Old Faded Blue Jeans

Fall!

2010-11-03T23:16:00.008-05:00

Fall is my favorite season, and I really wanted to start some traditions in the Wappler household. So this year, we went to a pumpkin patch, made carmel apples, and carved pumpkins together as a family. We also made some spooky snacks.

We went to a pumpkin patch near my parent's house, in Royalton, MN. It was called the Triple S Pumpkin/Strawberry Patch.

Nana, Papa, Mom, Dad, Noah, Henry, and my cousin's son Cal came with. There isn't a cover charge, like many places you will find, and their idea of a "medium" sized pumpkin was huge! I think my dad bought about ten pumpkins, and it only cost him $20. They had some cows that you could feed apples to, and an awesome slide in the barn that you could slide into a huge pile of hay. It was a great time! The owner was there while we were, and he was very nice, and showed the boys the little swamp, the cows were hilarious with how they would lick the apples right out of our hands, and if we weren't carefull, they would lick our faces or shoulders. Whatever they could reach, they were going to get it. The pumpkins all looked great, and they had all sorts of varieties. Noah was excited, because he got to drink water from a hose. There wasn't to much stuff to the point of being overwhelming, but enough to keep the boys happy and entertained. Overall, It was wonderfull!

Noah about to go down the slide

Henry seeing a cow for the first time

Noah taking a much needed rest

The Pumpkin Patch

Overall, it was an amazing day.

October

2010-10-04T22:27:00.004-05:00

I'm going to just come out and say it. I am a horrible blogger. I will update for awhile once every two weeks, then once a month, and then it gets lucky enough to just be remembered once every few months, if that! I'm really sorry for those that actually follow this blog. So let me fill you in on what happened in September. I work part time at a wonderful place, Noah started preschool, I got into a car accident, and someone abandoned baby kitt-ehs at my house. And my other cat ran away. :(

With October comes fall. Fall is good smells, astonishing colors, cooler weather, and fall cleaning. I love fall baking, the smell of the leaves, and of the burning. I love the looks of the little ( and sometimes not-so-little) trick-or-treaters. I love the cozy feeling of snuggling under the blankets at night when it starts to get cold. Fall is simply my favorite season. I find that I get out more for walks in fall than summer or spring ( I like to go for walks in winter, otherwise I get serious cases of cabin fever). I am excited for deer hunting season to get under way, and I am excited for the holidays.

I want to touch on what happened to us in September. I did get into a car accident. No body got hurt, except I still don't have my Equinox back. A man ran a stop sign and t-boned me while I was on my way to drop Henry off at the baby sitter's house. It was weird. At first I thought "What did I do wrong?" , until I realized that the other driver did something wrong. I was so mad. I was heading straight east, and I was hit on my driver's side rear passenger door/wheel well. He hit me hard enough that he pushed me around so I was facing straight west. Henry was in the rear drivers seat, and I was so angry. Then I heard him crying and I got so scared. I slammed on the breaks, which was a good thing, since I came within six inches of hitting ap arked vehicle on the side of the road. I quickly jumped out of the car, checked on Henry, then called the police. As soon as I got off the phone with them, I called Matt. As soon as I heard his voice, I started to bawl. I never bawl, especially in front people. Just to let you know, I have only cried in front of Matt three times. I told him " I just got into an accident. No body is hurt, it isn't my fault". Matt just asked where I was at, and then told me he was on his way home. All in all, at the end of the day, the Equinox had $3700 worth of damage, and the other guy got a failure to yeild ticket. He was sorry, but I still feel that it was all preventable. It's a stop sign. It's there for a reason. But it happens. Hopefully my car will be done this week.

Noah started preschool.

How did this happen?

Wasn't it just last week that we left the hospital?

He is four. He sings his ABCs. He knows all his colors, and can tie his shoes. He knows what he wants to wear. He hates bathtime. He loves Iron Man. He is my Big Boy. He tells me everyday that he loves me.

Whatever happened to my little baby who threw up every where and loved his jumperoo? Who wouldn't ever take a bottle, and loved bathtime? Who screamed non-stop from 6p.m.-10p.m. for the first 3 months of his life?

He is my happy, lovable, stubborn, impatient, smart, funny big boy. He is my buddy. No longer my little buddy. I need to go cry now.

Henry turned 5 months old on October 2nd. He rolls over, he is trying to sit up on his own, yells, talks, laughs, and LOVES Noah. He watches Noah, smiles at him, and will crack up at Noah's antics. He is still nursing well, he is taking rice cereal, and is slowly getting use to fruits and veggies. He loves squash, carrots, and bananas. He loves to jump, and doesn't like to be in his pack and play. He sleeps in his crib, and soon will be in the nursery without anybody. I am dreading sleep training, but I think he will do o.k. with it. He likes to be all buissness at night. He doesn't even like to fall asleep nursing. He wants to lay down in his crib to fall asleep. All I have to say is , I am lucky.

P.S. Does anybody want two little kitties?

Catching Up

2010-08-27T22:56:00.008-05:00

Oooook. SO it's been awhile. Sorry! I have been trying to lose the baby weight, working a ton, playing with my babies, and starting my Mary Kay business. I'm hoping things will be slowing down soon, but with the holidays around the corner, I have a feeling they are only going to pick up.

Noah had his fourth birthday party, he is getting to be so big! At his 4 year well child check up he was 40 lbs, and was 43 inches tall. Soon( like next week) he will start preschool. These last four years have gone by way to fast. It makes me excited to see how much he has learned, and how smart he is, but at the same time, it makes me sad. Noah was my little boy for so long, and now he won't let me call him baby. He always tells me " No mom, I'm not a baby, I'm a big boy". He sings his ABCs, and can count to 13. He loves to take pictures with the camera, and is a little dare devil. He is in love with any sort of super hero, and no matter how much of a big boy he is during the day, he isn't to big to crawl into our bed at night. He is my little string bean pole, my big boy, and my best helper. He loves to help me cook, and always is willing to run and fetch things for me. Like when I have put Henry into the tub and realize I don't have his towel, or when I'm in the middle of changing Henry and he has poop all the way up his back and I have run out of wipes. He likes to sing Henry songs, and loves to climb on everything and anything. He has an obsession with torndogs and loves to tell us things, like " We need to go to dame top(game stop) and get a new dame". He definitely has my streak of being stubborn and impatient. He has the most amazing hazel eyes and has the best dance moves this side of the Mason-Dixon Line.

Henry is now going to be four months old in less than a week. Tonight we fed him rice cereal for the first time, and he is snoozing away. Normally he is awake at this time, but he might sleep the whole night through without waking up. I don't mind when he wakes up in the middle of the night, it gives me a chance for a cuddle and some close time with him while he nurses. The way he hums when he eats, and his little eyelashes on his cheek, just makes me feel so relaxed. Pretty soon he will need to sleep in his crib, but I haven't had the heart to have him sleep alone in his room all alone. He has his own little schedule, and isn't afraid to let you know it when he is upset. Very recently his cries have changed. He coos and babbles so much now, and smiles so much. Especially at Matt. I feel that this point isn't fair. I am the one who wakes up in the middle of the night for feeding and changing, I am the one who feeds him from my body, and yet, every time he sees Matt he just lights right up. He has Matt's blue eyes and blond hair, but he makes this little face that I use to make when I was little, and Matt told me that when we are asleep we do the same thing with out lips. At Henry's last appointment he was 22 1/2 inches long, and was 13 lbs. He is starting to get some rolls to him, but he still seems little compared to other babies about his age. We just got an exercauser for him, and he loves to sit in it. Henry seems to be our thinker child. He is quiet and inquisitive, and loves his routine. He is easy baby, and yet is some what picky. He is his father's child all over.

