meet the barkers

2012-01-18T18:57:00.000-08:00

changes.
we have a little boy in undies!
so far so good. he wants to try a little too often for my liking but better than diapers so i am all in! i always thought he would decide one day to start but was not thinking it would be last night! my baby boy is growing up too fast!
(love this picture of pj and drew)

he also took his first trip to the dentist!
he was so brave! i will not lie i did not think it was going to be that easy. he wants to even brush his teeth more now that he used to. he is pretty excited about the new brush and paste he got.

lots of fun with friends. our great friends are in the middle of remodeling their kitchen so they spend a lot of time with us! we love all of the extra time with them all!
***megan and i get lots of time to catch up***
the more the merrier for dinner!
dillon now asks why addison is not here if we are not together at night!
always wants her to stay over night.

had such a fun girls night out in fargo last weekend!
MIRANDA LAMBERT! we went to out hotel early. had drinks and sat around the hot tub all afternoon! then off to dinner and the bus!
the concert was so much fun! thanks ladies for the fun night out! i needed it!

a family trip to menards. what more can you want?
playing at the backyard. last week we had rough day there. pres got pushed down the slide. the big one! YIKES. then she got bit. seriously!!! just her luck.

watching CRIMINAL MINDs. REVENGE next.
then off to pack for another girls weekend! thur-sunday! nothing can be better than 16 girls in one house! food, scrapbooking, laughing, talking and drinks and staying up super late with no reason to get up in the morning!

xoxoxo
happy weekend everyone.

happy happy 2012

2011-12-31T13:06:00.000-08:00

i am not really a resolution girl but what i am going to live by this year is.
do what makes you HAPPIEST!
do more of what you love.
if it makes you happy why not do more of it?
more playing games with the kids. (more UNO MOO)
more ice skating in our driveway!
movie nights!
more scrapbooking.
expanding pLum! bigger and better.
more nights out with my girlfriends.
more date nights. (just me and my hubby)
more play dates.

we (as in I) tend to care sometimes what others think or what they would say. does it really matter if i am ok with the action and the result? by no means does this mean i want to hurt people along the way. but sometimes life takes us on a path that we did not expect. making new friends, losing a good friend, changing jobs, moving houses, cities or states. life happens. we have to make the best of what is thrown at us! it is not always fun or does it always make us happy! but we are the ones that need to make US HAPPY! other people do not have to change-we have to change!

(saw someone say on FB today) As we grow up, we realize its less important to have lots of friends
but more important to have real friends!

i love changing things in the house. lots more to do. but it is a start!
love the new kitchen preslee got from nana and papa for christmas! got it all painted and put in the play room today. thanks to grandpa who stopped by to say hello!

i love the king of queens. it is one of the those shows i could watch it over and over and over all day long. this and law and order SVU! pretty women still gives me goose bumps at then end
now matter how many times i watch it! PJ had the flu. dillon had another ear infection. we have been at the clinic and ER more lately than we ever have! words with friends. what a crazy addiction! i am

getting published again! a mini album! i am oh so EXCITED!
now i just need to get it in the mail this week. (with a supply list! YIKES) was outside today barefoot. spray painted in the yard. jan 10th 2012. no snow.
and the sun is out and shining!!
i heard tomorrow will be a change! not ready for that.

watching PARENTHOOD. listening to dillon sing the ABC's in the monitor. and drive his monster trucks! i went up stairs to get some water and heard him running saying " sorry mommy" " sorry mommy" "i will get in my bed myself". i normally would pretend i did not see him but when i heard him saying that i followed him to his room. told him he did not need to be so sorry but he did need to go to bed. then he asked me to lay with him. so i did. and here we are again 20 minutes later! he is growing up way to fast! i need all of those moments i can get!
he is always saying. what is that name? what does that do? and as adults we think we know the answers until we start getting asked the questions. they are getting harder and harder each day. today he asked me why there were lights out in the field. i told him they were the airport lights. he then of course asked why? so i went in to a long story about the lights... why they need them..how the airplanes use them and how long the runway is. he then responded with "they need lights to go on when it is dark mommy so they can see" i said 'yes" and he said "ok". so long story short i could have said the lights are on bc it is dark and he would have been satisfied!

what we have been up to?
Riley was here to stay for a couple of days while grandma and grandpa were in TEXAS at the NDSU national championship football game! this is the only time you will ever hear me say GO BISON! they won and they had a great time! we did too with Riley!
open gym @ the ECFE!
snowman making. i know i know not even as tall as preslee--but that is all we could get!
playing with friends!
art projects!
lots of good napping!
preslee getting some FACEBOOK and PINTEREST time in!
dress up!
time @ the pet store! it is oh so hard not to leave with a puppy!
happy new YEAR! dillon got to ring in the new year with us this year!

xoxoxo
hugs
mb

home sweet home

2011-12-28T20:10:00.000-08:00

tis the season'
we had a wonderful Christmas with our families!
we are so blessed!
and overwhelmed with new toys!!!!!
we had a fun family christmas on xmas eve morning. we opened presents. and then played played played! dillon was so into it this year. all he wanted and could talk about for the last couple of months was getting steel bins and a big bulldozer. santa came through at the last minute with a big bulldozer! thank goodness for last minute shopping on his part! preslee loved everything. the paper, the boxes and the presents too. dillon now had a fully working farm. between that and the new train set he is busy all day long. he takes breaks to play basketball, monster trucks and do some cooking... but then back to the basics. trains and tractors.
preslee wants to do anything d is doing. that is not the easiest thing for dillon to understand. not to into sharing yet. pres loves to grab things and run. (she even giggles as she runs away) and now that she can run i am a bit worried about her getting tackled.
drew is constantly saying we need to discuss where everything is going to go........
thanks to both of our families for the wonderful food and company!
it sure is not the same without the snow, snow forts, sledding and the snow ball fights!
we made the best of it. seems wrong though.

now i am baking buns. a little late for my liking... almost done and then i have to let them cool too.... yikes i am going to be up way later than i want to be!

one of my scrapbook pages that was published in a magazine was pinned on PINTEREST. that made my day! (pinned by someone i do not know)

it is 10:25 and dillon is still up. he did have a 3.5 hour nap... so i knew this would happen. put him in bed @ 9:20. he got up to say goodnight to his trains, because he is a big boy, to tell me he loves me to the moon and back, because there are monsters in his bed....... he better be staying put for good now.

all of the laundry in the whole house in done... folded... put away or in the dryer! wow does that feel good. sheets washed. toys put away. closets cleaned. lots of it going to the garbage! YIPEE so excited to start decluttering the closets. some of the stuff has been stashed there since we moved here 5 years ago. if we have not looked for it, wanted to use it or wear it. we do NOT NEED IT!
simplify simplify simplify!

drew took a couple of days off to stay home with us. we did some fishing. sledding in the yard.
and lots of play time @ home. so fun to have us all home together with no big plans at all!
drew is off to the lake of the woods tomorrow night with some friends to do some fishing!
hope they are lucky! or skilled.

love the snapshots of daily life.
xoxoxoxox

realxing

2011-12-14T18:50:00.000-08:00

kids in bed.
drew at curling.
me catching up on all of my smutty tv. real housewives of BH.
we spent a couple of days snuggling our newest family member MAX this week.
he is such a great baby. the chaos of all of us around him did not bother him a bit!!!
i love the time we can all spend together. the kids love playing and being together.
tonight we went to see SANTA and his band on the CANADIAN PACIFIC railway!
so crazy it was raining on Dec 14th! we had fun!
no snow in sight. yes that is craziness for MN this time of year. i am asking santa for snow for CHRISTMAS over and over.
it just would not be the same with no snow and crazy fun sledding at the farm!
preslee is really on the move now. her ears are all better and she is a WALKER!
love watching her walk all over!

(dillon with one of his girl friends who took him on a dinner and movie date and brought him a coon skin cap to wear! love it)

good night
xoxoxoxoxoxooxox

playing catch up

2011-12-07T19:43:00.000-08:00

these make me smile!
love the days.. or moments when everyone is happy, smiley, laughing, healthy and playing together!
these make me realize the days that we are having right now being sick and crabby. and getting so sleep. it is all worth it for the days like these.

********love love love**********

recap.
1. thanksgiving. mirror family picture! best and only one we got all day!
2. the kids hating on santa. dillon did decide to tell him he wants a bulldozer and steel bins but it was not easy!
3. as you can see preslee enjoyed santa and mrs claus too!
4. we have a walker!
5. just makes me smile looking at that cute face!

preslee was also SUPER EXCITED for all of the black friday deals in the paper!
she could hardly contain her excitement!
someday we will be going out @ midnight -5am together!!!!

in even more exciting news!!!!

we have a new nephew! Max Richard Birdwell was born this afternoon @ 12:31.
He is perfect in every way and a big boy. 8lbs 15oz. i am oh so excited to get my hands on him! sadly i have to wait until monday. 5 days......i can do it right!??!?! i am itching to get on the road right now. but with two sick kids and no where for them to go... i better stay put and go next week! can not wait to see my sister again and her beautiful family of 5+1=6!

other news.
miss pj is walking. well i should say she can walk. but does she?!?!
not very often. she still thinks crawling is still faster!
she changed from our sweet and sassy little girl to a fiery redhead overnight!
(but went to the doctor and we have two kids with double ear infections again)
so maybe it is the sickness again or maybe she is this feisty. only time will tell i guess.

************she may be a bit feisty. but she sure is cute!***********

1. the kids with their cousin jack. and soon we will have another cousin.
auntie jj is expecting in april!!!
2. last week we spent 6 days in mnpls @ the birdwells. so fun to be there with them. we celebrated chases 3rd birthday (pirates). shopped. played games. had a "sprinkle" for mandy. lots of scrabble. nana and papa were there too. the kids have so much fun together. dillon was for sure not ready to come home! we are excited to go back and play again next week!

***************************
so excited for Christmas and for once we are almost done shopping. and as in we i mean me. i do all of the shopping.... and wrapping. but i would not have it any other way. i love shopping. and even though it is getting way more expensive to buy for kids of the family.. and harder when they are older. it is still exciting and fun for me!

love how much dillons loves to farm. he could farm all day.
we can never have enough trucks, tractors, bails and animals.
we also have a little bit of monster truck love too bc of his cousins.
we even have ramps that papa built us.
today he "the farmer" was feeding his cows the hay he bailed! he plays so quietly and intently. he loves to read his books about farming and how all of the machines work!
preslee loves anything dillon loves with the addition of babies! it really is amazing how kids are wired. we walk through the aisles at the store and dillon is yelling "i want that truck" and preslee is repeating "baby baby baby" over and over again!

lets hope the kids are sleeping now for the night.
poor preslee just keeps coughing and coughing!!! poor girl.
now.
some time for some sewing now and the show REVENGE!
is it bad that i ate a whole bag of frosted animal crackers today?!?!?! it got me through.
but now i do not have any for tomorrow. hope the kids are feeling better!

***************************

I may not be anything to you but I am everything to my two amazing kids.

sunday night

2011-11-20T19:43:00.000-08:00

i love sunday nights!
wish it did not follow up with Monday but i still love the relaxing nights!
it was a rough week here @ our house.

drew gone mon-wed. both kids super sick and whiny all week.
they had every right to be.
friday we went to the doctor.
dillon=pneumonia and pres more fluid in her ears!!!
it has been one after another for her in the last 2 months!
but they are back to normal!
happy, laughing, playing and being silly and
fighting like any good brother and sister would do!!!

watching the AMA's! great music and some crazy outifts!
loving the people that actually sing. pretty sure J Lo has not actually sang a word yet!
drew just got home from the SIOUX hockey game in Bemidji.
(we lost for the first time to them in 40 years) YIKES! so tired he said and goodnight!

do you ever wonder if you are doing it right!!??!
being the best mother you can be?
the best friend, wife, sister, daughter?
are you teaching your children what they need to know.
are they happy? could you be doing something differently? are you being a good friend?
i do somedays. and today was one of them. sometimes i think it just takes thinking about it that can change what i do in my everyday ways! i hope to be better at each role i play. not only mother, wife, sister, friend, daughter but also teacher, cook, playmate and every other role i play.

have this feeling that this is the week for miss preslee to walk!
only time will tell i guess!

backtracking a couple of weeks!
we had the cutest superman and raggedy ann you could ever find @ our house!!!
the kids had lots of fun trick or treating. we went to a friends in town and walked from there! dillon and his friends got lots of candy and pres and her little friend rode in the wagon!

it was a perfect night to be outside!

too tired to make any sense!
have a good night!
xoxoxoxo

today.

2011-11-14T07:08:00.000-08:00

this am. it was a fun breakfast for three! yes three. that means preslee was up in time to actually have breakfast with dillon and myslelf. wow! this time change thing has done one good thing...gotten preslee up bf 9:30am! and dillon up bf 7 everyday! (not the bonus)
drew is off to Milwaukee for a conference he was invited to by his home office!!! happy for him to go but super happy when he comes home! we miss him mucho
when he is gone for days and days!!!
excited to have some visitors tomorrow though!
kids are napping. i am so tired but of course not napping! (i wish i could lay down and just sleep but i just cant bc i think of all of the things i need to be doing instead)
catching up on shows and how going to go do some sewing!!!

we had family date night on saturday @ ZORBAZ of course. where else?!?!?
it was a fun night out with not a single meltdown!!!!! now that makes it PERFECT in my eyes!
and preslee has now found a love for salsa! (just like daddy and dillon) she did not care how much her eyes would water she kept eating!

pres and her GF addison!

this is one of these reasons i can not sleep.
this is on my TO DO LIST!
need to get working on cleaning and organizing the playroom. it is jam packed and needs to be cleaned and sorted! it is super hard to get rid of toys but i know it is needed and has to be done at some point-especially since christmas is coming and i know there are toys in our future!

ok off to work and get some things of my LIST!!!

what were you doing?

