The Carlsen Clan.

Meteor crater

2011-09-03T08:17:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we drove to see where a meteor had landed. Meteor Crater is the breath-taking result of a collision between a piece of an asteroid traveling at 26,000 miles per hour and planet Earth approximately 50,000 years ago. yes it was just a big hole in the ground but the thought of something doing all that so many years ago is interesting, Abby loved trying to steal every rock she could get her hands on, and she loved looking at the stars and space stuff inside the museum.

Butter Abby

2011-09-03T08:08:00.000-07:00

Abby and I made rice crispy treats, I apparently left the butter with in arms reach, and Abby thought butter seemed like an awesome thing to play with, Honestly I wasn't even upset I just laughed took some pictures finished washing dishes then cleansed up the big greasy mess. But I will tell you she smelled so good, and was so soft!

Crazy crock pot yogurt

2011-09-03T07:58:00.000-07:00

I knew as soon as i herd of crock pot yogurt that it sounded gross and crazy but i totally wanted to try it! you wanna a know something I made some yummy granola! I am super proud of my self!!
You will need:
--8 cups (half-gallon) of whole milk--pasteurized and homogenized is fine, but do NOT use ultra-pasteurized. (I only had 2% its kinda running but still good, next time ill use whole milk to see the difference in texture)

--1/2 cup store-bought natural, live/active culture plain yogurt (you need to have a starter. Once you have made your own, you can use that as a starter)

-- 1/2 cup sugar (optional)

-- 1/2 tsp vanilla (optional)

--frozen/fresh fruit for flavoring

--thick bath towel
The Directions.

This takes a while. Make your yogurt on a weekend day when you are home to monitor.This is so exciting. My fingers are shaking!

Plug in your crockpot and turn to low. Add an entire half gallon of milk. Cover and cook on low for 2 1/2 hours.
Unplug your crockpot. Leave the cover on, and let it sit for 3 hours.
When 3 hours have passed, scoop out 2 cups of the warmish milk and put it in a bowl. Whisk in 1/2 cup of store-bought live/active culture yogurt, vanilla and sugar Then dump the bowl contents back into the crockpot. Stir to combine.
Put the lid back on your crockpot. Keep it unplugged, and wrap a heavy bath towel all the way around the crock for insulation.Go to bed, or let it sit for 8 hours.
In the morning, the yogurt will have thickened---it's not as thick as store-bought yogurt, but has the consistency of low-fat plain yogurt.

I thought it was good, I thought the flavor and it still kinda warm reminded me of homemade tapioca, which i love. I put the reaming batch in two ball canning jars and put in fridge, i have read other blogs and im am going to to some variations to see the difference on taste and texture will be. I also plan on blending some up with the frozen fruit i have. Today i just added the homeaid granola to it yummy! I am so happy with the way it turned out!
I say if it a try here is a rough cost brake down:
4 cups store bought dannon yogurt 4.00
1/2 gallon whole milk 2.00 which make 8 cups,
so you are spending half the money and getting double the amount!
*update even better after been in the fridge, I think this is will be how I have yogurt all the time!

Abby the big sister

2011-08-30T07:50:00.000-07:00

So last night I wasn't feeling very well so I asked Abby if she could feed Ben for me while I went up stairs, she had no problems helping me out, she got right out of her chair and sat in my seat, it amazes me at how much she watches me, Ive never taught her how to feed Ben but she know you have to dip it in the food then feed him, he was unsure of her helpfulness so she would so,

"open Ben, eat"

"Here you go Ben"

"a oh, mess"

"eat"


A bunch of gibber, but I herd no no, eat, open and mess.

( I think she said no no Ben open your mouth stop sucking your thumbs and eat)

"here you go"

She even tried to wipe his mouth with his spoon, she was so cute, and she had a look of pride. I love her so much.

BAKED PESTO CHICKEN

2011-08-29T19:59:00.000-07:00

BAKED PESTO CHICKEN
ANGEL HAIR PASTA WITH HERBS
FRENCH BREAD

Baked Pesto Chicken Ingredients:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
½ cup basil pesto ( I bought the pre made one by bertolli)

2 plum tomatoes
shredded mozzarella cheese

Basil pest sauce ingredients:
5 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
3 cloves garlic
3/4 cup Bertolli® Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Put in Pyrex pan

2. put a spoonful of pesto cover both sides of chicken

3. Bake for 20-25 minutes.
4. Place slices of tomato on top of chicken and sprinkle with cheese.
5. Bake another 3-5 minutes.
6. Serve with a box of angel hair pasta and herbs and French bread.

