Football, Food, and Friends

The Packers are going to the Super Bowl! So exciting and Oliver's been rooting for them since the beginning. We hosted a playoff party a couple weeks back and here he is entertaining the crowd with his touchdown cheers and loving Pam's scotch-a-roo's.Pam and Brayden check out all O's goodies.

Oliver's been talking (and singing) up a storm. His favorite new word this week is "hammer". He loves putting his own lotion on after his bath. He loves to help "neen nup", which is his code for cleaning up.

This is a really long video but he loves unloading the dishwasher. He's pretty good at it but we need to work on the putting-away part.

Shawn and I had a wonderful weekend in Alabama this past week. Jami has been my friend since we got stuck teaching in the same double-wide back in Atlanta. She moved back to her home state a couple of years after I did and she's nabbed a charming southern gentleman to call her very own. Robert and Jami were married in Nashville in December but their reception on Saturday gave us a great excuse to do some warmer-weather visiting. They kept us entertained with good company, good stories, and good food. Shawn got to try authentic bbq, sweet tea, grits, Momma Donna's quiche and Mellow Mushroom pizza. A great trip!

Jami and I reliving our front porch days together... A beautiful cake, a beautiful couple... These two aren't bad either...:)

I'm hoping Jami won't mind me posting this picture of one of the cutest babies in the world, Jami's niece Norah. I wanted to include it in case Oliver and Norah get married someday :)

Pretty girls...

Oliver got to spend some quality time with Uncle Bug and Auntie Tonya while we were away. He was a good boy (unless they're lying to make us feel better) and his only major slip up was giving Uncle Bug super loud kisses during church yesterday. It's good to be back home with him. He was sporting some camo tonight, so I snapped a picture in honor of my new favorite duck hunter. Thanks for picking breakfast with us over a morning in your duck blind, Robert! Can't wait for the weather in Wisconsin to catch up to the temps in Alabama...

Yay Packers!

Welcome to 2011!

Not much to report so far in 2011.

We spent New Year's Eve in Madison at Tiff and Casey's new house. It was a spur-of-the-moment trip when we couldn't get a sitter and the Niederwerfer's were planning on a night at home so we decided to join them. Oliver had a great time with Evan. We had dinner at a super kid-friendly place. Love the really big bendy straw!Oliver and Evan are bathtub buddies.Evan's great at sharing with him. Other than that, we've been cheering for the Pack and getting back into the swing of things with our school routine. On Saturday we had an incident where I walked into the kitchen to find Oliver squirting chocolate sauce into his yellow bucket. While I grabbed a rag from the sink, he decided to do his bucket-as-a-hat trick. Ick. Even after I thought I had him all washed up, I was still finding brown behind his ears. I finally gave up and just threw him in the bathtub. Unfortunately, the camera battery was charging and I didn't think to grab my phone. Trust me, it wasn't pretty.

Saturday night we went out after Oliver went to bed. We headed to the lanes in Manawa to hang out with some old friends. It was fun to catch up but Oliver didn't feel much like sleeping in on Sunday morning.

Shawn had a tournament to head to so Oliver and I hung out and I tried to get some of his jabbering on camera. Here's a little of it...

That's about all, folks. We'll try to be more exciting in the upcoming weeks :)

A Whole Lotta Christmas!

Well, Christmas 2010 is officially over. The tree came down yesterday, I did some after-holiday shopping today, and now it's time to reflect on all the fun.Our first Christmas celebration was actually the weekend before when Oliver's Grandpa Doug and Grandma Judy made the drive down from the U.P. They super-spoiled him! He loved his "oooh soft" blanket.His favorite this about the easel is getting "tuck" in it, but he'll figure out how to really use it eventually. He hauled around the box of Lincoln Logs all night long...

And though it's tough to determine, I think he loves his new tent the best.A tunnel attaches to it too!