2011-11-14T05:47:00.000-08:00

@ 11:11 am/pm on 11.11.11
we were doing this.
playing in the playroom.
building, crashing, racing, reading, playing, fighting, laughing and having so much fun.

***************************************

i love how this picture paints a picture of a perfect afternoon at the book store with two perfectly behaving children!. and it was until we were leaving buying ONLY books and not any toys! yikes. if i would not of gotten out of there as quick as we did. every book on the shelf would have been on the floor!
(you can see him holding his new found toy in the picture)

i hope that your imagination never goes away.
the other day dillon preslee and i played on my bed under the blanket. (maybe their favorite game)
dillon one minute was
a dinosaur.
next a crocodile eating us.
then there was a fire outside so we had to stay under the covers so we would not get burned.
then we were on a airplane flying to chases house.
and on and on.....
it was so fun to listen to his stories and how many things he knows and want to talk about!

miss preslee is getting too big. oh how i wish she could just stay this size forever. still no walking. she runs behind her push carts and anything else she can push. but steps on her own have only happened twice! i am wishing somedays that she would walk and somedays that i can carry her forever! she had her 15month appt. 21 lbs and 31inches. (they think the measurement is off but did not do it over...not sure why?) 25% percentile for both.
she is so fiesty and funny! she loves to steals dillons toys and try to get away! he can barely handle it now that she is willing to try! it is going to be an interesting transistion when she starts rtunning!! she will have better get away skills!

we have been spending some time outside. whenever we can! soaking up all of the sunlight that we can! it is sad when the kids are getting up from naps that the sun is on its way down.
spent some time @ the farm this last week. drew, his dad greg and us three went down for the big deer hunt. this year the deer population is so down and we figured seeing a deer would be a win.... but the hunt lasted about 30 minutes with two deer down! so it was not a long trip but we got to see my parents and both of my grannies!!! so that was a plus!
yesterday we spent the day in Warren, MN with our newest godchild Chase. We went up early in the morning to church and then for a celebration at his house! so happy to be asked to be his godparents!!!!
he was such a good baby all day even with all of the commotion going on.

life is too short to spend it with people who suck the happiness out of you! unknown

11.4.11

2011-11-04T20:52:00.000-07:00

this time of year for this family means hunting...hunting and a little more hunting!

drew could barely contain himself as he was getting ready to go with his buddies to their deer camp. lets just hope the rain stays away. snow i am told would be ok but now rain! even if it rained all weekend i am not sure they would all come home!
he deserves it! and so happy that he loves it so much.
next week we go to ND to hunt on my parents land.

funny conversations from today
((oh how i could wish i could remember all of the funny things that are said during our constant daily talks))
ME- "we need to stop eating cookies b.c we were going to eat supper @ jj's house"
DILLON "are we out of dinner @ our house"
DILLON "why are we driving daddy's car?
ME "daddy drove our car hunting"
DILLON "to get deer"
ME "yes he is going to catch deer"
DILLON "does he catch them in a net"
ME ....... um um um... and then changed the subject bc i did not want to give him the details
of what actually happens.
but when we got to jj's she enlisghtened him on how it happens
"you shoot and scare the deer so they stop and then they catch them"
he was satisfied with that.

kids in bed. me catching up on some of my TIVO.
blogging and maybe just maybe some online shopping.

so many things on my WANT list. wish i could move them all to my NEED list.
but not sure drew would believe all of the UPS deliveries were NEEDED!

put this vintage letter P on preslee's wall when she born. ((we took them off a building that was being tore down here in town. ((me 7 months pregnant, windiest day of the year, my dad up on a ladder. my mom and i reminding him not to break the letters! The things parents do for their kids!))
anywho
left it brown and finally painted it.
oh how i love how it looks!

our daily lives.
playing outside, messing up the house. me on the roof. drew is too scared of heights-so i get up and get the gutters cleaned. jumping on the beds. cuddles. playing with friends. laundry. books. the "backyard". swimming. nap time!. and of course more messes for mommy to clean up!

had girls weekend last thur-sunday! we had so much fun! could not ask for more.
this weekend. tonight kids had some time with auntie jj while i got to go with a girlfriend to PATINA WHITE's open house! oh so much to look @.
then home kids in bed.
tomorrow craft show. playtime with friends. and maybe some pool time too!
then daddy will be home sunday!!!
xoxoxoxo
need to get halloween pictures posted. maybe tomorrow at naptime! too tired!
good night all.

made my day.

2011-10-25T12:22:00.000-07:00

(via pinterest)

seeing dillon asleep in his bed like such a big boy!!!
the funny texts and emails i got after i posted BIG NEWS on my blog. no no and no there is not another baby barker on the way.!!! ooops...nope just miss preslee taking some steps!
a text from my husband telling me the meatballs i made last night were AWESOME. thank goodness i have been working on getting them right for years! i am on the right track.
the coffee from the gas station this morning. since we were all out of coffee.
my new glue gun. it really is amazing!
getting to talk to my one my besties 3 times today already!!!
the excitement i get when i think of new projects for pLum!!!
the sweet messages from a friend that made my day!
that crewcuts started a baby line. see HERE.

xoxoxoxox

changes... and big news!

2011-10-24T17:13:00.000-07:00

Being happy is in our on control.
we decide who we will be each morning. how we will act and how we will treat others! so do not blame others on your actions. YOU are the only one that make those decisions.
and it is so TRUE. when we are happy we are the prettiest. inside and out.

The best people u can have in your life are the ones that love your flaws and allow u to be yourself.

True friends stay around through the hard times; never leaving your side or walking away.

Style is a voice, not a prop or an action. If you can buy it, borrow it, download it, or steal it, it is not a style. Don't look outward for your style; look inward.

Be BOLD!- Accept critique, but don't apply it blindly. Just because someone said it does not make it so. Critiques are opinions, nothing more. Consider the advice, consider the perspective of the advice giver, consider your style and what you want to convey in your work. Implement only what makes sense to implement. That doesn't make you ungrateful, it makes you independent.

- Never apologize for your own sense of beauty. Nobody can tell you what you should love. Do what you do brazenly and unapologetically. You cannot build your sense of aesthetics on a concensus.

((images via pinterest))

this wall hanging needs to be on my wall!!!
it speaks the truth. and what we should all live by.
sometime as parents. we need to put down the everyday things, the computer, the vacuum, phone, rag, dishes or anything that CAN WAIT. to just be. to listen, read and to play!
one of my favorite things is when dillon says "mom will you play tractors with me?". there is nothing that makes him happier right now!

changes. it is what we are going through.
big news is what i have to share!

dillon has moved into a big boy bed. so far not so good!!! lets be honest. at time i am wishing the crib was still set up b.c i might cave and put him in it! he misses it and wants it back. but tonight he was so tired from two days without a nap that he crashed!!! thank goodness. i left the house to go see a friend and when i got home it was a nice surprise to hear that he went down w.o a problem!!!
YEAH Dillon!!!
now i just need to finish decorating his room. what to do.. what to do...
i have some ideas... but where to start?

and little PJ took two steps yesterday!!! so funny how things can change. there has not been much trying since. but it was so fun! I screamed and i think i scared her and she did not want to do it much after that!!! it will not be long now until we see her running across the room! I am oh so EXCITED!

we got our family pictures taken at the end of sept in Minneapolis by MANDY BIRDWELL photography of course! b.c she is the BEST and my sweet sister! i could not have been happier! the pictures are OH SO AMAZING!!! here is a small sneak of them. we are a bit spoiled by her and get so many and i wish i could share them all with you! it takes a special person to be a photographer. not just anyone with a good camera can take amazing pictures!!! it is one hard job and she has the gift! if you were at this shoot with us. or both of the shoots i should say. (actually 3-pres got one all to herself day 3) you would have thought how will she ever get a good picture?!?!? well i was proven wrong again by her! she is amazing! thank you thank you thank you!!!!

we had such a fun weekend. friday afternoon we headed to Warren MN to see some good friends! kids played, ate a yummie super, played cards and WOULD YOU RATHER. and Saturday we headed to GF for UND homecoming. we visited our old stomping grounds. SIG EP, DG. parade and tailgating. has so much fun but the kids were anything but ready to watch a football game so we headed home with two snoring kids in the backseat!

i have had some time lately for some projects.
did some chevron pumpkins that i saw on pinterest! oh how i love them!
this summer made a fun memory game with a friend. we did pictures on one side and if i would have been thinking i would have done the memory game on the back with the paper too. but i thought of that a little late! such a fun game to have in a jar on the shelf out on display.
can not wait to add to it soon.
made my first mosaic project. a friend asked if i wanted to join her and some friends to go to "the glass lady" for a mosiac project. i said yes b.c i love time with friends but i was thinking what am i going to do with this when we are done? but when we got to the class. i was so excited. i love the project and we can not wait to go back for another class soon!

the firestation fieldtrip! the kids loved it.

visiting gramma leona.

look at this picture!!! can you seriously tell me you think they do not look alike?!?!?!
i know i know... black hair, red hair... but look at those features!

the kids and i got to spend some time @ my parents farm!
dillon loves to be at the farm so much! he loved helping in the garden, riding in the bobcat, 4-wheeler and going to gramma GG's for cookies!!!

thursday we head away for a girls weekend.
i am so EXCITED and admit i am counting the hours for some real SLEEP, girl talk and some wine... and oh yeah some scrapbooking!!!
xoxoxoox

please

2011-10-17T11:26:00.000-07:00

give me patience and a smile to get my through!!! (or a bottle of wine)

we all have days like this! (this as in my day today. yikes)

skipping, laughing, tickling, dancing or
playing peek a boo a million times is sometimes all that will get us through!

((bloopers from our recent photo shoot with miss mandy birdwell photography))

i sure hope it is just new teeth for my little pj. she does only have 4 and is almot 15 months old! so we are due for some rough days and maybe a growth spurt for D.
lets just hope it passes soon!

or just remembering that tomorrow will be like this!
full of laughter and fun!

welcome fall.

2011-10-05T20:22:00.000-07:00

if you can call 85 and sunny fall weather.

can you say overload. i have been MIA for almost 2 months. i am back and plan to get back in it!!

it feels like summer has not left us yet! this has been the best fall that i can remember.

we have had a crazy last couple of months! park, gymnastics, library, MOPS, walks, girls weekends, mnpls trips, vikings game, tamarac, pool, backyard, walks and so much more!

dillon and drew are on their way home from the farm. they went for the afternoon to ride with grandpa in the combine!!! dillon was so EXCITED! never lived on a farm.. but a farm boiy at heart!!! pres and i got some girl time.
a long walk and a yummie supper @ Zorbaz with friends!!! and then a stop @ grammas too!
and now it is mommy's time!!!
i am not sewing, cleaning or doing anything..... wow and this feels so good!

We got a little sneak peak of our family photo shoot from sept! and yes drew was at the shoor just not in these couple of shots! so so so EXCITED to see the rest of them! thanks
mandy birdwell photoography!!! i love you!

i wish i could find all of the notes that i write down during the week. i love writing down the funny things that dillon and preslee do or say. but the problem with this is that i lose them. oh they will be found again but i do not have them now!

miss preslee is so funny and has such an attitude. and such a perfect little dimple. my girl is still not walking but oh so fast crawling!! up and down the stairs, ladders or up on the table she goes. when she gets bigger she might be in charge!!! she does not let him push her around. if she does not fight back she just throws a fit!!! (drew says she has my temper.... i think not)

this proves she does not let him take control.
1. pres has a toy and is getting up to the table. (dillon eyeing the train)
2. dillon takes it.
3. pres not a fan of that and grabs it back and gets away fast!!!