Matt has been working and playing with the kids. He went to Canada for two weeks to fight fire, and returned home mid- July.We might be looking for a new place to live soon. I have started a new job at a wonderful assisted living facility in the area, and it feels so good to be working with the elderly once again. I find it very rewarding, and would love to make a career out of it. I still work fill-in at my old job, which is nice for a little supplemental income. We added a new family member a few weeks ago, his name is Chester, and he is a long haired Chihuahua. He is silly and loving, and does very well with everyone. Cleavland loves to chase and attack him, and vice versa. Cleavland is now an indoor and outdoor cat. He goes out and usually comes back in by the night time. He has saved my garden from bunnies, and has probably put a dent into the world population of sparrows and voles. Grover is still big and dopey, and the best four legged friend a family could ask for. I need to make a point of updating this regularly, so hopefully there will be another post this upcoming week! Here are some pictures from this past two months.

July

2010-07-08T18:22:00.002-05:00

So far, July has been pretty ho-hum...
Matt left to fight a wild land fire in Canada on the 1st, and we had Henry's two month appointment. I stayed at my mom's house for the weekend, to escape the heat, and then returned because I missed my bed to much. Today has been soo....blah. I cleaned out the fridge, talk to a friend of mine about people calling MIFC about the firefighters, and ran errands.

Henry's two month appointment went very well. He weighs 11 lbs. 13 oz, is in the 90th percentile for weight, and is 24 3/4 in. long, and the 50th percentile for height. He has been talking more and is really starting to get the rolls! He slept through the night for the first time last night. Otherwise he has been good, and not up to much.

Noah had a wart froze off his pinky toenail. He didn't cry at all, which is really saying something, since I bawled like a baby when I had to have warts removed. We played at the park today, and I showed Noah how to do a cartwheel. He thought it was pretty funny, and almost managed to do it.

We talked to Matt last night. He said that everything has been going well,but that he was really tired. There hasn't been any cell phone coverage up there, so he probably won't call again until the ride home. Noah was excited because he thought Matt was coming home last night, and when he asked him " You tome home night?" Matt sounded pretty sad to tell him that " No, I won't be home for another week." All this past week Noah has been telling me that he misses dad and wants him to come home. I tell him that dad is helping people by fighting fire.

Matt got me a much wanted item for the kitchen for my birthday. A KitchenAid Stand Mixer. I was so excited for this. I'm just waiting for a day that is somewhat cool so I can bake something and use it!
Baby is crying though, time to get back to the grind!

Summertime

2010-06-23T13:46:00.003-05:00

I can't beleive that it's almost July already! The weather feels more like Seattle rather than Grand Rapids, all it has done is rain every day since I don't know when! I think we have literally have had only one nice day this month!
With summer comes lots of travel. I hate traveling, but I love the adventure it brings. We went to Wisconsin for a baby shower held by Matt's parents for baby Henry. It was a great party, lots of people showed up, and it was grand to spend the time we did there. If only we could have spent more time there!
The second weekend we went to Duluth and to Elk River for a graduation party for my third cousin. Going to Duluth wasn't all that fun, but going to Elk River was fun, and it was great to see family that I don't manage to see all that often.
The third weekend we went to Little Falls. Noah had spend the week at my parent's house, and we had a wedding to attend on Saturday. The wedding was beautifull, and it was great to see people from Little Falls. Father's day was lovely at my parent's house, my dad made two chickens on a roaster on the grill, and Matt got a new watch from the boys.
This up coming weekend is my brithday weekend, and we have a close family friend grad party to go to. So back down to LF! It will be nice to be down there for my birthday, since Zach (my twin brother) is going to be there, along with his wonderfull girlfriend Rachael. Zach and I haven't ever spent a birthday apart, and this year is going to be no diffrent!

I'm hoping in July that Matt and I will be able to take Noah to Duluth to see the aquarium there and the zoo. I was just told that I also need to take him to the train museum there as well. I'm really excited for this mini vacation that we have planned. I'm hoping to be able to take my cousin's little boy, C, as well. C and Noah get along really well, and it would be great for Noah to be able to play with another kid during the trip. All we have to do is figure out a weekend to do it!
We are also going to be holding Noah's 4th Birthday party July 31st. We invited around 40 people all in all. ( This includes my family, and ourselves as well.) Last year we had a Transformer birthday party that had around 35 people. It was a blast! I'm hoping this year's Iron Man themed party goes just as well. ( I love planning parties, and wish I could do it all the time!)
We have Henry's 2 month appointment on July 2nd. I'm excited for this, but at the same time, I feel bad. This little thighs getting those big shots. He was measured at a WIC appointment at 10 lbs 8.5 oz. He's already holding his head up really well, and is a very good baby. He has learned how to smile and coos. I love seeing Matt and Henry together.

All in all, this summer is shapping up to be super busy,but now, it's time for a nap!

Comfort Food

2010-05-30T21:17:00.002-05:00

One of my biggest passions is cooking and baking. I find that cooking and baking soothing, with my home filling with wonderfull smells, and knowing that my family will have treats and goodies to eat. I keep meaning to post more about my baking obsessions, but alas, I never do. So here I start!

One of my favorite recipes is Cream Cheese Brownies. I love them because they are so simple to whip up but have the effect of something much more complicated! You can either make the brownies from scratch, or use a box mix. I usuall just use a box mix.

1.) Prep brownie mix as directed on the box. Pour 2/3 of the mix into a 9x13 pan. Set aside.

2.) Cream together :

1 egg
3 oz. cream cheese
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. sugar
1 Tbl. flour

3.) Pour cream cheese mixture over brownie batter. I usually use a rubber spatula to push it to the edges and spread it around;make sure you use a light hand while doing this. Spoon remaining batter in tablespoons around the pan. Lightly run a knife around the batter and cream cheese mixture to create a pretty marbled effect.

4.) Bake as directed, let cool for a little while, then enjoy!

Survival Mode!

2010-05-18T20:21:00.002-05:00

Today was Matt's first day back at work. I have to admit this day had me nervous...

Having a very active, adjusting three year old and a two week old baby, together, on my own, for eleven and a half hours?

How would it go?

I'll tell you how it went.

1) I managed to get four loads of laundry done. No it isn't folded yet, but as that it's washed, dried, and waiting in our room patiently to be folded? Good enough for me!

2) Went to the store with kids in tow...not once, but twice.( Never again will I forget a list. Going once was an adventure, going twice was exhausting.

3) I managed to plant my garden finally. This involved breaking up the sod and all.

4) Cooked part of supper. I didn't make the hamburgers, but only because I wanted them to be hot when Matt got home, and it wasn't anything to get the already made patties cooked up in no time.

5) Played kickity-kick ball with Noah outside.

6) Took a shower AND blow dried my hair.

Overall, I would have to say that, not only did the day fair well without Matt, I was downright productive!

Just call me the milk maid!

2010-05-14T20:25:00.001-05:00

I've pumped over 200 oz. in a week.

I feel ridiculously excited by this.

I think only other nursing moms must know how I feel.

Henry Jon

2010-05-11T13:47:00.006-05:00

This is a little late, but I've been busy watching someone sleep and counting eyelashes...

Henry Jon Wappler was born at 8:16 a.m. May 2nd 2010. He weighed 8lbs, and was 21 inches long.(Which is weird, Noah weighed and measured the exact same!)

All day Saturday I felt Braxton Hicks contractions. They were strong but all over the place, so I felt that there really was no point in going to the doctor. I told my mom and we tried timing them that evening, but all of the contractions weren't regular. At about 10:30p.m. I went to bed (but not before I told Matt that he was tempting fate by not having the suitcase packed and ready to go for overnight...he told me he had no idea what I was talking about.)

All night I was pretty restless( or so Matt tells me), and at 3a.m. I was woke up by a particularly painfull contraction. I thought, I'll go to the bathroom to try to make it go away. I went to the bathroom, then laid back down, then immediatley decided to try a bath to make myself more comfortable. I took a long, warm bath, where I pampered myself a little, and washed up. ( Thank God I shaved my legs!) After timing the contractions I was feeling for about 45 minutes( while in hte tub) I decided to get out. My mom was on-call that night( She works as a L&D nurse in a town about a half hour away. I didn't know this though, I ddn't want to wake her up needlessly is she had been cut.) I got out of the tub, ate a banana(which would come back with a vengence) then crawled back into bed. Just as I was snuggled in, and I thought to myself "Now I'm feeling much more comfortable, maybe I will sleep well" I had a terrible contraction. About right in the middle of it, I felt and heard a "POP". Right away I told Matt" I think my water just broke" which I think he replied "Really?" I managed to scoot out of bed without any amniotic fluid getting anywhere, until I stood up. "Yup, it did."

