # 2. I am 18 weeks in these pictures and definitely showing more than I did with Katelynn at this time. My next dr.'s appt. is on September 24th and we will be doing the "big ultrasound" and be able to find out the sex of the baby, and yes, we are going to find out. I am ready to either go through all of Katelynn's clothes and separate them out better by size and get them in the baby's room/closet or get rid of them if it's a boy. I figure I better start doing this while I have the energy (the little I do have). The crib and the changing table have already been set-up and moved into the "baby's" room / Grandma's Room (as Katelynn refers to it). Let's get the show on the road.

These pictures are hilarious, you have too look at the expression on Katelynn's face, she thought it was so funny that Daddy could possibly have a belly too this morning!

Some more singing for your enjoyment

My Little Singer

Men

I need a little time to vent here, so please excuse the bad attitude.
Men, what do they do? They go to work, come home, eat supper, maybe play a little with the kids and then after the kids go to bed they go off and do whatever it is they want - what the hell is that? Women are stuck to do it all - or at least I am feeling that way today. Run the kiddo to daycare, go to work - get pulled in every direction, make sure I get out of work on time to get kiddo picked up on time. When we get home - low and behold - husband has been home for awhile enjoying beers with his friend - how nice. Come in and set up paints and colors for kiddo to keep entertained while I go and cook supper, start a load of laundry and go through the mail. Husband comes in to eat and watch football. Woman does dishes, load dishwasher and start - wash any that didn't fit. Throw clean clothes into dryer. Get kiddo into bath, do some puzzles, brush teeth, read books and sing songs before getting them settled for bed. Then it's off for me to do bookwork -where is husband - in the garage enjoying free time. After bookwork is done I will need to go and fold the laundry and clean the rest of the kitchen that I didn't get to already - what will husband do - come to bed at 11:00pm and wonder why in the morning I am exhausted. Man - can us woman get a little help around here - if all I had to do was keep the lawn fertilized, mowed and watered - you know "the outside jobs that our men take care of" I think I would take the trade. This is probably why a woman should be president or vice president - we just get more shit done.

Labor Day Weekend

Katelynn started getting a cold on Wednesday and woke up with a fever on Thursday and had to stay home from daycare, which meant mommy had to stay home from work as well. After I got her fever down it wasn't a bad day off. Friday the cold was already gone and just the cough was left over when she naps or sleeps, not too bad, I don't know that I have ever seen a cold come and go that fast?!
I had a dr.'s appt. this week and am of course still gaining weight,which I should be, but it seems to be packing on this time, or at least I thought so, I even made the nurse check my weight from when I was pregnant with Katelynn to see where I was at and amazingly it is the exact seem, so I guess I shouldn't be complaining. The heart rate at this appt. dropped a lot it was 185 at the first appointment and now is 153 - Dan still has some hope for a little boy (supposedly the heart rate for a boy is lower than a girls and Katelynn's was always in the 170's). We have an ultra sound schedule for September 24th and we will find out what the sex is. If it is a boy I am going through all of Katelynn's old clothes and getting rid of anything that is specific for a girl and the planning will start. If it's a girl I will start washing all of the girl stuff and start moving closets around - either way it sounds like work, hopefully Katelynn will feel like being helpful that day.
Saturday - pretty uneventful day, other than trying to teach Katelynn who the boss is and that she needs to listen, that was almost our entire morning - time outs or playing in her room alone until she decided that "yes" mommy and daddy are in charge and I have to listen, is this what the age of 3 is bringing me? Although the cutest thing did happen after supper - the neighbor girl came over and rang our doorbell and asked me if Katelynn could come outside and play - how cute is that, she was so excited she could hardly contain herself. We went outside and they rode their bikes (Katelynn tried, she is starting to get it little by little) and then played sidewalk chalk, and then blew bubbles together. It was so nice for her to have a little friend to play with and I sat and talked with her mom, which was nice to get to know the neighbor a little bit better too.
Sunday - I am going to attempt to get my family to church tomorrow. Katelynn and I went to church a couple of weeks ago by ourselves, she did pretty good. Dan said that he would come the next time, so we will see. After that we are going to go fridge shopping, we are looking for a relatively cheap fridge for the garage, you can never have enough freezer space it seems and somewhere to put pop, bottled water and of course some beer. We will see if us 3 can decide on something we all like. Dan and I are putting in money together and Katelynn said that she would even throw in $10.00, but the rest of her money in her account she is saving to buy Jelly Beans with.
Monday - we will just relax I hope and get ready for the football season to start. Our first game is the following Monday against Green Bay -can't wait!