A close second is the B. toys cell phone. These pictures are from just a few days ago and he was still hauling it everwhere he went, like gripping it at breakfast...And setting it within reach on the botton step while building towers in the doorway.Our next celebration was on Christmas Eve over at Uncle Shaunie and Auntie Tonya's house. Oliver, Addy, and Addy's other cousin Jenson hung out next to the "Believe" sign to show their Santa-loyalty. Love Addy's Christmas outfit.We were lucky because Tiff, Casey, and Evan were in the neighborhood so they stopped over for a quick Oli-Evan present exchange. Oliver loves his new blocks and big-boy sweatshirt!Addy's second outfit change...Addy's third outfit change and her "best friend" Justin :)Of course, the box is more fun than the toy...The next morning, we were back in the Burg for our Christmas lunch at Great Aunt Bonnie's. Uncle Shaunie decorated Oliver, but he didn't seem to mind :)My beautiful nieces, Jenna and Addyson were there too.Addy helped Grandma open her present.Aunt Bonnie is an amazing artist and she shared her talent by giving some of her prints as gifts. Shawn and I BOTH got one. Can't wait to hang 'em up! Another highlight of the day was Cousin Julie brought over a dvd she had made of Uncle Gordy's old film recordings. Lots of memories for the older generation and stories for the younger ones.Our last gathering was back in Clintonville, at Uncle Bug and Auntie Tonya's. Oliver loves his new tool set but loves his drum from FAO Schwarz even more...Shawn and I love it less.Getting flipped around by Uncle Bug...Looking at the new calendar with Pappa Jerry...A good bye hug for "G.G."And a quick family picture before we head home. I look like I'm exhausted cuz I am, but what a great Christmas!A few other O-pictures that I love...

His new shirt that says "THE LEGENDS ABOUT MY DAD ARE ALL TRUE" He's on a bit of a boot-kick right now. He's always talking about, looking for, and trying on

"BOO-TS"! Here he checks out Addy's.

Hanging out in the fridge looking for "juuuice!"Unfortunately, being all bundled made him cranky and didn't prevent him from the nasty cold he's got today :( A small price to pay for such a wonderful weekend.

Hope everyone else's Christmas was as happy as ours.

We're looking forward to the week ahead to do some visiting and relaxing!

Snowy Day!

Lots and lots of snow today! Well last night really, but it took us until about noon to dig out. Shawn had to walk to the gas station for the snow blower and even then it didn't work! Eventually he got it going and after things got cleaned up out there, we took Oliver out to play. I'm not a bad mom in this picture...he HAD a mitten on but it had just fallen off...Practically the whole state has been declared an emergency zone, the highway to Clintonville was deemed "impassable" for a while, the Metrodome's roof collapsed, AND school is already delayed two hours tomorrow! Here are some pictures from crazy Snowstorm Aiden...It was the super-fine kind that got in everywhere...there's a bunch stuck inside the screen...And I don't know how so much got into the garage!Shawn just said on Friday, "I gotta get out to the backyard and take down the hammock before we got snow." Oops.A big drift by the outside door...Shawn turned 30 again on Wednesday. We had dinner plans for after practice but Oliver had a teething-fever so we decided to cancel. We were also supposed to go out with the Rogowski's and Nighbor's last night but the snow took care of that too. We're definitely overdue for a date night but it was nice to spend lots of family-time this weekend. What we have been up to is basketball! Oliver's been spending lots of time at the gym. Here he is swinging his feet with dad at the girl's game on Friday.And earlier in the week at the boy's game with "Uncle" Kevin, watching dad coach. And yes, that's the cordless phone from home he brings to the game. He LOVES his "del-da-phone"!We have another week and a half of school until break starts but we've been getting into the Christmas spirit. Oliver loves the lights and presents under the tree. He says "pritty" about 30 times a day and he's started to try to sing Christmas songs when we rock before bed at night. He also attempts the "ABC's" but it doesn't exactly come out right just yet. This is a silly little video of O acting goofy: Hoping to get all my Christmas cards out tomorrow. This is one of the reject pictures but none of them turned out fantastically. Paully was over one day and offered to be our photographer; though we appreciated the effort, I must say I prefer Kelly Jean :) Stay warm!

Remembering Oliver's Grandmamma Linda

Tomorrow marks a sad anniversary for our family. It's hard for me to believe most days, but my mom has been gone for five years. There is so much that has changed in these years, and so much that hasn't. I still use the coffee pot she bought me every day. I just put up Christmas decorations we made together. It seems so strange that things last when people don't. In those five years, her two beautiful grandchildren arrived and she never even got the chance to snuggle them. Though I may be a bit biased, I truly think my mother was one of the most amazing people to have ever lived and I want Oliver to know what a wonderful person she was too.