Matt went downstairs to "wake up" my mom. She was, in fact, on call, so she had been awake all night. I went to the bathroom to get cleaned up, and then we called the perinatologist at Abott to ask what we should do next. ( Since I'm high risk,I was suppose to deliver in the cities, but we wanted to know if we should just drive down to the cities, go to the Little Falls hospital, or go to St.Cloud hospital.) The perinatologist told us to go t St.Gabriel's(Little Falls), and get checked. Once we knew wher I was at, then they would decided from there where we would go.) We proceded to St.Gabriels where it felt like forever to see the doctor.

It felt like this since the contractions were getting stronger and more painfull, and the nurse refused to check me because "she didn't feel like it". Finally the on call doctor came in, checked me, and said that I was 3-4 cm dialated. Then he went to call my cardiologist, and the perinatologist. They called the LifeFlight ship too and had them come down. The perinatologist told them to check me right bofore sending me up to the helicopter. In the meantime I was in alot of pain, but with alot of help from Matt, and from my mom, I was able to concentrate through the pain and breathe through them. We heard the helicopter land, and I admit, I was terrified. I didn't want to deliver my baby without Matt there. The doctor came in, and checked me. I was dialated to 5-7 cm, in only an hour, so he went to contact my other doctors again. In a few minutes he came in again with the OB and together we decided that even a half hour helicopter ride would be to much of a risk. We disussed if I should even go to St.Cloud. While the doctors went to confer with each other, we waited and contracted. It was by far the worst pain I had ever felt in my life.

When the doctors came back I was a full 7cm. We decided to deliver there at St.Gabriels, so we asked for pain medication, and then the OB went to catch up with the family doctor. At this time, I felt the need to use the bathroom, so I asked for help with that. One of the nurses helped me to the bathroom. Iwas unsuccesfull, and when I laid back down I felt a not-so-painfull contaction, and then a terrible contraction right on top of it. The nurses prepped me for pushing, and almost right after that I needed to push! They told me I couldn't. The next contraction I did mini pushes, then finally the doctor gave the ok for full pushing, In four minutes, we met our baby boy! The pain meds finally took effect after all the work was done, so I felt great! Henry seemed small, but perfect, he got a 9/10 on his apgar, and took to nursing right away.

Now he's already a week old, and getting on a schedule. He isn't fussy at all, and loves to look at mom, dad, and his big brother.He soothes really well for Nana and Grandma, and loves to sleep on Papa.

Updates & Happenings

2010-04-09T21:08:00.004-05:00

Ok, so I have alot to spill, but I just haven't had the inclination to post anything.

First things first...Noah is compltley potty trained! No night time accidents, poops in the toilet, whole nine yards thing! Yay! We couldn't be more thrilled, since Baby Wap is due to make his entrance to this world soon. We are very proud of our big boy, who seems to be doing more and more big boy things. We recently have been seeing some regression, (we think) due to the baby situation and moving. He has started to carry around one of his old baby blankets, which is odd, since he hadn't had any sort of "lovey" that he was attatched to previously...except Nana of course! He also had taken to being very ugly at bedtime. We aren't just talking about not going to sleep. It was anything to do with sleep! Bath time, books, bedtime snack. It was a fiasco that I dreaded every night. Noah has always had a bedtime routine, and it was cemented even more since Matt and I had moved in together. We give him a bath, bedtime snack, brush his teeth, then three books and its lights out. Well he would start throwing a tantrum, and we would end up wrestling him, while he kicked and screamed. We had been dealing with night time terror for about a month that included but was not limited to : punching, hitting, biting, kicking, slapping, and telling us that he didn't like us and that he hated us. Being concerned about all the voilent behaviors, I took him to our family doctor, who recommend we might need to sleep train again, and that he needs plenty of fresh air to combat the night time terrors. So far, it seems to be working. We walk to the park every day for about an hour and a half of play time outside. We have become a little more pateint with night time, and we have introduced a chore chart for Noah. Really it's just a calander that, if he helps me during the day, then he gets a sticker for that day. If he earns a sticker, he earns fifty cents. It helps him realize that he has to work to get goodies, and not just be given things hand over fist, and he loves to look at his accomplishments. Im hoping to have him enrolled for preschool this fall at our church, but we are still waiting to hear back from the cordinator on that one.

Matt is really nervous, but excited for baby. He is also excited to do some fire assignment down in Little Falls, since Effie doesn't see as much as Little Falls. We go down to my mom's house tomorrow for four weeks, or until the Baby Wap arrives. We had a few scares the past few weeks. Im no longer working, and haven't been for about two weeks. This past Monday, I started to feel strong contractions. They didn't really hurt, but took my breath away. They were coming every 3-4 mintues for a few hours, despite trying diffrent things to stop them. Off to the OB floor I went! They monitored me for about an hour, and after seeing that they were still coming regularly, they gave me a dose of Terb, which did nothing for me, except make me feel really jittery, shaky, and made me feel like I was having arrhythmias like crazy. In short, in made me feel worse. They also gave me 50 mg of a drug which I cannot recall the name of that was suppose to calm me down to counteract against the effects of Terb. It didn't really help, and the contractions still came. I was checked and was told that I was closed, but 50% effaced. Matt got to the hospital, and took Noah back to the house to wait for my mom, wash up, and to pack some stuff in case my labor was progressing and we would be sent down to the cities. Before my mom and Matt got back to the hospital I was given Ambien, and I dozed off until they both got there. I was pretty out of it though, so I don't remember much. At 2:30 a.m. my mom left, and Matt went to sleep in a bed they brought in. At 5:30 a.m. I woke up and went to the bathroom, and was told that I contracted on and off through out that night. After awhile we both got up, I took my meds, and was told that my OB was going to check me that morning when she had time. After awhile I saw my OB and was checked, and nothing had changed thankfully, so I was discharged, and was told though that if I felt 6 contractions in an hour to come back. It was a long night, and we all were exhausted.

That, in a nutshell, is what has happened in the past few weeks.

In March I had my 32 week ultrasound and biophysical profile done on the baby. He still has a ton of hair, and was weighing approximatly 4 lbs 11 oz. This could potentially make baby at around 9 lbs if I go to term! Baby Wap's head is measuring big at the time, at 36 weeks, his abdomen measuring at 34, and legs at 32. He was hiccuping, and moving like crazy, and sucked his hands and played with his feet. I just love being able to see that stuff! I can't wait until we get to hold him in our arms and take him home. We have the nursery compltely set up, and ready to go. The car seat is in the car, and Matt has opened everything up, set it up, and taken it down again to "test drive" it. ( Also on a side note, on Wednesday, I was called once an hour, every hour, while Matt was at work, to "check on me". I guess he was a little nervous...he told me he had cold clammy hands, and had "nervous pee" all day.)

Easter went well. We dyed eggs here in Grand Rapids on Saturday night, then on Sunday the Easter bunny came to our house. Noah found his basket full of goodies, and ate some candy. He was very excited because the bunny brought him also a bubble gun and AstroBoy. We then drove down to Little Falls to Nana and Papa's house, and cooked them up a big Easter dinner. It was also Nana and Papa's 24th Anniversary that day, and Papa drove home from Illinios( I think, it may have been Iowa) just for the day. We held an Easter egg hunt when Papa got there for Noah, who found all his eggs with Papa's help. We ate the big dinner that we( and by we, I mean mostly Matt. I made the Frog's Eyes Salad and that was about it) made for my parents and siblings. My aunt Cindy stopped by to say hello, and I talked to my grandma (or Old Nana, as Noah calls her)on the phone.