Dillon is as funny as ever. loves to play band. love to play catch, football, tackle, caillou (his best friend) loves to push around his sister (she does not take it well) loves tractors, trains and anything with wheels! finally getting the hang of time outs! he should be he is in there a lot lately!!! boy he knows how to push buttons!!! but that is what i love about kids!!! they keep you on your toes!
"mommy i need to wash the dishes... because i need too." and he did. and i can not believe it but he did a good job. (but do not worry i washed them over just to be sure)

here is a little peak of what we have been up too.
two of our wonderful friends had baby's in august! clara and chase!
love you both.
and we are blesses to be the godparents to mr. chase! so excited to be a part of his life!!!!
lots of time @ the lakes.
playing in the sand. on the swingset!
wefest. a wonderful girls weekend!!! xoxoxox
the wiggles.
just playing @ home!
vikings game. even got to be on the field with ms ANNE! so fun.
all dillon could talk about how big the players were for days!!!
pontoon rides with friends.
cousins birthday party!

i have been back in my scrap room a lot lately. mostly cleaning .. but also got a fun mini album done all about pres and a couple of pages atleast started!!!
girls weekend scrapping is in a couple of weeks and i am oh so EXCITED! a girls weekend away, wine and crafts. there is nothing i need more!

its late and time for bed!
xoxoxox

end of summer

2011-08-19T18:18:00.000-07:00

this is for you dad! he always gets at me that i do not update very often anymore.
so this might be a long one. full of pictures just for you dad!

the summer is sadly coming to an end. it is bittersweet.
oh how i love summer...but fall oh how i have missed you.
i love love love jeans and long sleeves.
WEFEST was great this year. had so much fun being with
friends and seeing the awesome concerts! jennifer nettles i love you!
my parents came and stayed with the kids! thank you thank you thank you.
dad even built new shelves in our garage! so wonderful!
can not wait for fall shows to start again.
loving all of the new fall fashions.
got all of my iphone pics ordered and got them today in the mail. oh i could not be more excited to get scrapbooking with them! i am in LOVE with them. fuzzy and not perfect. just my style.
two of our wonderful friends had babies last week! so fun to meet them both in the hospital.
so excited to see CLARA and CHASE again soon!
when we were visiting chase in GF we got to stop @ our old stomping grounds the RED PEPPER.
like father like son. dillon loved it! still talks about it. (what doesn't he talk about)
a fun CORMORANT DAZE craft show tomorrow.
have been sewing like a crazy women this week to get ready. i am so good under pressure. it is amazing how much i can get done in one week with every second i have!
went to the zoo with some friends last week.
the kids had a fun time running around and feeding the animals!
TURTLE races with the VanDam's this week. the boys did not win but they did get us to buy them each a stuffed turtle from the lady dressed as a turtle!
BECKER COUNTY FAIR!!! dillon still talks about it. he can not wait for next year!
went to see THE WIGGLES with betsy and hayden. after the boys warmed up a bit and took it all in they had such a fun time dancing and singing along! next up BARNEY and DISNEY on ICE!
sunday we are heading to mnpls with jenn and mike to go watch the TWINS!
so excited to spend some time with them!!

things i am leat

had preslee's 1 year birthday party with our whole family and come friends too!
thanks to you all for coming to help us celebrate!
it was a perfect night. cake, presents, tubing, swimming, eating and most importantly friends and family!!! xoxoxoxoox

your welcome dad! xoxoxoxo

"Don't make someone a priority when they only make you an option"

HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY PJ

2011-07-28T10:46:00.000-07:00

PRESLEE JAE
is one year old today!

we love you so much SUGAR.
happy happy happy birthday my little PJ!
I can hardly believe it was one year ago today that she entered our lives.
It really is amazing how fast time goes.
She has sure turned into a spitfire lately with such a temper,
she makes us laugh all day, loves to snuggle, has the best little smile and dimple,
she loves her big brother, loves snacking, is loving the lake, LOVES to dance-so fun to
watch her wiggle around when the music comes on.
now that she is crawling she is everywhere all day. we started out our day with our traditional pan"cake" candle breakfast. it was going well until i lit the candle and then and pres wanted to grab the fire. so the tantrum started when i blew it out and she proceeded to throw each pancake @ dillon.
so it did not go exactly as planned but next year.....there is always next year and the year after. then off to t-ball and the park. daddy even came too to watch. home to eat lunch and nap time now. this afternoon it is beach time then Zorbaz for dinner and then off to the BECKER county fair!

xoxoxoxooxoxox

life has changed....

2011-07-17T20:32:00.000-07:00

PJ is crawling.
june 12th pres decided to finally crawl!!! (yes almost one year old)
for the week b.f she started to try and crawl a little but now you can not stop her!
so funny how life has changed now. i love watching her go and explore.
operation close the gate has started again @ the barkers!
she is so proud of herself now. she smiles ear to ear as she crawls around the house!

see something alike in these photos. yes dillon is how loving his sister and loving to tackler her as she crawls around. she is going to be so tough! she laughs (most of the time) and just gets up and gets going again!!!

we have been crazy here.
The DL jaycee's water carnival has been going on for the last 10 days! so much fun. i think we did something each day. kids concert, kids games, chilli cook off, booth @ womens night out, little texas concert, night golf, car show, water fights, BINGO (i even won a game) bed races and today the PARADE. we did not last through the parade today. dillon kept saying he wanted to go "night night" and pres was over heating so home we came for a nap for everyone!
nothing better than a family nap!
we saw so many friends over the past 10 days going to all of these events that i might go through withdrawals now that life is going back to normal tomorrow morning!!!

drew left tonight for Bismarck to meet w.some of this clients for the next couple of days! with the heat that has made its way to MN we might be spending time in the house or in the water.
so the kids and i had a night @ home relaxing.
bath time and a movie and popcorn for us!
planning pj's first birthday party! so excited to have her celebrate and have a summer birthday! it will be a family affair in the yard! need to get in gear! the party is in 3 weeks!
my garden is growing like crazy. my peas are taller than me. really....never have they been this tall. so many peas. and of course i have not gotten out there this weekend to pick. it will be crazy tomorrow!. my am job!
pLum has been crazy too! have a to do list. i hate to say this but i am getting a bit overwhelmed. i love love love it.....and love creating but sometimes i need a break. i never want to feel that way! maybe pLum needs a vacation!
and this is why... i am missing the things i love.................
need to get scrabooking. so sad as i sat down @ my desk to make some tags for my booth @ the sweet summer night last monday (if you know what my scrap room looks like this makes sense) i was searching for certain things and found some of my old work "worksheets"....... really i have not worked in over a 18months. that is also proving that i have not gotten much scrapping done either. i have gone to my girls weekends but that is it. so tonight i got an order together online of pictures so i can start ordering pictures. so i can once again get in gear!
i miss all of the fun i have in that room. i hate missing that. so back in i go!

and yes that is prelsee playing with seaweeds on the beach.
i am a believer kids should explore and get dirty! seaweeds or not. it is ok!
she was loving it! and yes she ate a little bit of sand too!

watching tv, getting orders done and now thinking it is bed time!
hugs

farm life

2011-06-28T19:10:00.000-07:00

oh how i miss farm life.
running free.
the open fields. the mud. the gravel roads.
the birds singing all day. the huge garden.
the puddles to jump in. digging for worms.
the quietness.
and of course my mom and dad.

the kids and i packed up and went to the farm this past thursday.
we never head to the farm in the summer b.c we always see my parents @ their cabin but they were not there this weekend. drew was leaving for a long golf trip in western ND and we get o see my gramma gi gi too! i am so glad we did. except for the sleeping... it was perfect!
dillon was so HAPPY!!!! he got to hunt for works. play in the garden. in the mud. have a water fight with papa.
he would have played in the rocks with papa's trucks and in the mud all day long! i love letting him just be a little boy. we get dirty here of course but no real MUD puddles on our cement driveway!!! i sure miss having all of that room to run too!
i would not go back to where i drew first lived (on a farm) for many reasons but for the open spaces... in a heart beat!
we went to the 125th anniversary celebration in a small town by where i grew up. so fun. jumping castles. a great parade which papa was the legionnaire carrying the flag @ the front.
fish races. and many more games.
we also attended a family reunion on Sunday.
and sunday we got to spend some time with betsy and hayden while we waited for the boys to get home from their golfing trip.
the BOYS had so much fun on their trip.
they saw 3 beautiful golf courses and lost lots of golf balls!

so we are back home.
rain most of the day yesterday. summer has not even started yet.

preslee got another tooth. so now she has both bottom teeth! so last night was a long one around here. not even sure if that is what is bothering her. but not sleeping well poor thing!

EIEIO and on his farm he had a "four wheeler"
.."tractor" and
then finally he decided "PIG"
i was not expecting to hear 4 wheeler when we were singing but... it works i guess.
and it was what his papa and grandpa have so he is right!!!

my baby girl turned 11 months old today!
really.... where has time gone?
she still is my little non mobile girl. so funny to see how content she is really just to hang out.
what more can i ask for though?!?!?! nothing.
she can scoot a little but chooses not to most of the time!
smiling. talking. laughing. playing. snuggling. is what she loves.
i love you baby girl!
i really know have to plan a 1st birthday party. i am a little sad about that. but excited to watch her grow! xoxoxoxoox

just got the three little babes to bed. my sisters youngest chase is staying with us. we met in the middle from mnpls and here today and did a switch. dillon and chase have been playing like crazy tonight!!!! can not wait for them to start again in the am!
excited to have some time with him. and soon we will have another NEPHEW!!! we are so excited for them. a family of 6! xoxoxoxox

i better get cleaning up so we can make a mess again tomorrow!
hugs
mb

where is...

2011-06-15T20:10:00.001-07:00

summer?
it is june 15th and it feels like april.

@ home relaxing. kids in bed after a bit of a fight to get them both in bed
it has been a couple of rough days. to say the least
up late. (everyone)
not napping well.
no sunshine. rain rain go away.
my back is out again. (so my patience is low...very low)
drew has been gone alot. (we (or i) need some time with all of us home)

but we got to spend some time @ the cabin.
the water is so high that the beach is missing.
and about 10 more feet of the front yard is gone too.
as you can see by the pictures we have been doing a lot of fishing. he could be on the dock all day and cast and reel in. we for sure have a little lake baby on our hands! can not wait to see if we can get him out on the tube this summer. maybe skiing next year!?!?!?
the water is still a bit cold but the little boys do not care much. miss j even did some skiing!

had a good friend b and her son hayden here overnight.
love having them here!
h and d play so well together. it is so fun to see them talk, play and laugh! and be so good together. drew took them to Z last night (the girls had a spa party here) and he was a bit nervous as he left. but they were there for over 2 hours and came home happy and drew said he had fun and they both were so good! so glad!!!!! i would never get that 3rd barker baby if it would have been a train wreck. pres got to stay here to be a part of the girls night!

had a fun pool play date last week.
been playing in the swing-set! d loves it out there!
made cupcakes the other day and then dillon could not stop signing happy birthday all day! he could not get over the fact that it was not his birthday! but it was our neighbors 60th so he got a little singing gram and cupcakes!!! (dillon sang on the walk over but then froze when L answered the door)
it was the thought that counted.
made my first bath of cake jars! so fun and cute. did not get to finish them the way i wanted but they were fun to make. will for sure make again.
have been a pinterest addict!
been working on orders. sometime i want to take a hiatus. but them i remember how if i am not making orders i am making stuff that i do not need. i am so my father!!!
doing a show in DL in july. i now need to get my buttin gear!

my little PJ is almost 1 year old!?!?!? how can that be?
the time had gone by oh so quickly!
she got her first tooth on friday (june 10th/bottom right)
thanks jayden for finding out.
she is such a content baby. loves to sleep. *yesterday she slept till 10am*
still is not crawling. can get around a little on her tummy. but will not use her knees or walk @ all. will not move her feet. so funny!
she makes me laugh. she loves puppies. goes a bit crazy when they are around.
loves asia. and asia loves her. she lays on pres now b.c she knows that she will rub her and pull out her fur!!! they seem to be making great friends!
i can not get enough of those blue eyes.
the dimples.
and the big big big smile.
the new head nod.

off to bed i go.
xoxoxo

cant not get enough

2011-06-01T18:25:00.000-07:00

of this smiley girl.
some days are not always fun around here
there are tantrums, crying, hitting, eating rocks and not listening....
but when you see your children smile or laugh. those things are so EASY to forget.
we all get wrapped up in the small stuff. we all need a reminder of what is important.
this is what it is. right here!

when we found out we were having another baby when d was just about 9 months old we thought "what.. you have got to be kidding me....how will we ever do this....."
and now
we can not imagine anything else.
these two are becoming the best of friends.
they are so fun to watch together (most of the time)

it melts my heart to know that they will have each others backs.
get to play HORSE in the driveway. learn to water ski together. build forts.
go to camps. make each other laugh. push each others buttons.
but always be buddies! oh how i hope that this dream comes true!

had a wonderful weekend.
had a fun party bus with some many friends.
did some realxing. playing in the sand. got the garden all planted.
and just hung out as a family.

have a great week everyone!
xoxoxoxox

am i dreaming.....

2011-05-25T19:55:00.001-07:00

it is 8:21
and i have showered.
got dressed.
drinking coffee. 2nd cup already
watching the today show! oh how i have missed you TODAY!
on pinterest (if you do not know what this is leave me a comment with your email and i will send you an invite!!! you will be hooked!!!) and blogger!!!
this is complete craziness. who made my children sleep in?

i heard pres @ 6:00 this morning kicking and laughing but did not get up and later when i got up i saw her door was open. so obviously asia went in for a little playdate this morning.
but pj went back to sleep. thank goodness or asia would have been in trouble!

drew is gone in SEATTLE for work! we miss him when he is gone. but i think we send him enough videos and pictures that he may feel like he is home!
proud of him that he was invited to this meeting!!! he makes us proud!

sunday night b.f he left he told d that he was going in an airplane and dillon said
"up in the air?' and drew said yes and then "like a bird?" (as he was flapping his wings!!!) so cute. i just love how one day they decide to talk talk talk about everything... there is not stopping what they say and what they know. makes me laugh, smile, shake my head and sometimes makes me cry and sometimes makes me nervous what he will repeat!
this week could not have been better so far. monday we did some play time @ home. rainy and yuckie...
tuesday gramma b took both kids for the day!??!! YIPEEE . thank you thank you thank you! so you ask what did i do?!?!?! hhmmmm... not really sure.
i ran errands for hours. my list was not long but i was still gone for hours!
make some pLum headbands for fun. and relaxed!!!! it was great!

this past weekend we headed to gardner sat. sat night we were in harwood @ drews cousins med school grad party! congrats shannon we are so very proud of you!!! sunday we hung out @ the farm. dillon was in heaven. tractors.
and a big surprise. a new GATOR from g&g. he was so excited. cautious is his middle name so he is taking it slow. but loving that he can load and dump. so fun.
sunday it was another HS graduation. congrats LAUREN. to bad you are going to NDSU and not UND!! :) j.k
pres got a pedicure. worked perfectly when gramma can hold her and i can paint.
dill found a new love. the drums. grandpa had his in their basement @ the farm. dillon loved them. but no that does not mean we ever want them here!!! :) well maybe if he is better!
i got him a new guitar this week. and it had came everywhere with us. he loves it!
american idol 2028 watch out!!!!!!

and my dream had ended.... i hear a little boy yelling i wake up!!!!!
...................

well i am back and everyone is in bed.
my day started out so dreamy.... it was not like that for long.
we got up and all was looking good.
then the first tantrum b.c d wanted juice not milk. i would not give in.
then a throw myself on the floor tantrum when i would not let him have waffles.
i was making pancakes today and that was that.
YIKES!
i thought all would get better when we went to the park.
but he got mad when his best little buddy B wanted to play with his bubbles
so instead of sharing he dumped them all out. then was mad that they were gone.
then proceeded to throw then @ b's head!!! sorry B. he loves you i swear!
then they made up and decided to sit in the car and watch the
JOHN DEERE TRACTOR movie the rest of the time @ the park.
that made for a relaxing time for Heidi and i. so i am not complaining.

i got over being mad @ a little stinker in my house after....