I only cooked 2 chicken breast so I put the other 2 in a gallon sized zip bag, I froze the reaming sauce, in a smaller bag, put cut sliced tomato in another bag, and the cheese in a separated bag. Then you have another freezer meal ready just pull out the big bag with all the ingredient and let defrost and cook as normal.

note on freezing tomato:

Slice tomatoes into at least one-half inch slices. Package in a rigid airtight container and fast freeze.
Or put slices on a cookie sheet and freeze for two hours, or until they are crisp on the outside. Then remove and put them into freezer bags or containers.

To prevent freezer burn, don't leave slices very long in the freezer unwrapped. Frozen sliced tomatoes should be eaten in a near-frozen state for fresh taste. Cherry tomatoes are good on salads if eaten while partly frozen.

note on freezing left over basil sauce:
Here is a quick one on how I like to freeze pesto. The short version is that I put the fresh pesto in a decent Ziploc back, cut a corner of the bag (1/2" size hole) and squeeze like icing into ice cube trays . Freeze the trays and then transfer into freezer bags. I freeze mine with the cheese in there. when we want pesto in the middle to winter, we just pop out a couple of cubes and toss in the dish. Much easier than carving out of a large frozen block... I also do a few tricks to keep it from oxidizing while freezing etc.

I totally spaced the tomato and cheese, duh me, lol

meatloaf

2011-08-29T17:17:00.001-07:00

Meat Loaf
1 pounds ground beef
1 pound ground pork
1 c. fresh Italian style bread crumbs
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 large green bell pepper, chopped
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (or less, to taste)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
1 cup ketchup
3 tbsp. Balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 c. Parmesan, grated (optional)
In a small bowl, combine tomato sauce, ketchup, Balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce
In a large bowl, combine beef, bread crumbs, onions, green bell pepper, parsley, chopped garlic, egg, seasonings, 3/4 cup of tomato mixture, and optionally, Parmesan cheese.
Form into loaf. Place into shallow 7 by 10 in. pan or bread loaf tin, lightly oiled. Pour remaining liquid over meat loaf to coat.
Bake in a 350°F oven for one hour and 15 minutes, basting occasionally with ketchup or your favorite barbecue sauce.
This recipe made 3 loafs, so I froze one pan of the raw mixture to use later, if the mixture seems to liquidly, you can add oats or more bread crumbs.
Serve with potatoes and a salad.

Dinner 4

2011-08-28T09:54:00.000-07:00

BACON AND CHEESE QUICHE
HOME FRIED POTATOES
Bacon and Cheese Quiche Ingredients:

1 9-inch pie crust, unbaked
1 Tablespoon butter
6 bacon slices, crumbled
1/2 pound sausage cooked and crumbled.
1 bag Italian blend shredded cheese (or mozzarella cheese)
4 eggs
2 cup heavy cream
¾ teaspoon salt
(I only had a 1 cup of heavy cream so to make up the other cup I mixed 1/3 cup melted butter with 3/4 cup milk)
Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Spread crust into pie plate or quiche plate. I used my 8x8 pyrex pan
2. Spread crust with butter. Sprinkle bacon, sausage and cheese on crust.
3. Beat eggs with rest of ingredients. Pour into crust.
4. Bake 15 minutes. Turn down to 325 degrees and bake 40 more min. Let stand 10 minutes.
(after reading online i should have put a tin foil "crown" around edges of crust so that way they wouldn't toast or burn)

Home Fried Potatoes Ingredients:

4 red potatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
Directions:

1. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat.
2. Add onion and green pepper. Cook, stirring often, until soft (about 5 minutes).
3. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
4. Pour remaining 2 tablespoons of oil into the skillet and turn heat to medium-high.
5. Add potato slices salt, paprika and black pepper. I also had a Cajun seasoning so I added a little for some heat.
6. Cook, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are browned.
7. Stir in the onions, green peppers and parsley and cook for another minute.