I love how Noah calls all the grandmas Nana something. My mom is Nana, Matt's mom is Nana Mary, my grandma Janet is Nana Jan, and my grandma Marilyn is Old Nana. Then there is Papa( my dad), and Papa Steve ( Matt's Dad). Both of my grandpas have passed away, one when I was five and the other when I was 20, and Noah was four months old. Im sad that he didn't get to meet these charismatic men that hold such a dear place in my heart, but I know they look down on us from above and watch out for us. Noah unfortunatley hasn't spent enough time with Matt's grandma Joy and grandpa Jon to call them anything yet, but Im sure he will call them Nana Joy and Papa Jon. Noah calls Matt's brother's Adam and Timmy, but Timmy comes out sounds like Tinney. Then there is ZaCH(my twin), Hey( my little sister Kaitlin), E( my little brother Ethan..E is actually is nickname from growing up, and we still call him that today.) and my older sister Saw( Sarah). He calls my friend Nelly, Nenny, and calls our dog Grover, Bro. He prounces Max and Ruby( Wuby), and says Sam pretty clearly. He calls Cleaveland, Chat. ( Instead of cat). I know that his speech is improving greatly, but I love how he calls our family and pets names. He recently loves telling us, " Your a good mom( or dad), or I yub you." He sings Bunge Bob Fairpants song ( Spongebob Squarepants) to us, which is only him saying Bunge Bob Fairpants over and over again in a tune that somewhat resembles the shows theme song. He also likes to tell us he wants to so something " Allllllll day!" Over all, I feel just Noah crazy lately. Like I just can't wait to hear what he comes up with next.

I guess that all I really have to say for now....hopefully next time I post, it's about Baby Wap's arrival! Let's hope I can stay on task and actually do it right away!

28 Weeks~

2010-02-18T09:27:00.002-06:00

Everything has been making the weeks just fly by, I can't beleive that in less than 12 weeks, we will meet Baby Boy Wap! We had an appointment at the Minnesota Perinatal Clinic, which involved an ultrasound. It was so neat to see baby! He is measuring really big, at 3lbs. He was sucking on his arm, practicing breathing, and playing with his toes. It was so adorable. Those ultrasounds make pregnancy worth it for sure. We had a little scare this past week, and in fact, I write this on bedrest as we speak. I want to tell my whole week up to this point though, because it was just hectic and crazy!

On Sunday I worked from 9am-4pm. It seemed sort of chilly in the house, so Matt tried to turn up the thermostat, but nothing happened. Our furnance was out, and we needed to leave to my mom's house that night, because we had our appointment in the cities the following day. Matt finally got ahold of a furnace guy, and hte guy told Matt that our furnace is so old that he didn't have any parts for it! He cleaned it, and attatched a new hose, and got it restarted. So we left for my mom's house, so we didn't have so far to travel the following day.

On Monday we woke up, got ready, and left my mom's house for the appointments in the cities. We saw my cardiologist at 12p.m. We talked about what might happen during birth, and about ICD replacement surgery, and about medications. It was 12:55 p.m. when we got out of there, so we ran down to the perinatology clinic for our 1p.m. appointment with them. We made it to our appointment, had the ultrasound, and talked to Dr. Fairbanks about whats going to happen during labor and delivery, medications I'm currently taking and if it's o.k. to breastfeed, and about transfer of care and when we would need to be seen next. After the scheduling of all the next appointments, we got to leave, and get back to Little Falls to pick up our suitcases and to get the dogs. (Noah is staying with my mom this week, since she has vacation time.) We left around 7:30 p.m. for the two hour trek home. We got home at 9:30 p.m. and walking in the house it was freezing! The furnace had gone out again, so we went to Deer River forestry office to get some space heaters to keep up warm. By the time we got to bed, it was 11 p.m. and I got to wake up at 5 a.m. the next day!

On Tuesday I went to work for two hours in the morning, then I went to work with Matt during the day, since the house was so cold. We hiked around some timber sale sites, and it felt good to be out in the sunshine, and exercising. We went back to the office where Matt did some work there, then we went home. Upon getting home, and cooking supper, we sat down to relax. I felt a funny itch on my leg, so I lifted up my pant leg, and went to scratch when I saw that my calf was HUGE. Like really past gross all the way up to horrifying. I know I'm pregnant and that there is swelling that is going to happen, but this was like when my arm swelled up when I had a blood clot. The other leg was also swollen, but not that bad. I found a sore spot on the back of my calf with some veins poping out. So I put my feet up and then talked to Matt about maybe going to the E.R. I need to point out that health issues are important, but the E.R. staff at the hospital in hte area isn't the best, and it was already 7:30 p.m. and I didn't want to get back at a ridiculious time. I called the E.R. nurse and asked if I should come in, that I was 28 weeks pregnant, with a history of blood clots. She said to just watch it overnight, and to make an appointment with my doctor the next day...

On Wednesday I made an appointment with Dr. Romanik, our family doctor, at 11:40 a.m. The swelling had gone down in my leg, but my skin was still really discolored, with that sore spot, so I went in. Dr. Romanik didn't want to take any chances, and ordered an u/s of my entire right leg. Had the ultrasound done, which was really gross. We had to wait for awhile for hte results, and finally got them. I don't have a blood clot, thank God, but Dr. Romanik prescribed bedrest for 24 hours, and then we talked about if I have any more swelling, that I would need a complete scan of my leg again., since I'm a high risk pregnancy. We also went over what happened at my cardiology appointment. I called into work and presumed to be bored for the rest of the night.

So my week, this far, has been quite busy and hectic. I'm hoping this weekend will be better, and alot less stressfull. Otherwise, this past month has been pretty uneventfull. Matt and I are planning the baby shower for some of my relatives, and friends up here. We talked to Matt's parents, who are planning a shower for after the baby is born, at their house. They seem very excited for it, and I have to say, I'm excited for the chance for everyone to meet Baby Wap.

February

2010-02-04T15:55:00.003-06:00

I apologize that I haven't been updating as frequently as I would like, but we just moved across town. Between cleaning, painting, and moving as well as working 38 hours a week and taking Noah to his speech appointments, I feel like I couldn't keep up. The new house is a four bedroom, one bath two story house. I don't know how we could have done it with my mom's help. She was the driving force behind all that painting. I'm hoping we can finish all the unpacking this weekend, and to finish decorating.
Noah and Matt are doing ok, considering they deal with a crazy pregnant woman everyday. Matt is finishing up his timber sale sights, and Noah has been catching on in speech, but has been getting a croupy type cough. He's rather excited by the bunkbeds that Nana and Papa got him though!
My weekend of moving went fairly horrible and I was not thrilled when, after working for seven hours, and moving for another seven, we decided to go to bed, and come to find the cat took a big crap on Matt's pillow. This was followed by a screamed expletive,followed by my bursting into tears. Upon hearing my shouted choice word, Matt came running up the stairs.
"What's wrong?" asked Matt
All I could do was point to the bed, sobbing. I had never wanted, no, needed, sleep more at that moment.
Matt just hugged me for awhile before telling me this
"At least it was on my side of the bed".
This wonderfull husband of mine cleaned up the poop, put the comforter in the wash and made up the bed with new bedding. I owe my husband BIG.

It seems as if the pets want to send me into pre-term labor, or at the very least, have a small heart attack.

Grover decided to chew my crocs into a million little peices. I had the left sole and the middle part of the right one left. Also decided to tip over a full garbage can, and escape into the kitchen.
Sam(my brother's yellow lab) broke out of Zach's room while we were on a date and peed all over Noah's trucks, and took a massive crap in his room. He then took a crap in the basement, in a fifeteen minute interval of being let outside.
Cleveland decided that gravity does not pertain to him, and manages to claw my furniture to peices as he defies the laws of gravity. Also refer to story above about worst moving weekend.

Im glad to have the next three days off of work, but I know it will be filled with my house being used as a toilet, despite how many attempts we have of going outside, and of random objects being used as chew toys. We don't need to worry about the cat using our bed as a bathroom, since no pets are allowed upstairs.