1. he said "YEAH MEATBALLS" and started clapping when i told him i made meatballs!
he for sure has never clapped when i have cooked b.f. (trust me no one has)
there was no clapping after he was done eating.... he did eat 5 of them. if you asked he was say 4.7. which is a lie. that is what he says to everything!!!
(they still do not hold a candle to my mom's but i am trying)

2. when he asked me to dance while we were watching american idol.

3. when i asked him who was his favorite mommy and he said "mommy".
i know i know a loaded question but i just wanted to see what he would say.

4. and after reading this. click here to read the 7 signs your baby loves you. read this if you ever have doubts!!!!
especially loved 3,4 and 6 below.

3 Your toddler throws wicked tantrums.
Nope, those screaming fits don't mean he's stopped loving you. He wouldn't be so hurt and angry if he didn't trust you so deeply.

4 Your toddler runs to you for comfort when she falls down or feels sad.Kids this age may not truly understand the meaning of "I love you," but their actions speak louder than words

6 Your preschooler wants your approval.
She'll start to be more cooperative around the house, and she'll look for chances to impress. "Look at me!" will become a catchphrase.

last week i got to go to TIM McGRAW in GF with a couple of friends!!! we had so much fun!
so funny when i was in college i was even a bigger fan than i am now.... but so much of a fan that i had pictures on the ceiling of my car and on the dash. yep. drew still talks about that. and above my bed on the ceiling next to AJ from the backstreet boys!!! yikes. seriously how dorky is that?!?!?! this is one of the only pictures i took on my phone that actually was not blurry. my eyes are not open but there we are!!! thanks girls i had so much fun!

we have been playing on the beach alot.
lots of time @ the park with friends.
last friday a friend and i took my two and her little girl garage saleing (no idea how to spell that but you know what i mean). we did not find anything WONDERFUL but we had a fun time!

Real housewives of NJ is one crazy season so far and i have only season the first episode. can not wait to watch the last one tonight. it is kind of sad to watch. i can relate to the drama!!! drama for no reason what so ever!!!!!!! so it will be a good season to watch the train wreck.

miss pj is still not interested in crawling. but you can barely hold her now w.o her trying to go go go.
not sure if crawling is in her future or not but if it is..lets hope it is soon.

excited for drew to get home. he just got on his last flight to fargo!!!

working on a lantern cluster for the play room!!! i love love love pj's and now i think i need one downstairs too! if you know me this is what i do .... i get an idea and can not stop!!!

EXCITED that this weekend we have party bus with friends! 35 of us right now getting on a bus sunday night!!! so excited to spend time with friends and have a fun night out!

sad i missed the last OPRAH. thought @ one point that now that i am home... i would watch everyday. i have not watched in weeks... months.... i can not remember. oh besides a little of the giveaway day.

had not watched american idol all season. but just watched the finale and it was great. the winner is such a little cutie. my kind of country. who knew that voice would come out of that little body!

off to lay on the couch and watch a little tv to relax!!!
good night!
xoxoxo

EEEEEEKKKKKK

2011-05-14T19:31:00.000-07:00

that is my shrieking the other day as i looked and looked again through the
MEMORY MAKERS big book of SCRAPBOOK PAGES book!!!!
i had been stalking the UPS man for days online and once even on the phone trying to figure out when it would be @ my house... and they day it came i forgot. my MIL stopped over and found it in the door. my excitement had worn off a little. but it is back. love seeing my name in the index!! SO FUN!
dillon wants to look @ "mommy's book" . over and over again. he loves finding himself.
now my goal is to get preslee in a book!

kids in bed.

drew watching racing or something down stairs.
me=having donuts (yum) and watching SVU. and i saw this one a couple of weeks ago. but i can never get enough. trying to figure out my new phone. long story but goes something like this. wed. dillon deactivated my phone. no idea how. d&p and i go to verizon to get it fixed. as we were waiting. he looks @ me and says "mama phone in water". i look up and see a huge sign with a phone sitting in a glass of water. ((nice advertising!?!!) obvsiously wanting you to get insurance. well it should have sold me. i used to have it but recently stopped it.... move ahead two days. our friends were here picking up their daughter. drew handed dillon a glass of water. as we were talking i hear once again
"mama phone in water" in the cutest little voice ever.
yes he put it right in the glass. so now=me with a new phone. i really wanted the phone i had. of course i can not get it anymore. and the only touch screens that i can get i HAVE to have the internet. i DO NOT WANT IT!!! i do not want it in my purse. @ the library. @ lunch, on a date or out with my friends. but i had no choice. so here i am with a new phone. which is wonderful......i just called verizon and they do have 2 available that i can order. touch screen with no web!!!

excited to see that "the wiggles" tickets are not as expensive as i once thought.
when i first heard they were coming to GF i immediatly started looking for tickets. why did i now go to ticketmaster... not sure but when i looked I saw tickets for $95-175 each. really. for our little family of four it would have cost about $500. not including the 4 hour round trip in a gas guzzler.... but today i was searching (on my new phone) for itunes music. yes i will admit it i was looking for "the wiggles" cd's so we can be ready for the show. but there was a link to tickets. the highest price is only $75.
and they are all gone.....but row 8 is open!!!
HOT POTATO HOT POTATO, COLD SPAGHETTI COLD SPAGHETTI
(thank you bets and hayden for getting us addicted)

1. this is dillons i am not guilty face. as we were playing the other day i turn my head and when i turn back he has blue chalk lining his mouth! obviosuly he had a blue chalk in his mouth. i asked him if he put something in his mouth and this is the look he gives me as he says "NO...NOPE"

2. it was fishing opener in MN!!! drew went out this am with mike and jack. in the cold cold rain. they did catch a couple. and jenn and i went to a jewelry party!
so this afternoon dillon and drew did some fishing off the dock. dillon said he got lots of big fish. but drew said they really only had one on the hook. but lost it.

3. pj looks just like dillon did HERE. seeing her face i had to run and get the camera. it was such a flash back to exactly how dillon looked.
she is not too close to crawling and has no interest in walking. she will stand. and loves it but the whole having to move your legs is just not her thing. her thing is SLEEPING. yesterday she took a nap from 12-5! her schedule went like this. up @ 8. breakfast. 9 she needed a nap. up @ 10:15. down @ 12. up @ 5. ate. back to bed @ 7:15. got up this am @ 7:45.
oh to have her life!!! i know i am her mom but my little pj is really the happiest baby girl ever.
i just wish she would stop growing. almost 10months. this is just cruel for me having to start thinking about her 1st birthday. YIKES!!!

this was preslee's first bath tonight w.o her tub ring. in the tub w.o dillon we do not need it.
but when dillon is in there she can barely stay upright in her ring. she laughs so hard @ dillon that it is safer in the ring for all of us .and she has not even been in the bath by herself since she upgraded to the big bath. wow to be a second child. the things you sacrifice.
i can not get enough of this smile. and her dimples! xoxoxo

i am off to bed.

how did i spend my mothers day.

2011-05-10T18:43:00.000-07:00

with sloppy wet kisses. and the best smiles. and squeezes.
what more can a mom ask for?
i think nothing.
happy mothers day to all mothers. especially to my mother and mother in law.
thanks mom for teaching me what it is to be a mom. what is important in life.
we spent the whole day together. and when i say whole i really mean it. dillon woke up @ 2am. he went to bed early after a long day out in the yard. but we did not expect him to be full of energy @ 2am. yikes! just more time to celebrate mom right?!?!
or test my patience maybe.... and he sure did.
he has told me "happy new year" many times this week so far. so he is still celebrating. yes maybe the wrong holiday but celebrating atleast!

both kids in bed. drew in GF. me. i should be cleaning or doing something productive but i am sitting on pinterest. and can not stop. oh how i love this site. whoever invented it is a genius!
searching for mudroom ideas. dreaming of a new kitchen. and many other things. i have so many ideas for changes in our house but the room i am so dreaming of is a new mudroom. or in our case a mudroom @ all. we have such a small entry and with all of the stuff that goes in and out of the house i am in need of a perfect mudroom.

dillon wants to wear him water boots everywhere. with water he is wearing. we wear them to church, the gym (which he asks to go to now all day long) to the park and today i actually talked him in to wearing his crocs! bis step in our house!

i got my garden ready for planting and last night drew and i put up my pea fence and planted my snap peas. can not wait to get the rest of it in the ground.
loving the time we are spending outside. dillon must have 5 outfits on a day. from being completely full of mud from the garden..or soaking wet from the water... and not being warm enough to be in just a diaper all day...we change and change again.
preslee is getting so big. i can hardly believe it. and the strawberry blonde hair!?!? i can hardly believe that either. i guess i always expected to have blonde kids. that is b.c my sister have three blonde blonde blonde kids and it is what i had in my mind. when d was born i almost fainted. i should have know it was a possibilty. come on now--drew has black hair too! so when pres was born i was again expecting dark black hair. and she was bald. really?!?! bald. i could hardly believe it. and now it is coming in a little strawberry. some of it white else. but i guess it proves you really have no idea.
she really is a easy going baby. last week we got to spend some time just her and i.
oh how i loved that.
i feel like we never get that alone time.
i also forgot how easy it is to have one child around. wow. putting one baby to bed... wow. i do not even remember what it was like to have one child running around here.

dillon loves worms.
and miss p loves "so big".

dillon goes "working" now. to "making money"
tonight on the deck he would get in his car and say "going working" get out and take his keys. and go to the other side of the deck and come back and pretend to hand me money. i asked him how much he made and he would say "four" every time. back to the car. drive. and again and again he would go working to make money. oh i love that his imagination is starting to go.... i love this kind of play time!
spent some time with one of my dear friends and her son (and soon to be baby too) in fargo. the boys had fun running around the mall yelling "happy feet". love when they actually play and laugh together!

watching "the voice" . tim mahoney was sent home. i love him. MN boy!!!!
news is on. my cue to go.
hugs

wow.

2011-05-04T18:10:00.000-07:00

why cant we be nieghbors?!?!?!? they could play every night.
(wishing my sister and her family lived down the street-i love the days we can spend together)

we have. we were. we did.

auntie jj and uncle mike had their wedding reception in town

have been sick. pres and myself. pres never gets down. me yes.
today is the first day i feel normal. kind of i should say!
dillon is on a sleep over with grandma b. (oh thank you thank you thank you)
girls night out tonight with three of my favorite girls. (2 of them made a huge mess)
drew is off golfing.
dillon thinks he is the boss... which he so is NOT!!
terrible two's have started.... yikes. help!!!!
dock and boat lift are in the water. boat not here yet.
my mom and dad came to visit. so fun having them here.
loving my girl friends. i love you all!
thanks for being such great girls!
ok ok he might be the boss sometimes. seriously why do we give in?!?!?!
i am way better @ giving advice than i am following it.
( i know i ramble on and on. but this is mt diary...my baby book my everything. and as of late my scrapbook..... oh how i need to get back to that)
speaking of the book i am in should be out any day!!!!! i run to the mail box every day @ 12 to see if it is here yet.... i have been disappointed many days in a row so far. :(
we did a lot of dancing @ the reception. (i have proof---some that can not be shared)
i have so many pictures to upload. but i better let the bride see them first.
can not believe that osama is gone. our troops are amazing. thank you to all of the troops and their family's! you truly are HERO's!!!!
hate colored bubbles. they stain everything. do not get them... not as cool as they seem.
funny things dillon says.
we were out of milk. so he looked @ drew and said "daddy go buy more... store"
his gramma asked asked him where he got his new shows and he says "target"
good guess. but that comes to my next point. oh how i love zappos! they really are amazing. i ordered one day and the next they were on my door step! really!??!?! amazing!
but back to target. drew says he is after my heart. and that i talk about it.... really do i talk about it... i love love love target.
we have been back playing on the deck.
sitting in the water... getting wet. trying to come in the house. i change him. he goes back out. sits in the water again.. and we start over again........
dillon is obsessed still with toy story.
have had do many park dateS!!! love those days that we can be out and about with the girls and all of the kids!!! can not wait for more sunshine!
have nothing going on for weeks. oh how i love that.
have a fun project to work on tonight as i catch up on my shows!
pres is getting to big. 18.9lbs 27.5in long. (50% percentile for both)
this was what i wrote @ dillons 9 month
((he is 20lbs 4oz now! exactlty on the 50th percentile for height and weight now!))
wow almost 2 lbs difference.
love criminal minds.
loving housewives of........ ok all of them. my tivo is getting a bit full.
i need a week of vacation to catch up!
on my agenda. DONUTS. my dad made some b.f he came to visit and brought me a couple of bags. oh dad i love you! but since i have been sick. therefor donuts were major no no's. so now i am in need of some. so three are in my bowl covered in sugar....dethawing just a bit to eat. and yes i know de thawing that means freezing in all reality but that is just what i saw. it bugs drew..... so i keep saying it!
can not concentrate anymore on this...... criminal minds is intense! and my donuts are calling!
be back with more pics from the fun recepetion later after i show the bride!!!