Benjamin

2011-08-26T20:00:00.000-07:00

He is my handsome boy, sitting in the bumbo eating a banana out of the masher thing.

Dinner 3

2011-08-26T19:52:00.000-07:00

PIZZA

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground sausage
1 jar pizza sauce
1 tubes refrigerator pizza crust
1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Pepperoni slices
1 small can pre sliced olives with jalapeños

Directions:

1. Brown the sausage in a skillet and drain.
2. Stir pizza sauce into browned hamburger and simmer until heated through.
3. Roll out pizza dough on a cookie sheet, Top with toppings
4. Bake 425 for 10 minutes

we also had another green salad to go with the dinner, I saved some of the cooked sausage to go in another meal, feel free to add or remove what ever toppings you like.

play group

2011-08-26T19:44:00.000-07:00

So I joined on online play group, with stay at home mom with kids about my kids age, we first meet at chick fil-a for breakfast then we went to Barnes and noble for a reading group. They also organized a play group to meet at the children's museum, so the kids and I went, I didn't recognize any one so i hung out whit the kids, i tried talking to some ladies with there kids, but that failed miserably, plus they pissed me off once Abby handed a lady a toy to give to her crying baby and the lady tosses it behind her, grrr

I was only able to catch a few shots, they did really good we were there for about 3 hours.

until nap time hit her hard, I have no idea why she was crying she was just standing there then wham the ugly cry came out.

Dinner 2

2011-08-24T18:17:00.000-07:00

HONEY PECAN PORK CHOPS

BAKED SWEET POTATOES

Feta and tomato salad.

Honey Pecan Pork Chops:

1 ¼ pounds boneless pork loin, pounded thin

½ cup all-purpose flour for coating

salt and pepper to taste

2 Tablespoons butter

¼ cup honey

¼ cup chopped pecans

Directions:

1. In a shallow dish, mix together flour, salt and pepper. Dredge pork cutlets in the flour mixture.

2. In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add chops, and brown both sides. Transfer to a warm plate.

3. I used a can of sweet potatoes dump into sauce pan add butter brown sugar and the 1/4 cup nuts, heat to boiling.

4. Mix honey and pecans into the pan drippings. Heat through, stirring constantly.

5. Pour sauce over cutlets. Serve with sweet potatoes and salad

super easy and very good!

cookies

2011-08-24T15:01:00.000-07:00

Today the kids and I went to the base library they had a reading time form 9:30 to 10:00. we sang some songs and read a really cute book http://www.amazon.com/Mommy-Do-You-Love-Me/dp/0763634700

Abby was shy and didn't really participate but she smiled the whole time, but when we sung wheels on the bus she knew that song and the actions so she was excited!

After that we all went to a play group in this sound proof kid room filled with toys, dress up and books. it was from 10-11. Ben was super tired and fussy but soon the other little girls noticed him it would ham it up and smile and coo and hide.

We got home and laid Ben down, Abby was just sitting with her toys not doing anything but zoning i think all these play groups have worn her out, i was able to lay her down at 11:30 and she napped all the way till 2:00. I went in my room and read my new book I cant put down http://www.amazon.com/Safe-Haven-Nicholas-Sparks/dp/044654759X i even fell asleep it was heaven!

After nap we all got up and Abby and I made some sugar cookies, I love cooking with her and she loves it too, I hope this is a child hood memory she always remembers is us in the kitchen making things.

Here are some pictures of her and I making cookies.

Dinners

2011-08-23T20:53:00.001-07:00

So I'm tired of the same thing every night so I am doing 7 new meals every night this week, tonight was:

EASY CHICKEN STROGANOFF

ITALIAN BREAD
TOSSED SALADEasy Chicken Stroganoff Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons butter
1 lb. chicken breast, cut in strips
2 cups mushrooms
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup sour cream
4 cups egg noodles
Directions:

1. Cook chicken in 1 Tablespoon butter. Remove.
2. Cook mushrooms and onions in remaining butter.
3. Stir in soup and sour cream. Heat until boiling.
4. Return chicken to the pan. Heat thoroughly.
5. Serve over noodles, with a tossed salad and buttered Italian bread.

I added feta cheese and cherry tomatoes to the salad. I also just used a small can of mushroom tops, since we don't care for mushrooms.
It was really good, Abby ate all of his dinner, and she had so much fun helping me make it. I froze some some of the left overs, don't know how they will re-heat but i figure it was a worth a try.