I had my monthly checkup today. The glucose test was gross as usual, but I passed it, along with my hemoglobin levels being stable. I'm measuring at 27 weeks, even though I'm 26 weeks. I can hardly beleive that we will be welcoming the baby in 14 weeks. We have the rnursery almost all set up, and we are looking forward to having the shower. I'm in a constant state of hunger, and then a constant state of indigestion. I don't know wether it's an effect of Coreg or the pregnancy, but I'm also sleeply all the time. My back is hurting, and peeing all the time is starting to be a constant theme. I am not one of those women who enjoy pregnancy...time to get supper started now, Im hoping to remember to post the ultrasound pictures on the 15th after our perinatologist appointment.

Catching Up

2010-01-17T20:51:00.003-06:00

I have been so busy since the last post, I feel that I have so much to tell, and not enough time to do it in.
Our appointment with the perinatologist went pretty well, and it was really intresting hearing what the genetic counsler had to say. Everything is going very well so far, and they aren't concerned about the Coreg. Baby Wap looked really well on the ultrasound, and we are most definetly having a boy. Cardiology went really well too. My echo came back looking as good as possible. We will have ultraounds and echocardiograms every 6 weeks, and will do a transfer of care to Abott Northwester Hospital from Grand Itasca at 36 weeks. I will be glad when we don't need to drive down to the cities once a month.
We are also moving to a diffrent house across town. My mom, grandma, and my little brother came up this past weekend to help us paint the new house. It really needed a bit of sprucing up. Matt and I also spent about four hours cleaning the kitchen up. The landlord has redone the bathroom as well. We have our nursery decorations and crib set already, and I'm excited to get the nursery set up.
Noah has been a very busy boy, and will now be going to speech three to four times a week. We canceled the cable, and I think that has helped his speech tremendously. Seeing Pam and Jeff will be a big boost, and he loves to chatter away. He needs to pronounce the half end of words and letter sounds like "k" and "g". He seems very excited about the new baby coming. He talks to my belly and talks about when I poop out the baby. He is recognizing most of his alphabet and plays well with the cat. His new thing is" Can I help you?" which is more like " Im going to help you right now, wether you appreciate my efforts or not" Also he loves to ask about your emotions, like " mom happy?" or "mad at me" which is him being mad at himself, usually when he has an accident.
Matt has been happy about actually getting out of the office for work. He has been going to one of his timber sales lately and has helped a few co-workers a few times with their timber sales. He is very excited for baby, and is loves to look at the baby gear. He has the car seat picked out, as well as test driving a stroller made to hold a baby and can allow Noah to stand or sit in the back.
Well Noah is wanting a cuddle for night-night, so it's time to get off the computer.

Baby Wap!

2009-12-31T09:02:00.005-06:00

Kira was right, it's a boy!

Baby Wap is measuring big, 15 oz. @ 20 weeks. He's moving alot, and making himself known with somersaults and kicks. Noah is warming up to baby already, giving my tummy kisses, and talking to his little brother. He even tries to play Transformers with him!

Thanksgiving Weekend.

2009-12-02T12:07:00.002-06:00

This past weekend was so very fun, but incredibly exhausting. We went to my parents house for Thanksgiving, and we got there around two in the afternoon. ( Since my wonderfull boss let me go early!) We saw all my aunts and uncles, and cousins. Noah had a great time playing with his (second) cousin Abraham, and playing with his uncle Ethan. We ate lots, and when we couldn't think we could eat anymore, we ate some pie. Friday we decided to go shopping. Even though it was black Friday, Matt wanted to go to get Guitar Hero. They didn't have it at the original store that we saw the sale ad in, but at Toys R Us. We finished Noah's Christmas shopping that day, and managed to get home by one in the afternoon. After a lunch of leftovers with relatives, we relaxed ( or, if your Matt, played Guitar Hero for two hours), then we got ready for the Santa Parade!

I looked forward to this the most, because Noah knows who Santa is now, or as he calls him, "Ho-Ho!" Noah had alot of fun at the parade, even though the sirens scared him. He got lots of candy, and was so excited to see Santa! He called over the heads of the other children( since he was on my shoulders) "Ho- Ho!, Hi Ho-Ho!" waving like a little nut. After the parade, we got to meet Santa at the legion. Noah got a little snack of a hotdog, chips, and some punch, as well as getting a little gift from the big man himself for sitting on his lap.

We stayed and relaxed until Monday, where Matt and I went down to the cities for my appointment. Noah stayed with Nana and Papa. We got to the cities and checked into our hotel. After Matt researched what there is to do in downtown Minneapolis, we decided to walk to Nicollette Mall and go into Macy's. We explored their Christmas room, where we bought some ornaments for our tree this year, and then we went to the 8th floor. This years story was A Day in the Life of an Elf. It was a blast, and I wished so much that Noah could have came with. They had a room to meet Santa and Mrs.Claus's bakery, and saw the toy store. Then it was off to get some supper! We ate, then called it a night.
The next day(Tuesday) was my cardiology appointent. We found out that we will be delivering at Abott NW, that I have an echocardiogram every 6 weeks, and put onto a new medication, Coreg. I'm glad that I'm being taken care of so well at this hospital. Baby Wap has been moving up a storm, and Matt has got to feel baby move a few times. We will here about the perinatologist we will see today, and then we will know about what my cardiologist and OB think we should do as far as delivery and such. My cardiologist is a great guy, saying we aren't treating just one patient, but two. He said that instead of just waiting to get a shock from the ICD that we are going to be proactive as possible to prevent any sort of myapathy or right ventricle heart failure. Also by delivering down there, if anything should go wrong, the heart institute is upstairs, and the children's hospital is down the block.

Overall a fun and exciting weekend, with a little insight to things down the road!

Hullabulo!

2009-11-13T12:40:00.004-06:00

I had a prenatal appointment today. I have to say, it could have gone better. I found out that I may have to deliver in Abott Northwestern Hospital( in Minneapolis), because of my heart condition, and my connection there with the Minneapolis Heart Institute. My family doctor is over seeing my pregnancy currently, due to the fact that she has other patients with ARVD. ( In a town the size of Grand Rapids, this is remarkable, since ARVD occurs 1:10,000 in the United States.) I get to see a Dr. Feldman, the lead Heart Failure specialist. My regular cardiologist, Dr. Katsiyiannis, who is into the electrophysiology/Heart Rhythm Management, trained under him, so with these two I should be in a good postion for the best possible care. I still worry, though, since pregnancy isn't a very common thing for people in my position. Never the less, I'm excited about baby Wap, and everything else seemed to be going fine. Measuring a little big, and with a fast heartrate and the bouts of morning sickness, Dr. Romanik told me to tell Matt" It's a girl". Hahaha! I love old wives tales! Noah had his H1N1 vaccination today, and we had the public health nurse come to our house, which was good. Now we are just sitting here, watching old cartoons. Nothing else has really happened though, just Matt's car breaking down last week. I'm hoping things start to slow down, after the trip to Minneapolis. It's going to be a long Holiday season I'm afraid...

Baby Wap- 11 weeks.

2009-11-04T09:48:00.002-06:00

Baby Wap- My mom swears it's a boy, but I think she only says this because she wants us to name it "Willy", as in "Willy Wappler".*shudders*

Catching Up!

2009-11-04T09:24:00.002-06:00

It's been awhile since my last post. So many things have been happening, and I haven't had time or really the inclination up until now to post anything, despite how much there is to tell. Our wedding was a blast, despite my embarassment over a certain relative's inibriated state, even before the wedding started! We don't have pictures yet of the wedding, but we would really like to thank everyone that came to celebrate with us!

First things on the agenda is Matt and I are expecting a baby Wap on May 10th 2010. We are pretty excited by this, even though I don't think Noah is. Everytime we ask Noah is he wants a baby brother or sister, he tells us "Baby Brown Dog". We plan on delivering at St.Cloud hospital, despite it being over a two hour drive for us. Reasons for this are medical as well as personal.( My mother works on the L & D floor as a R.N. at St.Cloud hospital!)