i love all of you girls!!! xoxoxoxoox

dillon got super tired. from all of that dancing!!!!!
oh how i love this face.
i can not get enough of it.

royalty

2011-04-29T06:11:00.000-07:00

a peak @ the amazing photos my sister. mandy. took for us in march.
she is amazing and i am always so happy to see my photos. over 300 this time to look at. and i can not wait to get them on my wall!!!!! poor pres has rsv when we were there taking them but she did pretty well to say the least. thank you mandy you are amazing. as a photographer but more importantly a friend and sister. love you!
i love love love all 300 of them!

yes i am up watching the royal wedding.
and no i am not one of the crazy people who got up @ 4am (sorry to everyone who got up with an alarm to watch the wedding) but i love my sleep. but i am up now and got up just in time to see the countdown to the kiss is only 13 minutes away! wow. that made my day.
now news can go back to being real news!
do not get me wrong i do want to see kate and her dress and how she did her hair and did she or did she not wear a tiara...but i will not lose sleep over it. utube is where i will see it all. or the hundreds of reruns that will be all over tv. i have decided i might be a online shopping addict. as i was putting the kids clothes away the other day i thought to myself. yikes. once again i am out of hangers.....seriously i just bought three packs. yes the ups man comes often. maybe too often. but my excuse is i do not have anywhere to shop here in town (besides norby's which i love) so what else is a mom of two growing kids to do but online shop. i also love WINNING on ebay. you never feel like you actually have to pay for it... b.c you WON!

today we are celebrating jenn and mikes wedding! the reception is tonight here in town!
so excited to help them celebrate again!
the place will be packed with friends and family! i love these kinds of events.
my parents are coming too. excited to see everyone today.

yesterday we had the most perfect spring day in MN.
(there were people in shorts. may be a bit much)
the ice just came off the lake on tuesday the 26th of april and last year it was april 3rd.
park with so many friends in the morning for over 2 hours!
then we stopped to see gramma and grandpa.
home to nap and lunch. no nap for dillon so we played outside again for hours.
after pres had been sleeping for hours i woke her up.
dropped dillon off w. g&g and pres and i went to the urgent care.
ear infection and strep. all week she has been a bit off. but ok. she is such a happy baby that when she is sick she just is not SO HAPPY. but so good still. but after some chatting with friends about it i took her in and i am so glad i did! she will hopefully be better soon!
d got to have tractor rides. ride his bike and play in the dirt-he had so much fun! thanks g&g.

i have been super busy. which i love but.....
i have so many ideas in my head but have not got any of them made yet.
maybe this weekend i can sneak some time just for me and my room, fabric, scissors and my needle and thread!! maybe!?!?!? i sure hope so!

we are hoping to get the dock in and more sand moved in to our beach this weekend too.
lets hope the snow really does not come this way. seriously mother nature do not ruin what we just had a little taste of!

xoxoxxoxo
meg

holy craziness.....

2011-04-24T18:31:00.000-07:00

it has been a crazy crazy month here.
this is going to be picture overload and writing and ramblings later....

HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!

dropped off the babies w.nana and papa (my parents) they survived 10 days! love you both!
and we headed to Henderson NV for a beautiful wedding.
drews sister and her now husband mike had a wonderful wedding on lake las vegas.
my beautiful sister in law is now a mother and we have another nephew. he has always been...but now it is technical. he even called me auntie! :)
then we headed to vegas. (not sharing those pictures...yikes)

then drew and i were off to MEXICO. by ourselves.
so amazing.
met some amazing new friends!
loved our resort.
we had a swim up room. could not have been better than that!
gained about 4.5 lbs.
amazing weather too!

off to relax!
hope you had a wonderful easter! <3

2011-04-02T18:18:00.000-07:00

i lOVE our crazy, random mixed up life!!!

it is already starting....
the times where dillon knows he is hurting pres and does not really care and hopes he can get away with it. if i see him do it he yells SORREEEE" and if i dont and hear her just cry he looks @ me like i have no idea whats wrong... yikes we have a ton of fun to look forward too! :)
parenting would be pretty boring if our kids were perfect though right?!?! the challenges makes it fun! maybe not @ the time but in the end it is all worth it!
i have been writing on this post for days and days.
i am a bit behind.

we had the best time in sunny AZ.
laying in the sun, the great golf cart, organ stop pizza, san tan flats, parties, great food, hiking x 2, margaritas, more margaritas, fashion square and a sun tan (partial burn)
thanks mom and dad for the great time.
their house is amazing. i never knew how much fun hiking would be. the views are so amazing. i can not even explain. loved loved loved it.
we kept so busy the whole time we were there. and saw my aunt and uncle too!

dillon
HUH is his favorite word right now. i. have. got. to. stop. that.
after hearing all of the canadians we thought EH would be a good choice instead.
but when i tell him to say EH he looks @ me and says HUH?!?!
wafffles waffles waffles. as soon as he gets up he wants them. if i would give them to him every morning and noon and for dinner he would be the happiest kid. it is a fight in the morning when he does not get them. today was a waffle day. 2 waffles, 2 sausages, and a banana and a glass of milk. he has the biggest appetite in the am. it is crazy.

preslee
is getting to big 8 months yesterday. craziness.
still not baby food for this girl. right on to the big girl food.
yesterday she had some scrambled eggs, of course mum mums and puffs, graham crackers and fish that daddy caught!!!
she also refuses to be on her tummy. she does not like it @ all. so crawling might not be in our future?!?!? but who knows!!? you never know what to expect.
i always just thought that preslee would do the things dillon did.
that is not the case @ all.
one thing i am so thankful for is that i have to
EASY GOING, LOVEABLE, SQUEEZABLE, ADORABLE KIDS!!!!

*********back to the present!! time to catch up.********

30.i turned the big 3-0 when we were in mnpls a couple of weeks ago.
i kept telling drew i wanted to take the 3 kids out for a fun dinner he kept saying NO WAY... too much for him. but to my surprise he and my sister surprised me with a babysitter and a night out! so drew and i went out to dinner JUST US TWO. that never happens. so FUN!
yikes it is hard to write. i am not bothered by being 30 but saying it or writing it is a bit weird!!
but "better than the alternative" as my dad would say.
who knew?!?!?
that i am not the career women in a suit going up the elevator to my office full of windows.
who knew i would meet andrew and stay in ND/MN. not that i regret it.
i also did not think i would be writing notes and to do's in crayon all of the time.
that i would be a stay @ home mom.
that the shrine circus is not what i remember?!?!?
or that i would be living in DL. the place i love more than anything.
that i would still be watching a show 90210. i love all of those shows.
that i still would love law and order. dun. dun.
anyway i am not 30 and i can not wait to celebrate with my husband next week!!! <3

love the show PARENTHOOD. such a great show for everyone to watch. so real life. i so wish they lived in my town i would for sure want to be their friends!!!

we all have to remember our lives are not perfect. we deal with what comes @ us. and we make the best of it!!! they are so good @ that. oh BRAVERMANS please move to DL
and grey's... seriously. what was that all about. not sure what that was all about.

we have been outside as much as we can lately!
water boots are a MUST. so much fun. lately dillon insists on wearing them everywhere--which i am fine with but he wants me to wear mine too. everywhere.

the last picture is a dress that a family friend had made for pres b.f she was born. it is made out of her great aunts bridesmaid dress from drews parents wedding. did you follow that??!?!
she is finally ig enough to try it on. still a bit big but perfect for a picture or two?!?!?! (0r 143)
thanks BARB we love it!

today was perfect. i woke up and looked @ the clock. 8:44. you have got to be kidding me?!?! no one is awake. then a yummie breakfast that daddy made. the boys played outside. four wheeler rides and playing in the water and snow. oreos b.f lunch. which ended up being the lunch. ((mom of the year)) more playing outside. all of us to run some errands looking like the clampetts. no showers and super bad clothing choices... but we might have fit in!! :) pizza for supper and bedtime. we have not had a saturday @ home with nothing to do in weeks or months!! my kind of day!
tonight and we stayed in. we had a babysitter last night and went out with friends. we had so much fun! it is always fun if dancing and karaoke is involved! :)
so tonight i am sewing and relaxing.
off to work i go.

hugs

back home.

2011-03-23T20:24:00.000-07:00

working on his follow through!!! ((nothing but net))

we are back home. back to real life.
we spent a great week in mnpls. so fun spending some time with chase and then the rest of the family when they got home from skiiing!!! but being away for almost one week is hard!
the boys had so much fun ((but by the end they were sick of having a twin around))
they flew planes, we went to pep motion, adventure park, played outside, swing swing swing, sand box, shoveled, walks, dressed up, golfed, hockey, snacks, colored and kept so busy! preslee was just as happy as can be watching and hanging out doing whatever everyone else was doing.
by the end of the week she was super sick. RSV. on the mend now!! YIPPE
drew had a great time @ the final five hockey tournament!! the SIOUX came away with the championship too. always makes it better when you come away with the trophy!

this week flew by.
we did not even do much @ all.
snow yesterday--thought spring had sprung. boy was i wrong.
girls night out! love those rare nights out with the girls!! love you all.
getting ready to fly out @ 6am.
did i overpack??!?!? ummm.. yes. i had out the small suitcase to start... but that did not last long. but i would rather have everything just in case.. you just never know what the weather can bring... oh yeah it is not MN! oh well the zipper is already zipped up!!! no turning back now.
my sister and i are on our way to see your parents in AZ! so excited to get there! i can not remember the last time my sister and i got to hang out with my parents with no children. it will be a perfect vacation. sun, family, hiking, walks, chatting, wine, pool, sight seeing, golf cart rides.
oh leisure world i can not wait to meet you!!!

every morning if dillon is up first.
((and usually is b.c preslee is my little sleeper. love how she sleeps in and
wake up with those dimples smiling @ me!))
we hear her playing and we go in to get her.
dillon wants in to her crib.
hugs her.
and says
"morning sissy"
and then is ready to play.
"row row row your boat" is his favorite.
the problem is that he thinks that it has to involve pushing preslee over. ((it is a park of the song when the boat falls over you fall in too)) not needed for her but he thinks that is fun. i think i got him now to just fall in the water by himself and he can get back in the boat and she will just wait in the boat for him. atleast until she can do it on her own.
there has been a few too many time where she hits her head! and then the rowing is over!
this is one of those times i just sit back and smile. b.fc i know that not all day will they love eachother this much. there will be times where i wish it was 9am again and do this all over again!
it is late and i have to get up in 4 1/2 hours! yikes to bed i go.
xoxox
meg

today.

2011-03-11T20:43:00.000-08:00

((this post was started last week))

even though we might not be the healthiest house on the block (or hwy) dillon and pres are still laughing! the tickle monster was out tonight and the both love her/him. we got the tickle monster book and mitts for christmas--and they love them. and i do too. love that both kids can not sit up @ the counter. i took this week as i was making supper. love to hear them laugh. and for them to
just be together. (no it is not always easy))
but the hard times are all worth it when you see them just be like this!

pres is changing everyday. she is getting better @ sitting, still hates baby food and i have all but given up all together. (well i guess i kind of have given up) i have now found she will eat mum mums!

so that works for me as long as she is happy! i could not love my little chunky monkey more! yesterday the kids and i got in the car with drew for a trip to lisbon. he had some appts with clients and my hs bestie betsy lives there. so it was so great to be able to ride along and hang out with bets and hayden for the day! pres was a bit out of sorts (teeth???) and dillon did not nap! but we made it through. thanks betsy for letting us come crash @ your house for the day! h & d had a fun day together. dancing to the wiggles, games, snacking and just being buddies! and hayden is expecting a baby brother.sister soon! we are so excited for them! so pres will have a friend soon too!!!

had a great MOPS today. first b.c dillon went to the daycare w.no problems. ((hallelujah)) drew is off @ curling. they tailgated tonight... the last i saw when the sun was out was 8 above. yikes. glad i am home in my nice warm house under my blanket.

today. march 11th 2011 it is friday night. i am glued to the tv. first time today i have had on the news and am watching all the coverage on the earthquake. i am shocked and amazed on how much damage can be done in such little time. so sad to watch all of the coverage. my prayers and thoughts to everyone in japan! had a girlfriend over today/tonight. we crafted all day! and i wish we had a ton to show for it. but in the middle of crafting we had naps, eating, bottles, dancing, tommy, playing and so many other things!!! grandpa came and picked up dillon and then went snowmobiling! he loved it! a perfect day to be outside. well until this storm hit!!! drew is in Grand Forks. stranded in the storm. he went to the SIOUX hockey game and was staying over--but was planning on leave early to get home for a curling tournament tomorrow morning. but that will not be happening now. the interstates are closed! as long as he is safe. i guess that is all that matters!
this week we had a girls.kids morning here @ our house. so much fun. i was watching a friends little girl for a couple of days so i had 3 and 3 friends came with their kids. we had a house full. but so much fun. i love the days that we can get together. talk, eat and play. thanks girls! xoxoxo
so excited for the bachelor finale on monday.
we are headed to mnpls for the week. all hour of us. we are watching chase while my sister and her husband take the older kids skiing! drew is seeing clients while we are there and i will hang with the kids! and i am TURNING 30. yikes stripes. maybe a fun night out with the 3 kids! we will see how it goes!!! excited to spend some time with chase. and then the other 2 for the rest of the weekend! miss them dearly!

the kids can not take baths together. using the bath ring it is perfect.
they have so much fun splashing and playing together. and so much more fun for me too

we had a rough week. to make a long story short. sat it started. pres turned from my sleeping perfect little baby into a stay up all night crying baby. i really thought parents exxagerated when they said they were up all night. but by monday morning we were @ the doctor. nothing wrong! so we had 2 nights of about 2 hours of sleep each night. but made it though the days somehow.
but we have our little girl back today. napped normally. and went to bed no problems. so happy.
for many reasons. knowing she feels better and sleep. sleep. sleep and more sleep.
speaking of sleep. i am of to bed!

search and rescue.