Things are starting to look up

Today was a much better day than the past week has been. I have interviewed 2 different day cares and chose one today and they also accepted Katelynn. I did not pick the one with Dan's friend which hasn't made him the happiest, but have explained time and again that it what's best for Katelynn and where I think she will get the best care. She starts at the new daycare on Monday. I really liked this provider, she has a great program and really seems to love being with the kids and doing projects and just playing with them. She does a lot of outdoor play including in the winter (this year Katelynn will need a snow suit then, if you know me, you know I don't tend to hang outside unless absolutely necessary in the winter). Another bright note is she had an opening for an infant to and my neighbor that was supposed to go to Katelynn's previous daycare also was able to get in and claim the last open spot. Good thing!

Work update. My old boss met with one of our report writer head honchos today for lunch to have a discussion about me and came back with some good news! Soon, I will be attending some training on how to write reports and if it's something I'm interested in then they will continue on with more training on Crystal Reports and I can become a report writer for the county! Yeah for me, currently I work with our report writer to verify reports and help them with our computer system to be sure they are pulling in the correct data. So it's possible in 6 to 9 months (which they figure the training time would be) I would become a Business Analyst I (and according to the county compensation page that title would come with a big raise for me!)

So wish me well with everything!

Not the Friday I had hoped for.

Where to start? I know that I have been irritable and am not always making sense of what I am trying to say with being pregnant and my moods are all over the place lately (pregnancy or thyroid or both teaming up together - take your pick). Friday morning I dropped Katelynn off at daycare and had voiced to my daycare provider that if her husband was going to watch Katelynn that I needed to know before hand or a phone call and had stated it was a safety issue for me to know who was watching my kiddo and when. (Now keep in mind this is what I know that I said, how I said it or how it come out, who knows lately). So, we talked about it and it was fine (or so I thought) and I drove to work. About a mile from my work my cell phone starts ringing and it's my daycare provider's husband - he starts screaming at me on the phone on why I think that my child is not safe with him and this and that and the other thing and that his wife is at home crying - I tried to explain myself, but he was completely out of control on the phone, I told him I never said that Katelynn wasn't safe with him and so on. He then proceeded to tell me to pull the stick out of my butt and turn around and pick up my kid and raise my own damn child. At that point I'd had enough and was upset and turned around and went back to the daycare. The daycare provider and me talked and came to conclusion that it was a huge misunderstanding on her part and miscommunication for both us and Katelynn wanted to stay there for the day, so I let her stay there. I did explain how her husband reacted and what was said to me and that I had some thinking to do. I picked up Katelynn at 4:30pm that day and asked for all of her things and that we would not be returning. I told the daycare provider that her husband had handled the situation inappropriately and that if it would have been dealt with between me and her things would have turned out differently. This was a very hard day, they have watched Katelynn since she was 10 weeks old and I cannot believe that it came to this, but I know that I cannot bring her back there after the way he reacted to one misunderstanding, the way treated me on the phone, and that he might resent Katelynn after all of this. The daycare provider was visibly upset when we left on Friday and said she will be closing down her daycare after this, I feel horrible now for the other parents, but I feel that I can't be blamed for that piece of it. There are a couple of other issues that had red flags for me as well and guided me in my decision to not let her return, but the most was him and his temper. Dan is of course mad as hell at him know for yelling at me and making me upset and the entire ordeal and I hope they don't run into each other anytime soon. So, we are on the hunt for new daycare - what a drag. Next week I have covered - our babysitter is going to watch her on Monday and Tuesday and then Wed. thru Friday she is going to the back-up daycare providers (which of course is across the street from the old daycare - oh joy, that outta be comfortable!) Dan has a friend who's wife is quitting her job to stay at home and just got licensed for daycare and will be providing preschool as well and they have one opening at this time and are in our town. We have known them since a little before Katelynn was born and they are nice people so I will be calling them to set up an appt. Wish us luck! My only hope is that this isn't too damaging on Katelynn because I know that she is going to miss Linda a lot.

Dan's 4-Wheeler

Here are a couple of pictures of Dan's new 4-wheeler. Landon was pretty excited to see these.