Second on the list is Matt and I are trying to buy a house. No such luck though yet...

and Third of all is that we adopted a six month old cat from the Humane Society. He is a brown tabby, and has little ear tufts.We discovered he drinks coffee and likes salsa con queso. He looks really wild, but is really sweet, and Noah and the kitty have bonded very well. ( So well in fact, that they chase each other around the house playing bad guys, and the cat has taken to sleeping under Noah's bed.)

Otherwise Halloween went alright, I was fighting of a severe chest cold/ sinus infection, and had a headache for three days. I don't think Noah felt very well either, as that he was,for once, cuddly and wanted to lay down with me while I tried to rest out the cold. Matt has a cough, but is otherwise ok, if not compltely stressed out over house hunting, and having his car break down. ( They think it might be the fuel pump, but Matt and I talked that it didn't sound or feel like it was going out. We are crossing our fingers that it is just the filter.)

I will post some ultrasound pictures of the baby on here, as well as our cat. ( Who is named Jax).

Otherwise, I'm really looking forward to Thanksgiving and Christmas. I work Thanksgiving day from 6a-2:30p, and Christmas eve 8a-2:30p, but I don't work the following weekends, so I feel rather blessed that my check will still be good, and that I still get to spend time with family. Thanksgiving this year is at my parents, and Christmas will be spent at Matt's parent's house. I just love the Holiday season, spending time with family, and seeing the joy on Noah's face as he opens up his gifts from everyone, and his reaction Christmas day to Santa's present.

Which reminds me...Noah is almost potty trained! We are going about it slowly, but surely, and so far, Noah really gets it. He's so funny when he can't pee, he gets worried and tells us "All out of pee!" It seems he has more successes and far less accidents. We aren't putting alot of pressure on him, but letting him take it slowly( since the American Academy of Pediactrics subscribes to the idea of potty training over the course of six months time.)
Work continues to go well, I now work 36 hours a week, which is awesome, and really helps out with the bills. I'm excited to use some money for baby and Christmas shopping, even though, so far, we have no idea of what we will be getting Noah.

I think that is about it for the going ons in the Wappler household.

Disgust.

2009-09-29T16:01:00.004-05:00

Today is not so good of a day. It's freezing, and I love it, but I have chills, and I'm so tired I'm having trouble keeping my eyes open, and my stomach is flip-flopping. Two of these things have an explanation.
I have something to get off my chest though.

Dear Sick Person,
If you are sick, please do not come out in public. If you have been sick, wait for a couple days before going to an outing of any sort. I don't say this out of the kindness of my heart wanting you to get better. I say it so my family and I don't get sick! It drives me insane that people think it is o.k. to come out to a gas station, cough up a lung(without covering their mouth with the crook of their elbow), and then whine about being sick to the gas station attendant. I'm sure they don't want to be blessed with your ugly flu bug either. Also here is another one.

Dear Person Who Doesn't Wash Their Hands After Using the Public Bathroom,
I would like to point out that you can now contaminant a lot of people. Please do not touch the produce in the produce section, lest you get Streptococcus all over the papayas and mangoes.

What are these types of people thinking?

Also another lovely letter.

Dear Parent that Abuses Their Children in Public,
I am a mandated reporter. Enough Said.

The past weekend was my bridal shower, and I came across these three type of people. People who didn't wash their hands as they left a restroom, who coughed everywhere and then there is the story of Old Yeller whose appex in life must have been junior high, grabbed her 4-5 year old daughter's cheeks and severely pinched them together, because the daughter was sitting at her feet, and was naturally fidgety as most small children are. This lady was in Fantastic Sam's, to get her children's hair fixed that the small girl in question cut. The lady told the stylist that it has happened 4-5 times in the past 3 months. The little girl had marker drawn all over her face, and they all reeked of deep fried cigarettes. Normally I am not one to judge about appearances, but the mouth pinching, the marker to the face, and the repeated haircuts by a small child( how can your small child have access to sharp scissors not one, or twice, but five times?) screams that this lady isn't watching what her children are doing and not giving them proper care.

People disgust me.

Troublesome Three Year Old.

2009-08-26T08:16:00.003-05:00

August 6th was Noah's 3rd birthday, and we had alot of fun. When he turned two, we had braced ourselves for the terrible twos...but nothing happened. Noah was still the same easy-going toddler he has been at one. He never really threw a tantrum, and after alot of work, we got him to sleep on his own, which was a miracle. ( I have to tell you, NEVER co-sleep with your child...it's just not worth two months of bed time training when there older.) So now that he has turned three he has become a little dictator!

( Noah when he was only a day old!) He doesn't go to bed at bedtime anymore. Example would be last night. Yesterday we had played for an hour and a half at the park, then came home to play for an hour outside, playing things like chase, and basketball and t-ball. Matt came home, and we ate supper around 6. At seven Noah wanted to watch t.v. which I told him no t.v. He threw a huge fit! We are talking about screaming like he was being tortured and kicking, and about to throw things, either at us, or random furniture. After seeing the obvious signs of bedtime, I told him it was time to get ready for bed.

Our bedtime routine includes a bath every other night, a snack, three books, and usually a little cuddling in his bed, before its lights out. I got his pajamas on after a brief catch-me-if-you-can game, gave him a snack, in which he didn't eat, then gave him a sippy full of water, and tucked him into bed. I read him four books, and then cuddled with him for five mintues. As soon as I stand up, Noah rubs his tummy and says " ya-ya-ya" ( His way of saying he's hungry.) I told him that I had gave him a snack, and that I think he wsa just fibbing. He freaked out, kicking blankets, and tossing himself all over the bed like a fish flopping all over a dock. After quietly observing this he stopped himself and attempted to climb out of bed. I put him back to bed, and we repeated this several times. Finally, I laid down with him, and when I caught him staring off into space, I decided to make my escape. It sounds horrbile, but when you tell Noah " I will be back in a little bit, I have to go to the bathroom realyl quick" He will stay laying down, and usually fall asleep while he awaits your return. It sometimes the only way to get him to sleep. I miss the days where I nursed Noah and he just passed out while I rocked him.

Noah's three year appointment was last Friday. I wasn't able to make it, since I had to work, but Matt took him. Here are some highlights of that:

Noah is in the 80th percentile for height @ 39 inches.

Noah is in the 90th percentile for weight @ 37 lbs.

Noah is behind on his speech, so he will be seeing a speech therapist.

Noah will be screened and tested for A.R.V.D. when he turns 15, unless he shows other signs and symptoms of it before his 15th birthday. ( Not entirley unknown.)

He also could have a possible blood test for A.R.V.D. It isn't 100% accurate, but it could help determine his genetic predisposition for the heart disease. It isn't covered by insurance, but I think $2000 is a decent price to pay for a little insight. After all a little insight can go a long way.

Other things that are going on in our household are house hunting, and getting ready for our wedding. There are only 44 more days until the wedding, and everything is starting to really fall into place. Now I just have to bake and decorate 200 cupcakes. It should be a simple tast actually, now that I think of all the cupcakes I did when I worked at Cub Foods. I'm actually starting to have fun with the wedding planning, and my aunt, cousin, and mom have been a huge help to this last minute project. We woulddn't have been able to do it without them.

We have found a house that we like alot. It's a four bedroom, two bath house. It has around 2,000 sq. ft., a gazebo, poll barn w/ sauna, and a nice deck. The interior needs alot of cosmetic work, but otherwise is in great shape. We plan on going to the realtor in the next two weeks to see what we can get for a loan, then we will be in more of a position to look. Since we are wanting a place in Bigfork, MN, there isn't alot of other houses to choose from.

It seems like everything is really starting to fall into place in our lives right now. I cannot wait to get out of this little house. Sitting right on the highway scares me, since Noah is mobile and likes to go outside by himself. The first and only time he has done this to me, I freaked! Also, Grover is pretty good about not leaving the yard, but I still worry about the street behind our house. It's fairly busy as well, since people who don't want to take the highway, gererally take " the back way" and Grover has no qualms about running into the road after his kong, or a stray ball.