2011-02-26T17:19:00.000-08:00

was in full force this morning as we went looking for the other parts to "tommy"

dillon took his new mega block toys in his room last night when we read books and then this morning as we tried to put "tommy" back together--we were missing some pieces.
it was a bit of chaos until we found all of his body part. dillon drove his bike around yelling for him. i finally stepped on him and brought him back to life. and everyone involved is happy!
that was @ 6:30 this am and by 8 am we were having dance party 2011 in dillons room. pres was still sounds asleep and dillon was ready to dance!
he makes me dance on the chair while he wiggles around the room.
((i am ready for drew to be home))
now it it 7:17 and my house is quiet. wow. i love it.
we have had a wonderful weekend. the kids and i got to spend a lot of time with gandma and gandpa (that is what dillon says). thanks for much for helping out as i ran around. as we drove away today as greg was putting dillon in his seat--dillon looked up and said gandma's cookies?!?!? wow--i did not even prep him to say it. that sweet tooth proves he is mine!!!!
dillon had a hair cut.
then jenn my beautiful sister in law got her hair done-as a practice for her upcoming wedding! she looked amazing--sarah you did a great job! thanks for letting us hang out and eat all of your mints!

i have been working on new baby.infant.girlie headbands. i love them.
this is what i hate about creating. i do something new--then i can not stop and it is all i want to do. for some time. then i want to do something else.
my mind is constantly thinking about what i can create next...it does not stop. i think.brainstorm.buy.buy.buy.create.move on.then have tons of leftovers. i should have a shop just to sell all of my stuff. it is the worst habit ever.

my parents headed off to AZ today. they are staying for a month--to try it out. so excited for them. they are already in CO.
drew comes home tomorrow and if i have not mentioned...i am super excited.
i miss having someone around after the kids go to bed. someone to help me play tickle monster. someone to snuggle with. someone for dillon to maybe actually listen too!. and just to be home.
i miss him. can you tell.
had to add some pictures of my little munchkins!
what would i do without these two???

good night all.
xoxoxo

happy happy happy

2011-02-24T19:45:00.000-08:00

happy birthday to my favorite 31 year old man!

((yesterday))
i am late. of course. it is surprising that i got these pics. great ones @ that taken and uplaoded yesterday. it has been a rough week here @ the barkers!
but back to the birthday.
happy birthday to my wonderful husband.
we love you so very much.
thank you for loving us.
supporting us.
laughing with us.
making us laugh.
the hugs. the snuggles. the kisses.
and just being you.
we love you. happy birthday!!! xoxoxoxox

as you can see pres wants to be in charge! (( thats my girl.))
and dillon is wining that he is not---daddy's boy.

not a good time to get sick. and that is exactly what is happening to me. i am praying that my kids stay healthy! we do not need more sickness in and out of this house. everyone around us has been getting sick and i thought we were getting away with staying healthy. i guess not.
dillon is off @ gramma becky's for the night. when i was leaving he yelled "go ride mommy" he was really ready for me to leave. so preslee and i left. and came home and had a girls day. wow how different it is to be home with just one. a 6 month old @ that. after a nap. bath. a litte playing...there was not much time b.f she wanted to go back to bed.

drew is off in the black hills to a weekend with the guys. (bachelor party) they left this am and have arrived @ their cabin and are so excited to go out and ride the next couple of days!
i am so happy that he got to go---but get so worried about them!

what have we been doing?!?!
dillon has been.
stunt riding. his bike goes wherever he goes.
i am getting a bit sick of carrying it up and own the stairs.
getting into my makeup. he thinks it is super fun to do that.
being a bit of a stinker this week.
but still making me laugh so much.
loves to hang out with his sis in her crib.
is missing his "mimi" (paci--only gets it @ night/car. or when we give in)
is waiting to spend time outside.
loves his new bobcat calendar. he wants to read it all day.
it is amazing the stories you can come up with to read along with a calendar.

pres is.
learning to sit up.
loving the time spent with her brother.
is chewing on everything.
sleeps like an angel.
rarely cries. so content.
hates to eat solids. ((so not ready to eat them yet))
is growing in to such a little girl.
has the best belly laugh. and dillon is the best @ getting her to laugh.
loves to take baths.
hates to be on her belly.
oh how i love this time with her. but it is going by way to fast. i can hardly believe this might be our last baby. i do not think i am ready to say goodbye to this stage!

last weekend.
i headed to mnpls to celebrate w.jenn on her bachelorette party.
we had such a fun time!
did not get much sleep.
we were woke up early sunday with texts and calls in our room
about getting home b.f the storm.
friday night i spent with my sister shopping and out to eat.
sat morning we spent time with the kids and
to jakes hockey game! good game buddy! xoxoxooxox

random updates.
watching the bachelor this season. oh how i love the show. not the biggest fan of him though.
real housewives of miami started. crazy people. first of all. they are not housewives--most of them are not even housewives. it is so crazy!
also thinking that people use people. people are rude. people do things that are not fair.
have you ever felt used? it is an awful feeling. being grateful. i do not get how people do not have that part of them to be grateful---be thankful. it is easy!
you do not need to show it with things. or anything material. but WORDS. they work wonders.
((wow i feel better))
another random thought.
this blog was started as more of a blog to myself. a log of my life. how i feel. what we are doing. and now with 2 kids it is becoming far from that. i love what it has become..b.c without it i would never have anything to refer to when i am thinking...when did i do that?!??
but i also love just writing random thoughts. and feelings.
xoxoxoxoxoxo
hugs
meg

just skip

2011-02-17T20:01:00.000-08:00

when it has been one of those days. try skipping! it works.
sitting here relaxing. b.c it has been one of "those" weeks. i need to get outside and SKIP!
terrible two's have hit our house! and i keep hearing the 3's are worse! i can hardly wait.
or waddle. i was chatting with one of my best girlfriends today about our weeks. she is also a stay @ home mom and i was telling her about skipping and she was talking about waddling. her son was waddling to his room and he wanted her too--so she did and they just laughed! those are the best moments. the moments you never want to skip.
so if you are having a bad day. skip or waddle!
how can you resist laughing......
i cant.

we are working on sitting up!
it is amazing how we go from being the content little girl laying on the floor watching.
then rolling. we do not do that much anymore. and now we are working on sitting up.
she is doing so well. ((sometimes))
so fun to see how much she has changed!!!

this week has flown by. ((i only say that now b.c i am looking back)) each and every day i did not think that. we have gotten out and done fun things out of the house each day! the weather here is so nice! i saw 48 this week. we can not get used to it ..b.c here comes the snow!

dillon's new favorite thing is puzzles.
i am just amazed @ how easy they are for him now

i have been taking any time i have to work on pLum stuff. i have a booth @ a "girls night out" coming up in 2 weeks. and need some new things in b. salon
and i have so many ideas in my head for spring.
i had been thinking of making felt flowers for a long time and this week finally did it.
i like how they turned out! perfect for spring/summer. they can be so many fun colors!!!
need to go shopping!

had a perfect morning today.
errands.
library.
and to lunch with some friends!
and home for nap. the perfect day as far as i can tell.
this afternoon dillon showed me how he "stunt rides"!!?!?!? really where did he learn this?
well i taught him the word stunt after he showed me his moves.....
but where did he learn the moves?
but being the kind of mother and person i am. i encourage all craziness. ((to a point)) i love it.... and make him do it over and over again. he puts his glasses on and stands on the seat of his 3-wheeler and bends over to hold the handles and makes motor cycle noises.. but the best part is then he puts one leg out @ a time and does his stunts!!!
then he makes me do it. i just love it!
and tonight
out for drinks with one of my dearest friends!
happy birthday to you miss megan! love you!

we never got our valentines done and delivered. i of course bought the stuff and had great intentions....but then never finished them. so maybe i will have to try again next year!!! i can always hope!

we were a part of the fishing tournament here in DL last weekend. my brother in law came and we had so much fun! we did not even get a nibble but we had a good time!. need to upload those pics soon! we had a breakfast party in our garage in the am. so much fun! we are excited for next year already!!!

yesterday we had MOPS. and we made it through w.dillon in the daycare. he had a hard first 40 minutes but they kept trying and then moved him to the same room with pres and then he was ok. so i am just hoping that when we go back we can again make it through. so nice to be with all the other moms. and meet new people.
tomorrow i am off to mnpls for my sister in law's bachelorette party! i am so EXCITED to help her celebrate. i love her so much and am so excited for the upcoming wedding!!!
and of course i am in mnpls i of course need to see my sister and her family too! i am so excited to see all of them! wish we lived closer.

these are some of my favorite pics. i just love the real laughter--the fun they are having!
last week we had a friend over. it is so funny--these two had so much fun in the toy room filling the house with the balloons and playing in them. taking them out and putting them back in. i have never heard either of them laugh so hard and have so much fun playing together!

enough rambling.
good night
xoxoxooxox

feel like i am camping

2011-02-08T19:02:00.000-08:00

our fridge.freezer went out sat.

noticed sunday am. bought a fridge. that is another story.
did not have many choices. cupboards too low for what we wanted.
thank god that we have one of each in the garage. but not in the attached garage---i get to run across the driveway when i need anything. milk. one egg. and what is happening is that i bring something in and forgot something almost every time. (((loving it that is -12 out too!)))

dillon, breck and audrey's birthday party was so fun.
saturday we had a pool party.
thank you so much to everyone for coming to help celebrate.
the kids had a great time. could barely pull d out of the pool.
after alomost 4 hours in and out of the pool we went home for quick bath and bed!

we had such a great time celebrating dillons birthday on thursday too.

it started out with the yummiest pancake "cake" in the am. complete with candles. and presents.
a day @ home w. mommy and pres. playing together all day. and more presents.
ZORBAZ for dinner.
grandma, grandpa and auntie jj came with us. then back to our house for presents and cake.
and one happy little boy. and tired too! it is hard being 2.

one important fact dillon informed me of.
"elmo no diapers". is pointed that out to me this morning as we watched sesame street.

superbowl weekend. went to jj and mikes to watch the game! thanks for having us over.

during the game preslee was so
EXCITED she ROLLED OVER!!!! (finally)
she also
had her 6 month check up.
17lbs. 10oz. 79% in weight & 39% in height
growing so much!

kids in bed. drew in GF for his sig ep meeting.
me. i should be sewing.
so here i go.
hugs

being 2

2011-02-03T07:30:00.000-08:00

our baby boy is 2. HERE he is the day he was born.
i can hardly believe it. no. actually i can not believe it. he is such a great little boy. yes. very spirited. lets be honest. sometimes down right naughty. but could i love him more?!?!? there is no way.

he loves......
and what we love about you.
thomas the train or as he so lovingly calls him "tommy"
eat "iiicccee"
to get his own water
to read books. or be read too
always have something in his mouth.
talks our ears off non stop.
a master @ puzzles.
loves elmo.
still loves to snuggle.
oh how i will miss that someday when he is too big.
love when he gets up he yells mommy. and when i walk in he says "i waked up mommy"
how much he loves his little sister and is such a great big brother.
loves to wrestle.
loves bobcats and can not wait to ride again with papa.
talks non stop about john deere tractors. grandpa's tractor is his favorite.
does not go anywhere w.o his "b"
still loves his "mimi" ((but we only get it @ sleep time now))
loves to dance!!! dance party here everyday!
loves to play "tickle monster"
told me yesterday "missed you" when i came in the door.

on his official birthday and his 1 year birthday!

ready to have a great birthday with our two year old!
started off great with some presents and a yummie breakfast of a
blueberry pancake cake and candles!!!!
we love you dillon lewis xoxoxoxoxox
happy birthday

my baby girl

2011-01-29T19:26:00.000-08:00

you turned 6 months old! (yesterday)
happy half birthday to miss preslee jae!
we love you so much and could not imagine our family without you as a part of it!
you are such a happy little girl.
you have the cutest chubby legs.
i love to cuddle with you
you sleep like an angel. ((sometimes all day and night))
you smile with those big dimples and make us all smile.
you even smile in the middle of the night if you wake up. all you want is to give us a quick smile and your "mimi" and you are back to sleep.
you love to play hide and seek.
be tickled and show us your adorable laugh/giggle.
you are a fashionista. with a closet full of clothes! (your love)
you are not rolling over. you get so so so close and roll back to your back. you are just not ready and love to have everything done for you. you love to tease us.
your bother loves to help you roll over. even when you do not want to.
you love to sing and play.
and we can not wait to see how you change over the next months and to watch you grow!
it is amazing that 6 months ago that THIS was you.
it goes by way to fast.
i love you my darling!
xoxoxoxo mom

2011-01-26T18:05:00.000-08:00

we had a fun day @ home.

a girlfriends little girl came over for a little while in the am. now i know

how it would be with a almost 2 year old and twin 5 month olds.

most of the day was spent driving trains, trying to get pres to roll over, racing cars, chasing the cats and listening to dillon talk talk talk. it is so funny how much each and every day he learns so much and talks so much more. i need to start writing everything down.
he makes me laugh all day.
preslee must be growing. she wants to sleep all day long. but is so happy when she wakes up. eats and plays for a a little bit and then wants to go back in her crib.
we tried oatmeal tonight. since she could not do the rice i thought we would try oatmeal.
we will see how she sleeps.