And that's why I'm blogging tonight. One purpose of this blog is to stay connected with our friends and family. But another and equally important reason is for Oliver. In having the blog printed every year, I am hoping it will be a keepsake for him in the future.

I decided that this was a place that I could share some of my favorite stories about my mom and if you knew her, I would love it if you would do the same!

Oliver, this part's for you. Here are some of my favorite memories...

#1

One of your grandmamma's most defining characteristics was her kindness. When I was younger, I remember there was a homeless man who lived in Waupaca. We saw him one day digging through the dumpster behind Hardee's, so my mom pulled in the drive-thru, ordered a bunch of food, and drove over to where he had been rummaging. He wasn't there anymore, so mom just sat the hot food on the edge of one of the dumpsters and drove into the parking lot so that Uncle Shaunie and I could watch to see if he got his dinner. This was probably more than 20 years ago, but I still remember how happy he looked when he dug in the bag. I remember I was really worried we were going to "get in trouble" for helping him but my mom explained that when people need help, you help them. Simple as that.

#2

Oliver, you may notice you have a LOT of hats. This is cuz of your grandmamma. She loved kids and she was soo great with them. She noticed babies everywhere we went and she was always very concerned when they didn't have a hat on...whether to keep out the wind, the rain, the sun or the cold. You, kiddo, will always have lots of hats, because that would make your grandmamma happy.

#3

Your grandmamma was really big on treating everyone with respect and equality. Your Uncle Shaunie and I were only a year apart, so I'm sure she felt pressure to keep things even. One night when I was about 5 or 6, I was laying in bed and I heard mom tucking Shaun in across the hall. I listened while she helped him say his prayers and then I heard him whisper, "Mom, just say one time that you love me more than Erin. Just one time. I promise I won't tell her. But you love me a tiny bit more, right?" I remember being really nervous. What if she said yes?? But I didn't have to worry because I heard her answer the same answer I'd heard a hundred times before. "Nope, you are my most favorite little boy and Erin in my most favorite little girl. I love you both exactly equally." And I know that she did and that she would be so proud of what a great dad my brother is! #4

Random people were constantly coming up to your grandmamma in the store to ask her questions or chat with her. She used to say it was because she was a magnet for crazy people, but I think she just always looked friendly and approachable and when strangers started talking to her, she would just talk right back to them.

#5

When I was a very little girl, I hated going to school. The bus would come to our house and I would cry. I knew staying at home with my mom was really fun and I didn't realize how great school was yet. My mom used to stand on the deck to keep me company while I waited for the bus. She had this crazy long rainbow print nightgown that she used to wear (this was the 80's, remember) and she used to do a can-can dance in her rainbow nightie to make me laugh, and it always worked. She tried this again when Shaun and I were in middle school. We weren't as impressed by it then.

I could go on and on, of course. I could talk about what an amazing cook she was and how she used to make me a lemon meringue pie and Shaun a cherry one on the first day of school, even if she had to work that day. I could talk about how much she loved her job at the Veteran's home and she took such good care of all the "gramma's and grampa's" that lived out there. I could talk about how creative she was with helping do projects for school or how magical she made holidays for us. I think I'll save those for a different time.

One regret I have is that there aren't more pictures of her. She always shied away from the camera and she was usually the one taking the pictures anyway. So here are a few of my favorites...

Christmas at Grandma Daisy'sI think Connie took this one in L.A. when we visited the St. George's my sophomore year of college. I have lots of great memories from that trip. I love this picture because mom and dad both look so happy. It was taken at Robyn and Jeromy's wedding, I think. I had just started my job in Clintonville and I know my mom was happy to have me back closer to home. I get so sad when I think about how great it would be to live close now that little ones are a part of all our lives. She would have loved that so much. This is the last picture I have. It was September 15th, 2005. I remember because it was mom's 53rd birthday and we were taking her out to dinner. I remember I was so worried because she didn't eat anything. Mom, I miss you every day and I won't let Oliver grow up without knowing what a special person his grandmamma was. If anyone else has a story, feel free to add it to the comments section and it will be included in the printed copy of the blog book when i make it again in April.