Matt is coming home!

2009-08-16T20:10:00.002-05:00

I get to pick Matt up tommorow after what seems like a very long two weeks! Noah has acted out a little bit, and I got a new job. With all these going on, Matt went out to the Hardluck Creek Fire, 25 miles NW of Fairbanks, AK. The fire was around 13,500 acres. He actually gets into Duluth tonight, but he has to stay overnight at the armory.

I have wedding invitations finished, and gift favors almost done. I can say, I hate wedding planning. It isn't alot of fun, alot of work, and a waste of money. Im hoping it gets better from here!

Noah tells knock-knock jokes now, except when you ask him" Who is there?" he yells " ME!". Its pretty funny overall.

My new job doesn't feel like working at all. Our consumers are wonderfull people, and everyone is so nice. We have alot of fun, and it's easy.

Not to much to post I guess!

Matt is gone!

2009-08-06T19:11:00.002-05:00

So it is just Noah and I for a whole 18 days while Matt goes to fight wild land fires in Alaska. Right now though, he is stuck in Duluth waiting for the plane to come in. I dropped him off yesterday evening, and it was so hard to fall asleep last night! Here is to 17 days and counting.

Noah's 3rd Birthday Party!

2009-08-02T10:05:00.006-05:00

Noah's birthday party was a huge success! Everyone had lots of fun, no little kids had major meltdowns, and overall everyone had a blast. Thank you to everyone for the gifts, and for being there. Thank you to Grandma Janet for her delicious homemade baked brown beans, pickles, and zucchini relish.

Now to explain things about the party. This big bouncer thing was the big hit of the party...a gift from Noah's uncle/godfather, Zach, all the kids were pleased as punch to play on this thing. Even Matt gave it a try!

We had a scavenger hunt and a pinata, which was rather anticlimatic, but thats ok. Everyone was happy with their giftbags, and no fighting happened over the rewards for the scanvger hunt. There was just enough of all the food, everyone loved my mom's pasta salad, and the brown beans. Even Zach's dog, Sam, got a cheeseburger!

My sister Sarah's birthday is the same day as Noah's, so I decided that I needed to do something special for her too. Over the years, Sarah has loves to play practical jokes on us in the form of food...like diet coke spiked with vinegar, a toothpaste sandwhich, and putting salt in your soda when you weren't looking. She did various other things to earn a title of horrible sister, but thats neither here nor there. So to get here back, I decided to do a joke that I had wanted to do since we did our graduation demos at work. I iced up a small, rectangular box, and decorated it with an edible image of a card that I had bought previously. ( I also brought with me a regular chocolate cake with non-dairy whipped icing. I didn't get a picture of it, but had cute polka-dots in light yellow, green, blue, and pink.) When it was time to cut the cakes, I was about bursting to laugh, so when Sarah tried to cut the cake, I started to laugh, and wow! I laughed until I cried while Sarah was trying to figure out what was going on with her cake. We had alot of people laughing!

Overall it was a great day! Noah had alot of fun with Calvin, Josie, Ella, and Kaylee. I'm so glad everyone that attended had a great time too. Now if we can just figure out how to get all these presents home....

Long weekend and other going ons.

2009-07-29T07:08:00.004-05:00

Where to begin? These past few weeks have been so hectic! Between planning a birthday party, having a very sick child, and running to Little Falls and to Duluth, I'm surprised we can even get up in the morning.

Noah was at my mom's house for a week, so I had to go to Little Falls last Thursday to pick him up. While there, my mom mentioned that he had a cough, that only appeared to come out at night. I think he has an allergy to cats though, so I wasn't to worried. When Thursday arrived, I was all excited to pick up my little man. I got to my parents house, and the television was playing. It was Noah's birth video and First Birthday! It made me so sad! I can't beleive he is already going to be three years old. My mom, Noah, and my little brother, Ethan, came home though shortly after. We played with their dogs Max and Ruby, before heading out to lunch at a Mexican resturaunt. After lunch we went to the Minnesota Military Museum. That was the funniest thing I had ever witnessed as a parent! They had a lot of mannequins dressed in diffrent era combat attire, and while looking at assorted weapons and gear from diffrent wars and eras past, Noah leans over, tugs on my mom's shirt and whispers "SHHH! GUY!", while pointing at a mannequin. Oh how we laughed! Turns out, he was pretty creaped out by all the mannequins, and I do have to say, they are pretty creapy, and gives the whole museum a eerie feel to it. Afterwards, we say soldiers dressed in full uniform with M-16s. Fortunatley, Noah wasn't scared of the soldiers at all. We left for home, and Matt was really happy to see his little boy blue. That day, Matt and I finished paying for my wedding dress as well....

The next day, Matt picked Noah up from daycare, and took him to the doctor to get his cough checked out, which they said was probably just a cold. Even though, when Noah would cough, it would leave him doubled over, and really red in the face. Everything seemed fine, so I got off early, and we went to Duluth to get a gift for a little girl that Noah is friends with at daycare, since Matt was taking him to her birthday party the next day. We also picked up my dress.( How exciting!) Noah was a little Crankasaurus Rex on the way home, and fell asleep with my sweatshirt over his head. He was complaining about being cold too, which, feeling cold myself I didnt think anything of it. We got home, and I took Noah's temp. , and it was 102.3! I gave him some Motrin, and thought that might be it.

The next day, Saturday, I went to work. Noah seemed better than the night before, but still told Matt that if he wasn't up to the party to not take him. Matt called me at 11:30 and told me his fever was back up to 102, so I hurried home. All day Saturday, my little buddy was feeling ill, until he fell asleep at 6pm. I thought his fever had broke, and felt much realived....but it came back only after an hour and a half after it had broken. On Sunday, it remained the same, despite switching between Children's Motrin, and Baby Tylenol, so we called the nurse help line, and they advised us to go in.

The E.R. ended up doing, a WBC, which came back at 18, a high count. They told us they thought it was bacterial, and they wanted to know where it was coming from. So they did a strep test, a chest xray, and a UA. For the UA, Noah wouldn't pee in a cup, so they had to cath him, and I felt so bad! He just cried and screamed, but was to weak to even fight us! Everything came back normal though, so they just gave us a broad spectrum antibiotic, and told us to keep up with the Motrin and Tylenol. On Monday, Noah seemed better, but still pretty lethargic, but by the time Aunty Katie came, he was all smiles, and fairly wild, even though he took a late, long nap, and went to bed without complaint, and then slept until 9am. He is defintley on the mend now, but I still feel weary. This has been the longest weekend of my life.

As far as other news goes, Matt and I are looking at houses, and I had a job interveiw yesterday. Say a prayer I get it, because Noah would only be in daycare six hours a week! Not only that, but I really miss working with residents. The job is for a company called Orion Corporation of Minnesota. I would work as a PCA, they offer free dental, and 401(k). Medical isn't free, but it's cheap, and it would be nice to have my own insurance again! As much as I love cake decorating, it's getting old. People expect an "Ace of Cakes" type of cake, or want me to be a mind reader. Either that or they want all this elaborate crap on their cake, and, when put all together, looks like shit. My common catch phrase at work is " People should not be allowed to use their imagination, they often don't know what they actually want" I will load some pictures later today of some cakes I have done.\

And I just remembered about Noah's birthday party! This is whats making my week worth it! His birthday is actually August 6th, but I wanted to throw him a party in Little Falls, where most of our relatives, and friends are located at. My mom works the weekend of the 6th, so we decided the first it is! I have a pinata, and a scavenger hunt plant for Noah and his four friends. There will be some older children there, but in fairness to the smaller children( whom the party is for) they will not be playing the games. We are having hot dogs and hamburgers, my grandmas baked brown beans, pickles from her garden, and a cake that I will make myself (of course.) We took him to see Transformers a few weeks ago, and he loved it! i was so surprised that he watched the whole thing! So the theme is, of course, Transformers.