Getting the Raw End of the Deal

Interestingly enough there have been some strange and crappy things happening at my job lately. Recently we have gotten a new supervisor, it came down to 2 people who are friends of mine and either were qualified for the position, of course in that situation one of them wasn't going to be happy, but when management told them how they made their decision, it was stated "This person was a better fit for our old supervisor" (who will now supervisor that person instead of our unit). Some pretty hurt feelings were all around and the new supervisor they chose has some things too learn about managing people and balancing between friends and work. Onto the next situation - the new supervisor encourages me to apply for her old position and I talk to HR and they tell me that "yes, I qualify and with my experience I should get an interview". Well the head honcho, did not want me to get the position and therefore, new supervisor I think changed her mind, needless to say, I did not get an interview for the position. I was okay with the decision after I found out that there were 48 other applicants and I fell in the middle of the mix with a group of other people that had the same qualifications as me, until today when they started to interview the applicants that did make it through the screening process and come to find out that 2 of them are the new supervisors best friends that do not work at the agency anymore - hmm... kind of makes you wonder how they got through, doesn't it? I am still debating on whether to talk to our HR Representative again and ask to see the screening scores and have her look at them and tell her my thoughts and see if I did get a fair shake or not. Well, today I just found out that one of the clerical supervisors in our other office has quit and there should be an opening for that position in the next week or two - do I want to go through this again? At least this would be in a difference office, but still working with people that need help, just in a different area - we'll see what happens, of course all of these positions are coming up when I am pregnant and really don't feel like it or feel that I should be looking for a new position. I don't think it's fair to start a new job for a few months and then leave them hanging for 2 months, but oh well.

30th Birthday

This was definitely not the way that I would have thought that I was going to spend my 30th birthday a couple of years ago, but being married, pregnant and out of state from most of my family this is how my day unfolded.

I took Thursday and Friday off of work, which was really nice to have a few days off to myself (Katelynn went to daycare). At 8am I was at the Aveda Salon in Loveland getting a cut and color, a nice time to pamper myself. Afterwards I met my friend Brooke for her first Acupuncture appt., I have to say this was very interesting to watch and peaked my interest. After that Brooke and I went to Downtown Loveland and had lunch and then went shopping. She helped me pick out an outfit for the wedding that Dan and I attended this past Saturday, it's not easy to shop for yourself when you are a couple sizes bigger, but not quite into maternity clothes yet. After that Brooke and I parted ways and I stopped at a nail salon and got a pedicure and manicure, ahh, some more pampering to end the day. Dan had specific instructions this year to not come home without a Dairy Queen Ice Cream Cake, my favorite, and he came through! I met Dan at home and we picked up Katelynn and headed to Red Lobster. Supper went really well and the staff at Red Lobster were great with Katelynn, they even took a couple of Lobsters out of the tank and let her play with them. We headed home for Ice Cream Cake and got ready for bed. Not the most exciting birthday in the world, but the day was really nice and relaxing for me, so I really enjoyed my day.

Happy Birthday to me.

Dan and his feast.

A couple days left of my 20's

Well, I have only a couple of days left to enjoy my 20's, what am I going to do with them, probably nothing. That pregnancy thing gets in the way of some of the things I would've have been doing (oh yeah, and Katelynn the child I already have). We had a great visit with my parents and uncle John here over the weekend. All of our company is gone now, which is probably a good thing because I am so irritable with this pregnancy it's unreal, I even know it and can't really do anything about it. The time that I am pretty good about it is at work when I am busy - crazy to say, but maybe I should ask for some overtime and give everyone else only an hour of my day - ha ha, they may appreciate it. I did apply for a new position at my work and will probably know by the end of the week if I receive an interview or not, I'm not keeping my hopes up, but would like the opportunity to of advancement and to do something more, we'll see, wish me luck! We may try to go to the Rodeo tomorrow night at the County Fair, since Katelynn liked her first horseback riding lesson she may even enjoy it and sit as a disciplined child should ?
Thursday is my actual birthday, I took Thursday and Friday off of work so I can wallow in my own pity - is that terrible or what?! Oh well, I need a break from work too, it will be my last one until the next baby is born in February, we have to save all of our vacation and sick leave to be paid while we are on maternity leave, right now I have about 4 weeks saved up, not enough. Everyone can now laugh and think about me getting old this week!