So EXCITED it is only a couple of months away from the memory makers "the big book of scrapbook pages" to come out in print! i am so excited to see my work in this book.
there is already pre-order online.
the second page in the pile is mine!!!! oh how i wish it was on top!

today when drew went on the daytona website and saw our picture on the top.
this picture has been used in advertising for years! it is so fun to see our picture in books and online! here is the book it was in!

tonight.
mamma "race car" that is what i heard as i was laying dillon down for bed.
we had read books,
got his sip
snuggled
his "b"
his other "b"
and his bear--
i thought it was all ready for him.
he kept saying race car.
so to make it easy i thought i would go grab one. hand it over and everything would be good. trying to be super mom i brought in "tommy", a car and a other little truck. he took them all looked @ them and looked back @ me and told me "race car".
i tried again with a actual "race car" he still was not satisfied..but then he looked @ me and said "water race car".
now why did he not say that right away. all he wanted was his race car cup. as i walked out i heard him throwing out all of the other toys. he is now sound asleep with his race car cup!
***
trying to get orders done for pLum while watching criminal minds.
they are in NORTH DAKOTA tonight. so fun to hear them talk about all the towns i know!
***
we had such a great weekend @ our girls weekend. and got so much done. even made a dance video. yes--really. we ate well, laughed hard and had so much fun! thanks girls!

better get back to work!

love this picture of dillon. he is checking out the tractor birthday supplies. he carried it around all day last week!!!

today

2011-01-19T19:56:00.000-08:00

it has been one rough week.
so cold. so we did a lot of the same thing over and over..... a big house crazy right now. all of us!

could not stay @ MOPS. dillon had a bit of a breakdown. so it did not work out so well.
we need to work on this "being with mommy" all of the time stuff. a bit attached.

we had a great weekend.
family was here to help celebrate preslee's baptism. we had a great time with great company and food. thanks to everyone for coming.
it was fun to have her in the baptismal outfit that i also wore.
even better most of the pictures i have seen of me on that day i am screaming just like her in some of the these.... like mother like daughter!!!

it has been so cold this week we have not been out much.
-17 below this morning. and that is w.o wind chill. YIKES!
playroom is a disaster. but has some fun new toys for mr. dillon. he got a new desk and bench from nana and papa for his birthday and some hockey gear from ana and family.
now i need to pick a color to paint his new desk. i think orange is the way we are going to go.
i love how bright and playful our playroom is. so much color-such a fun place for us to be!
the only thing it isn't (besides clean) is big enough. it is so full. i did get rid of some things. but most i do not want to b.c i know preslee will love it. so i am keeping it around.
but when she is done with the toys---we will be having a major overhaul of the room. but then it will just be full of bigger kid toys!!!

got our whole deck shoveled off sunday night and monday morning. with the help of my parents. what a job! our deck is high off the ground and long so all of this snow is not so good for it! so all winter i say i am going to go out there and shovel it. but do i ever do it? no. so with some willing helpers we got it done in no time. a great workout too!

we are having a 2nd birthday for dillon with two of his friends this year! it will be so fun to get all of his little friends together. and the parents too! for a fun pool party!
this week i have been making hats and thinking of ideas. but how much of all of the ideas will i actually get done?!?!! probably not much! but i am having fun thinking of everything we could do. all that matters is that the kids have fun. i do not think they are going to care about the things that i am stressing over a bit.
time to relax. i am off to a girls weekend in the am. i am oh so ready for a couple of days away from everything. girl time. relaxation. sleeping in. scrapbooking and
just being with a house full of girls!!!
so off i go to pack! packing less and less every year i go. lets see if i can keep that up!

have a great weekend everyone!
hugs

b.f i was a mom

2011-01-13T18:55:00.000-08:00

i was a different person. it was drew and i against the world. it was about us.

but things have changed.
i am so happy it has changed.
it is not about us. (ok sometimes..but rarely) it is about them.
being a mom has changed me. they depend on me. every minute of every day.
but not only that I DEPEND ON THEM. they do not make me who i am...but they make who i am a better person. they change the way i think and the way i do things.
b.f i was a mom
i always brushed my hair ((some people might argue with that))
i did not understand why moms would wipe their kids noses and wipe it on their shirt.
i am now the QUEEN of this.
how kisses stopped a hurt toe, finger or knee.
i slept in late. or took a nap
and i said i would NEVER EVER let me kids wear "cartoon" figure clothing.

boy how things have changed.

here is dillon wearing his "tommy" pj's. and he has now claimed a record in this house and has been wearing the top going on 60 hours. yes. you read that correctly 60 hours. i tried taking it off this morning but he wanted none of that.
so i told him tonite we had to take it off in the morning.
the pants had to come off yesterday morning b.c as he stated "tommy wet" so they are clean and ready to be put back on. this is for sure something i never thought would be in my childs wardrobe. but oh how i loved it as we were walking through the store and he saw it on the shelf and he yelled "TOMMY" how can you say no? you really just cant!

we had friends over this week. Miss R is just 3 days younger than preslee.
so fun to watch the girls grow up together. wow how they have changed. click HERE to see the girls in the hospital.

life @ home.
his week has been so fun. full of playdates
(one @ a friends house who has a daycare. how she does it....i do not know? so fun to play there!)
dillon has a new found LOVE (obsession) of thomas the train. elmo took a back seat.
preslee is getting to close to rolling over. i think she can...but wont
planning a party for dillons 2nd bday with two other friends.
this weekend we have preslee jae's baptism.
trying some DIY projects. not getting too far on them.
all clothes washed and put away. now that is a miracle!!!!
i got bangs. randomly. got my hair done sat. and told my stylist/girlfriend that i wanted bangs. but that i was too nervous to do it then. but this morning the kids and i all in our pj's drove to her salon and i got them cut. i guess it was just one of those days. i love them. not too dramatic.
just a nice change! i needed it!
excited that tomorrow is FRIDAY.

off to bed.

twenty eleven

2011-01-05T19:26:00.000-08:00

crazy. twenty eleven is here! 2010 went by oh so fast!

our lives have changed so much. we went from 3 to 4.
maybe 2011 we can be 5? j/k. drew says no way!
i am a sweet talker though....so who knows?!?!?!?

this is my attempt @ taking one picture of the two in SANTA hats.
did not work out so well.
out takes are sometimes my favorite! xoxoxoxo

we have had so much fun these last two weeks
i was for sure not ready for drew to go back to work on monday. having him home for almost 2 weeks was what we all needed!
****************************
we had fun @ the pool.
had friends over this weekend for supper and games!
((used my favorite self timer for a lovely picture))
celebrated the new year with friends. but by 9pm we were home. me sleeping on the couch by 9:30. and all sleeping by 11:30. my kind of night.
went snowmobiling with jenn and mike. on the coldest, windiest, snowiest day ever. i had not made it more than .1 miles away from our house and was stuck. so stuck.
everyone else got stuck too in due time.
drew went out the next day too with friends. he was loving it! they put on 110miles that day.
drew got to ice fish too. they even brought some home!

((love my new bookshelf dad-i painted this one yellow))

so we are back to the daily grind.
MOPS today.
yesterday a fun day in fargo with b & hayden.
thanks for being such great friends and meeting us! we love you all.
in less than three weeks i am off to a girls weekend.
in 10 days drew is off to the Canadian border to ice fish.
we are both so ((EXCITED))

drew is @ curling. me relaxing on the couch watching my tivo SVU.
goodnight xoxoxoxoxo

((resemblance))

2010-12-30T11:06:00.000-08:00

i think there is or i just think so since i want there to be...but i see a
bit of a resemblance from when i was preslee's age to her now! from the dimple,
the chubby legs, the eyes, the barely there hair and that big smile!!!!

we had a great xmas.
fun with both sides of the family. lots of laughs, good food and so many presents.
dillon had so much fun opening presents. we barely had time to see who the were from. he opened all of preslee's presents too. (thanks to everyone for all of the gifts)
sledding was way too much fun. i think mandy and i might have had the most fun. we even did tricks and jumps along the way. i have a huge bruise of proof!

***we are home and tucked away with the big storm upon us***
it is snowing, blowing and not so great outside. round two comes tomorrow.
glad to be in the house. watching UP with the kids.
*******************

now i am back and kids are in bed and i am laying on the couch watching a movie.
today i got lots done.
"lots" meaning started to clean my scrap room. lots more to go.
but a start is good enough for me.
it is on my to do list for tomorrow too.
"more cookie" is dillon's favorite saying. "more money" is his other.
part of his gift from my parents (nana and papa) were dollar coins. so ever since we got home he loves asking for "more moneeee" he runs to his bank and puts them in. he gets so excited.
we just laugh. and when he asks for "more cookie" it is so hard to say no. we obviously have to or he would eat 100/day. but when he says it-it is so darn cute.
preslee is getting closer and closer to rolling over. she is getting so big. i can hardly believe it.
time goes way too fast.
yesterday we took the kids to the pool. we all had a great time.
today drew went ice fishing with his dad. they came home with lots of fish.

off to relax and watch this movie.
hugs

we wish you a merry

2010-12-28T18:09:00.000-08:00

christmas. today. happy new year.

this is a picture my dad emailed me one random day. it made me laugh.
so happy new year to you all.
i hope someone @ your christmas day celebration looked this
darn cute in a holster, hat, gun and a smirk!

kids are sleeping.
drew is out with clients.
me. sewing and a date w.tivo/criminal minds and uploading to etsy
goodnight. xoxoxo

"do not step on your sister"

2010-12-23T14:36:00.001-08:00

do not step on her, watch out for your sissy, be careful, she is just little, do not put that in her mouth, she can not eat that, she does not need her mimi, do not sit on her, she is trying to eat, please let pres play by herself.........

new phrases in my daily talk!

some of my new favorite things in the house.
love pres's new wall art. got another cute one for above the changing table. i love them both.
all of the daily run to the mailbox to get the mail. oh how i love opening xmas cards!
and dillons art. so fun to have this art displayed. and his report card from flyers!
and our beautiful tree. oh how i love it simple with lights.
next year we will decorate with all of our ornaments with the kids!

pres is sleeping.
drew and dillon are @ the grocery store.
the house is silent. not for long.
we have been sledding, wrapping presents, playing, @ holiday parties, seeing friends, doing art, unwrapping presents, baking (nothing more than buns), and getting ready for christmas.
we saw santa again. didnt want to see him as you can see.
dillon loves sledding. pres was not so impressed. but did not hate it. loved being outside!
we are packed. or partially packed. and ready for the holidays.
to drews sisters today. and after santa comes we are off to my parents farm!
excited for these two days full of family, food, laughter and fun! can not wait to see you all.

this morning we are doing our own little xmas with just us four! so excited to see dillon open presents this year! it will be a different scene than last year. he might be just as slow opening but he will be so excited when he does get to play with his new things!

happy holidays to everyone.
remember what this holiday is really about.
it is not about presents, the tree, the lights or santa.
so celebrate with your friends and family.
bring JOY, be JOY and celebrate with JOY!!!!

baby it's cold outside

2010-12-14T21:31:00.000-08:00

so so so very cold!
wish it was warmer and wish i was sleeping. but waiting for my wreath cookies or "swags" as we call them in my family. we do not take the time to make them into beautiful wreaths. they taste just as good as a little swag!
so as i wait i sew and now blog too and a little jay leno.
making the swags for cooking club cookie exchange tomorrow night! i think i have made these for 3 years running now. i do not dare go too far from my comfort zone b.c i do not want to screw something up and have to make them anyway! and these are pretty hard to screw up!

what we have been up to @ the barkers
trying to get play time outside. i have been getting quite a work out in the afternoon when preslee sleeps. we go out and dillon wants to slide down our hill in the yard which is fun but then i have to pull him up. i am running out of ideas of how to trick him in to coming back in the house! he is gong to catch on soon that "riri" (the dog) is never in the house.

my parents were here this weekend. dad and i had booths @ the holiday boutique here in town. mom even stayed all day with us! we all had a great time! can not wait for the spring show.

sat night drew and i went to a house warming.birthday party @ a friends!
play dates with friends.
SIOUX hockey game. ((a night with just drew and i and we got to see our good friends too))
saw santa. was supposed to go again tonight to see him come through town on the train. but i forgot. we were out running errands and came home. oops!
girls night! so many fun nights out with my girlfriend! those nights are so fun. thanks girls!

working on a new hair style! :) trying to recreate drew's awesome hair from his first grade picture. just missing the cool chains!

the best christmas present you can give this year is a present to someone in need. and let me tell you it is the best feeling buying things for people who you know will care and be so happy about what they are opening. christmas has gotten so much about how much and what more can we get and who gets the best gifts. we need to remember and remind ourselves of all that we have and give to others! it really is the best feeling!

pres thought santa was cute and liked sitting on mrs. claus's lap.
dillon not so much. the first try it was cling on to mom's neck
and this second try i talked him into mrs claus's lap. he is still not so sure but wanted the cookie so he tried. did not last long!

well my "swags" should be set now so i can move and bag! :)
then off to bed!

xoxoxox

she is

2010-12-06T13:05:00.000-08:00

growing up way too fast.