Its about time to get going to work today, peoples imaginations need repairing.

Birthday, Wisconsin, and Fourth of July

2009-07-10T18:13:00.005-05:00

Sorry it's been so long, we have been going, going, and now I think we have (gone) crazy!

Well, the rest of June went by so fast, and already here we are, almost into the middle of July! We went to my parents house to celebrate my birthday, and my brother did show up. Sort of awkward, like the big unspoken gorrilla in the room. I think I already blogged about this though.

We went down to Matt's parents house over my birthday though, and boy was that fun! We left Friday morning, and left Monday morning. It's a long drive but well worth it. On Saturday the boys went golfing, and Mary, Noah, and I went shopping. I had such a blast, I don't remember having that much fun shopping. Mary bought me a really cute outfit( a green, greecian looking top, and a white A-line skirt, and a cute pair of sandals). Noah decided in Maurices though to play hide and go seek tag with Mary and I. He also made us stop and play everyone of those ridding machines. It was fun. We had a quick lunch at Culvers, and then we went home. We sunned for awhile, then went to a grad party. On Sunday we just lounged around, it was pretty relaxing, since we always seem to be on the go. On Monday we met Matt's grandparents in Menomine for lunch. It was pretty enjpyable, except Noah acting up a bit, since he was stuck in the car for three hours, and he knew he had to be in there alot longer. The drive home took about ten hours, and it felt good to get out of the car.

For the 4th of July we went fishing, and had a picnic at a playground in a neat by town. After Noah's nap, we made a nice supper, then went to fireworks at dusk. Noah wasn't as into these, as he was with the Little Falls Dam Festival. He kept wondering where the choo-choo was, since the ones in LF took place by the train tracks. Eventually he settled down though and watched them. We went home, made some smores, and went to bed.

We just had Noah's haircut( again), so I will post pictures of that on here too, asides from some miscelaneous pictures.

Recouperating

2009-06-19T07:27:00.005-05:00

It feels like it has been so long since I last wrote! I think it really was only a week, but that's OK. Our laptop charger cord's prong fell out, so we weren't able to charge this beast until my dad came home this past Monday and brought us a brand new one. Thanks dad for the save! We celebrated my birthday early up here, and I got some really cool old recipe books, and a new one from my Grandma Janet. I love old recipe books! I also got money from my parents, which I got myself a new book, and some stuff for the house.

This is my second day of calling into work, because Noah is sick. Yesterday night he kept us up all night long, and the night before my parents were victim to his night time crying. The night BEFORE that he had kept us awake too. Noah claimed a sore

throat,

didn't poop for three days ( which hasn't ever happened before) and has a case of pink eye that comes and goes. I think it's daycare, so I'm weary of taking him back.

My dad come home to Little Falls this past Sunday night, he's only here for a week, so we went down to see him Monday night, and left Tuesday night, leaving Noah with them...but Noah was ill and wanting "mom-dad" so by 6pm Wednesday night he was back home. I feel really bad that my dad didn't get to spend a lot of time with him, so tomorrow night we are going back to LF and staying for Father's Day. I really hope Matt likes his second gift from Noah and I, and that my dad likes his gift as well. ( Matt's first gift was a cart for his portable Weber grill, and he got it early by two weeks)

Grover was neutered last Monday, and it didn't even seem to phase him! We have to laugh at him as well, because when we were down at my parents the automatic sprinkle system started up and he had a ball trying to bite the streams.

Well little buddy just woke up! Time for breakfast!

Household Hiroshima

2009-06-05T19:19:00.001-05:00

The house is clean, and I can say, I feel so zen, a bomb could blow up and I don't think I would mind....unless that bomb messed up my house.

So tired....

2009-06-04T20:24:00.003-05:00

The past few days have been really busy, and I don't understand how. I got off workearly the past two days, and we didn't really go anywhere but run errands. Matt and I both have sore throats, and today Noah and I took a two hour nap together! I was so tired and Noah asked " Mama down?" I couldn't resist him...so I laid down with him and soon I was waking up and it was 5:30! Defintley did not mean for that to happen! I feel bad for Matt, since he had to go out to a fire on Tuesday, then had a prescribed burn on Wednesday....all that smoke did not help his sore throat. I'm lucky that I just get to make pretty cakes and desserts while at work, all the while being able to drink hot tea.

Good news in the potty area though! Noah has been going potty on the toilet about two thirds of the time during the day, and is pretty dry when he wakes up in the morning. We( Matt and I ) think Noah had a bad dream last night. He woke us up about 2:30 am with some crying and snuffling outside of our bedroom door. It's been so long since he's woke us up in the middle of the night, at first I wasn't sure of what I was hearing....I thought the dog was snoring, or in need of an exorcism! ( Sorry to say that to all the new moms...don't worry, there will come a day when you too will get to sleep through the night again!)

I made Noah a Big Boy Chart the other day, and Noah does so well! He gets a treat( weather it is a trip to the park, DQ, or going to*shudders* McDonalds playplace, or a toy) after ten star stickers on the chart...well he has almost twenty stickers already!

Matt is excited to go down to his parents house the weekend of my birthday. I'm excited as well, so I can show Mary the dress I bought for our wedding. She bought a dress already as well, so I think it will be pretty fun. I'm a little sad that I won't be spending my birthday with my family, especially with my twin brother, Zach. This is the first year that we aren't celebrating it together :( . It should be a fun weekend with my future in-laws though.

Other things that are going on in the Wappler-Albrecht household:

Grover gets nuetered on Monday, Noah mooned me this past week, while peeing on the lawn, and that Noah needs motorcycles to fall alseep!

Well, it's time for those three books, and then bedtime for mom and dad!

Busy!

2009-05-30T20:11:00.004-05:00

Wow, We have been so busy! Matt just finished fire season, and is just getting back to normal work hours, while I have been gettling longer shifts due to graduation in area schools. Noah is a fairly busy little boy, who gets to start potty training soon! We made a Big Boy Chart, and he gets a gold star sticker everytime he does one of the following: Help, Play Nice, Brush Teeth, Use Manners, Listening, Picking Up Toys, and being Safe. We also have Using the Potty, which if he gets his chart full, I told him I would buy him a Powerwheels 4-wheeler. I think it's a pretty good deal.
Wedding planning is going pretty good so far, there isn't to much to do yet. We are having it down at Matt's parent's farm in Sullivan, and I bought my dress. We pickedup Matt's wedding band yesterday, so we have the rings, the dress, and a spot picked out. For those reading this and don't know, the date is set for June 12, 2010. I'm so excited for it, and our theme! We want to have a forest theme, since Matt is a forester, and we both love the outdoors.( Speaking of which, it was absolutley gorgeous outside today). I'm hoping to get our engagement pictures done soon, but we will have to talk to my cousin Lisa about that....www.sherwoodportraits.com
Everyday has been so good lately, I just can't get over how lucky I am to have the family I do, and the life I live. I coldn't have asked for a better fiance' and father to Noah than Matt, and Noah is the greatest joy I have ever known.
I'm hoping that the potty training buissness goes well and that he will actually poop on the toilet for us. I appreciate suggestions, but letting them run buck naked around the house isn't happening. Our house is rented, and we want to do it slow and steady. I will keep everyone posted on his progress! Time for Noah's bedtime stories though!

2009-04-28T17:30:00.000-05:00

Today was my first day off in awhile. It's so strange to have the house so quiet.I get alot accomplished without that little boy asking " momma play?". I can never resist it, so the chores go undone, and my errands never get finished. I pick Noah up tomorrow from the airport with Nana. I haven't seen him for a week and half, which is actually an eternity without our little buddy running around. Matt and I are trying to plan our wedding, but without much success. With so little time and money, we are thinking we might just do a courthouse wedding this year, than renew our vows and have a reception. We will see what the next few weeks hold in store before we change our plans yet again. I know all of you are starting to get annoyed with our indecisive ways.TIme for supper though!