24.5" long (56%) 15lbs 2oz (77%)
loves to be tickled. i love love love her little laugh.
so content laying and playing on the floor
has no interest at all in rolling over or moving at all.
sucks on her fingers and hands all day.
loves to watch dillon play.
smiles all day.
sleeps 12 hours @ night! "oh happy day, oh happy day"
has the cutest little roly poly legs.
has a tiny bit of blonde hair.
has the most beautiful big blue eyes.
loves her kick and play.
loves to eat her giraffe.
is so loved by us all.
xoxoxoxo

how the in the world do they change this fast?
in four short months she had changed so much.
over doubled her weight. i just find it so amazing!
i love you more than you know miss pres!

what are you thankful for.

2010-11-30T18:04:00.001-08:00

put your answer here _______

i am so thankful for many things.
but most of all.
my family. i am so lucky to have such an amazing family. and got lucky marrying into another wonderful family. there is nothing more important than family. no we do not get to choose them-and family is not always perfect. but be thankful for them each and everyday. they are the people that will always be there for you. and love you no matter what. i love you all.
i have two healthy beautiful children.
an amazing husband.
a roof over my head.
giggles galore.
kisses and hugs each day.
what more do i need?
nothing. thank you to everyone who brings joy to our lives!!!!

we had such a great thanksgiving.
fun with family.
the kids have so much fun together.
we (or i should say the kids and papa) went on rides.
snowboarded behind the bobcat 4x4. the kids make it look so easy. and me=not so easy. but it was fun for everyone to atleast try.
good food.
good company.

OH CHRISTMAS TREE... OH CHRISTMAS TREE. how lovely are your branches.
we got to go out on our annual tree hunting adventure.
we picked out a perfect tree and got it up in the living room tonite!
it looks perfect. thanks mom and dad we love it!

now we are home again.
back @ it.
grandma and grandpa come over yesterday for a visit. they went out in the cold cold windy blustery weather and ran us an errand while they were out! thank you so much! they picked up us a big box. dillons little house is under construction. not looking so good but he loves it anyway! they stayed and played and dillon had a ball. ((he has turned in to a bit of a show off))

today we went to our first MOPS meeting.
you never know what you will take from it, who you will meet and today i was surprised how much i learned.
we had a wonderful speaker.
this is my take away.
1. BE THE BEST YOU that you CAN BE.
do not try to be someone else. do not be your best friend. your neighbor or anyone else. be you and only you. do what you love and love doing it!
2. ENJOY your kids. it is not work. it is LIFE. love it!
3. what would your kids say about you? what would you say about your mom or dad.
i have been thinking about this all day.
what do i want my kids to remember? i want them to remember the things we did, the laughter they always heard around the house, the hugs and constant love, the fun we had each day, the days we snuggles and watch ELMO, me listening to them, reading to them. xoxoxoox
i hope i can do that. being a mom is a hard job and all i can ask is that i can do what my mom did for me! it is a lot to live up to. thanks for being such a wonderful mother.
4. listen. when people talk listen, take it in and do not think about what you want to say next. i know people always say they can listen and do other things. but really can you? try this out.
try to sing jesus loves me while writing "the pledge of allegiance"
we tried this today. it is so hard. and mine did not come out right that is for sure.
we as humans were made to listen. and only listen. not do other things. that is how we are programmed. LISTEN!
5. do the people in your life make you a better YOU.
do the people in your life make you a better person. no i am not saying the people you just do not like them for no reason at all but the people in your life that make you negative. why are they in your life?!?!?! is there are people in your life who do not help you be the best you?

p.s. do not eat the covered pretzels @ our house. as you can see they were Dillon's project. he had do much fun. and i had so much fun cleaning up. he loves his little bobcat. every time we are @ my parents house we come home and he can not stop talking about their bobcat and papa and ride, ride, ride. he carries it everywhere. eats with him, sleeps with him and is always being driven around the house! dillon and preslee play so well together. dillon loves to be where she is. oh how i hope to keep this relationship strong! every little girl needs a great big brother! xoxoxo

drew is off @ curling.
and i am off to bed.
xox

lights camera.....

2010-11-23T15:55:00.000-08:00

action.
getting all of the cousins to sit and smile for one picture was a bit harder than expected!
but i think they are cute. and show everyones personality!

we spent some time down with the birdwells a couple of weekends ago and celebrated Chases 2nd birthday! i can hardly believe he is 2! yikes how time flies by.
dillon and preslee have so much fun hanging out with their cousins. they are oh so lucky to have them in their lives! we love you all. xoxoxoox
happy birthday to my little chase!
love mimi

its beginning to look alot like christmas....

2010-11-17T20:30:00.000-08:00

ok so not really.... but i am maybe a little ready to see the white stuff outside. might get a bit more in the mood. but then again wearing my flip flops most days still is so nice!

we are on the mend here @ the barkers.
drew is back to feeling good.

dillon too. and super hard to keep up with these days.
pres is now on antibiotics. treating her for bronchitis.
me. getting better. monday was the worst day. but got throught it somehow.
got the kids both to camp out in the basement and even watched a whole movie with popcorn in the middle of the afternoon!!! it was a great day!
drew is out @ curling. ((not curling yet but "meetings"))
dillon spent some time @ gramma and grandpa's this afternoon and tonight. after i picked him up it was right to bed and pres and i got some time to hang out just us girls!!!
it is amazing how little of that time we actually get. she is so darn cute and loves to smile and laugh ((just a little giggle)) and listen and talk back too! love these times!

only one more week of gymnastics left. kind of sad. kind of happy. so we might not have a olympic medalist on our hands. but then again i have been wrong b.f
this week drew came with us this week. dillon was a little saint and showed off. a lot less work with him around. w. me being sick it was a perfect day for him to come!

daddy with the kids last weekend! cartoons in the am!
and dillon in his favorite spot. he would take a bath twice a day if we let him! he loves it.

dillons new toy! seriously. why buy toys when you have these!!!
((if you are a mom you know what these are))

pres's daily routine. sleep, play, eat, sleep, play, eat..... she has got the life.

play time. GO SIOUX.
dillon taking snack time to the bathroom. not sure why he needed to do it all @ once?
and dillon giving miss pres a head massage. what a big brother. he will for sure make her pay him back someday!

love this magnet board that my dad made me that hangs in my hallway.
i love all of the pictures that i can see daily!
i know randomness.
more to come.

hate the new toyota commercials. disappointed i should say. not hate. with bullying being a big topic today. and they go and talk about being "lame mom" if you do not drive a sienna. really?!?!? i think that it is ridiculous that this got through the marketing team!!?!?
more to come.

ok. off to bed for this girl.

back to normal?

2010-11-09T21:17:00.000-08:00

are we back to normal yet? i wish i could say yes. but....
dillon is still sick. preslee is better i think? still couching a bit but better. dillon-i am just not sure. running nose and more than ever a bit of a temper! yikes!
we are surviving but i will have to say. BARELY!
gymnastics was a disaster. coach judy might think i am a nut. but she says she gets it. so lets hope she is telling the truth and does get it??!?!?!
kids will be kids. and i would have it no other way.
i want my children to be adventurous, fun and always learning new things.
so if they have to do that by doing things wrong along the way. i am ok with that!!!!
i am thankful each and everyday for their health and happiness.
yes. it is not always fun or easy. but it is our life. and we will get through it. one way or another. i am guessing we will have bigger challenges in our future.
no need to stress about if he is listening well in gymnastics. or wanting to crawl like a bear today!

proof of my craxz drive to nana and papa's
went for the weekend with the kids.
drew went hunting in MN.
i braved the drive with a sick dillon.

this is what dillon looked like on our way home to nana and papas this past weekend.
fell asleep right b.f we stopped @ target. had to wake him up.
then back in the car for 2 more hours. and this is what i saw. had to get this shot when i pulled over one time out of the 100 to try to get him to calm down.
tylenol in his hair, snot running down his nose. the only time i could get him to relax was with a fun silly straw. ((did not last long)) but i loved it while it lasted. singing dillon dillon bo billon.
and as we got closer to their house i got him thinking about the bobcat.

this is what made his weekend. ride ride ride. go go go. is all we heard all weekend.
from the bobcat to the tractor to the 4 wheeler bobcat.
thanks dad for being to patient and being outside all day with dillon.
he can not wait to come back. lets hope it is nice out!
thanks mom and and dad for the fun weekend! love you. xoxoxoox

my baby girl is getting so big. she is so fun. sleeping so well.
loves watching d. loves to smile, giggle a little and relax on the floor.
she is growing to fast!

i have been working in any free time i can find on my pLum inventory for the dec show. just when i feel like i am getting somewhere. i want to start something new. my attention span is not as long as it used to be. but oh how i love new ideas and new inspiration!

it is way too late. why am i up?
drew is on his way home from GF so i am trying to stay up but i think i am need to go to bed!
xoxoxoxo

today.

2010-10-28T11:24:00.000-07:00

dillons friend hattie ((my girlfriends daughter))is here today. her daycare is on vacation so we get to have her here for a playdate. it has been a fun day so far. now all three are sleeping. i did a little picking up and now a little relaxing. b.c i doubt this will last long.

tonight we have a halloween party and tomorrow we are going to go again in the am. why not go to the same party twice right?
tomorrow night. we are going to carve pumpkins. so excited. going to let dillon paint and we can carve.
drew is on his way home now. have not been in the same house it seems like for weeks. close enough. super excited to have him home. we skyped with him last night when he was @ my sisters house. so fun to see everyone!!!! miss them all.
the kids and are i going to head there while mandy and rich are on vacation and my parents are babysitting. drew is going hunting so we are going to go play! they miss their cousins.

((i am back today, friday @ 9:37 am))

that is all i got written yesterday b.f someone was awake and ready to play.
but now this am i slept will 8:45. dillon is still sleeping. and pres is too.
she i think is a bit sick. tummy is rumbling and diarrhea. no fun.
but loving this sleeping in stuff today.
got the last of my announcements/thank you's done this morning. it is amazing how many addresses have changed since xmas last year!!! i need to do a better job of keeping up as people move.
anyway.
we are skipping the halloween party this am. went last night and so i am not too bummed about it. rather have them sleep and feel good!

our baby preslee is 3 months old now! yesterday. i can hardly believe time has gone this fast.
i can not imagine life w.o her. and feel like she has been a part of this family forever.
she is the dimple queen.
loves to sleep.
loves to watch her big brother dance and be goofy.
loves to cuddle
starting to laugh.
we could not lover her more.
she has changed so much over these past months. i wish we could have it all on video.

yesterday our day with miss H. was super fun.
so fun to watch them interact together. not always a nice interaction but they always made up.
last night we had the first halloween party. dillon was a cute little pirate and miss pres is a cat. we did not actually put her costume on. she was spitting up alot and not feeling so how so she did not need the extra layers.

i am getting ready for a craft show here in DL Dec 11th. trying to get as many headbands as i can done. and maybe some other fun things too. got bags, supplies and some new hang tags in the mail yesterday. a good investment i hope! now to work on a new logo. i need new mailing cards, business cards, labels and pin cards. sometimes it is hard to invest in that stuff but i know i will love it when it is done!
10am. everyone still sleeping
drew left for a haircut and work. he probably thinks this is my everyday life. drinking coffee and blogging in my pj's while the kiddos sleep. not so much but i am sure loving it this morning!
tonight we are carving pumpkins. we are all finally together. and we have 36 hours will halloween so we better get it done!
busy weekend ahead.
have a great and safe HALLOWEEN everyone!

trying oh so hard to get a picture of both of them wearing their news hats. no working as you can see.
not sure why dillon is trying to eat his baby. i love the hats angie. thanks so much!!
you can see them here. frolicking leaves.

dillon in his costume.

miss hattie and dillon.

hugs
mb

2010-10-26T19:58:00.000-07:00

it is after 10pm and dillon just went down to sleep.
7:30 it was the normal bedtime. preslee went to sleep @ the same time and i got 10 minutes to clean up and then they both were up. the good news pres just needed her "mimi"/or paci to most people and dillon was having none of this sleeping stuff. so now it is after 10 and now time to rest. no cleaning will be done-the kitchen is staying yuckie until the am. i am on the couch watching the news instead.
but dillon and i got some fun play time in. he and pres were @ grammas for most of the day today while i got to run to fargo in the crazy rain and wind to get some errands done. it was by far the fastest trip i have made in a long time. i think i spent 2.5 hours in town and got lots done!
thanks gramma becky for helping us out!!!
drews is gone. tonight he is in rochester.
we are excited for him to come home!

we have a super busy weekend planned. lots to do b.f it gets here! need him help. got to get costumes for him and i done. not getting very far.

had a great time @ the girls weekend! only got about 12 pages made. but worked on headbands too. all in all. had so much fun with 16 amazing women! so fun to learn, chat, get new ideas, eat, laugh and relax! came home so tired---staying up will 4am is just really not for me.
but it was sure worth it!

this is my work space. and this is clean for me!!!!! you should see my space normally.

preslee
is laughing now. smiling constantly (showing off those dimples)). getting so big. best little sleeper, loves to cuddle, now in the 3-6 month sleepers. crazy how she can change so fast. her hair is coming in like crazy too. looks like a for sure BLONDIE!!! yippeee!!!!
dillon
so funny, always laughing, DANCING, talking ((we rarely know what he is saying)) and making us laugh. obsessed with "mo mo", turning into such a boy. no more baby. and he is such a great big brother.

raining and snowing right now.
this weather is crazy. i sure hope it does not make the electricity go out.... better find a flashlight b.f i go to bed. makes me a bit nervous!

good night.