Utah

2011-08-20T07:55:00.000-07:00

ok now to finish with the fun!

We saw Great Grandma and grandpa Bartschi

I think they like each other.

reading to grandma

we also got to visit Great Grandma and Grandpa Price

handsome boy!

showing off, how to twirl

we went and watch doughnuts being made

then got to pick one out

now time to enjoy them! nice hot and fresh

WE got to help /aunt mino cook

So cute

sitting on the porch drinking her jamba juice

she spilled so she was cleaning it up.

Amanda and I did a relay fro life, it was a 15 hour walk.

We got to do it with our cousin

The braves cancer survivor i know, she had chemo, radiation, and a lumpectomy and she worked everyday, serving food to people in the hospital, she is an inspiration.

my awesome family

tough sisters

lighting the candles fro the night part of the walk

I had a blast and did so much more but dont have pictures of it, I'm happy Im able to come visit. I wish i had time with more people, but over all it was good.

Utah

2011-08-19T21:20:00.000-07:00

After we stopped in AZ and got our house we were able to drive to Utah a visit for a little bit here are some pictures of what we did.

Hill Air Force air museum

play at the slash pad on base.

Go to a Bartschi family reunion

blow bubbles

freeze our butts off at bear lake but abby had a blast!!

my sissy!!

enjoy canyon drives

go camping!

and four wheeling

find rocks, or deer beds with grandpa


have lunches with cousins! and Neil :)

explore dinosaurs

visit cousins

talk to friends on the phone

play dress out

ride the front runner, to the gatway

played in teh salt lake splash pad

went to children's museums

had back yard fire pit

ate a creamy

hung out with family and played around

enjoyed a jamba juice

tickling him, no she isnt hurting him, im not a bad mom and wont let her hurt him, so yea

made backyard snow cones

played in the dirt while wearing a dress

used her intimation and made ramps for cars

played with the dogs


loves cars

and barbie shoes

digging in dirt with grandpa

played in the swimming pool


all washed cleaned and ready for bed

I have more pictures but Im done for now so enjoy!

last time at duck pond

2011-08-19T20:53:00.000-07:00

There is a duck pond in San Antonio, that dustun and i use to go walk around, then we had Abby and i would take her there, so it was nice to also be able to take Ben there.

Dallas and Fort worth

2011-08-19T20:51:00.000-07:00

The last weekend before Dustun left we went to the Dallas Fort Worth area, and explored and did everything we wanted or thought Abby would like. I had very restful and fun weekend!

Day one we stopped in Waco to the Dr. Pepper museum and had ice cream!

Day two we went tot he zoo, it was a perfect day not to hot or to windy. Abby loved the animals, and I m pretty sure she walked the whole time.

after the zoo we drove around, and of course got a slurpee!

The buildings downtown were cool looking this building had a 3-d angel on it.

We found a restaurant on triple D, they were really good burgers

old truck in front

After words abby and I went to bakery and she got a cute cookie!

over all it was a good getaway.

moving

2011-08-18T11:21:00.000-07:00

We are moved to AZ now, we drove from TX to AZ and got a house set up then we drove from AZ to UT and visited family there for a while.
below are the pictured from the drive to AZ.

we had to put up a blanket so abby couldn't see hat we were eating, she was trying hard to look over it.

pretend your not eating anything, maybe she wont know.

nope she knows!

he is looking at her like she is crazy

kinda pretty but not very colorful

passed out from coloring

ben had another blow out so we stopped in new Mexico to get everything cleaned agian

getting goofy with hats

18 hours in the car, totally flew by! gotta love the laughs we have!

looking at the light

welcome to Arizona

AZ house

2011-08-18T09:30:00.000-07:00

front of house

upstairs looking down

looking at park from backyard.

looking up the stairs, straight into kitchen and left is living room

in front room looking at office and dinning room

laundry room and one of the back doors

back yard and patio

half bath downstairs

mater room, windows face back yard.

master bath window faces front of house

master closet

linen closet

hallway closet

Bens room looking down the stairs

kids bathroom

craft closet

Abbys room looking to mater room

looking at kitchen into laundry room from dining room

back door from dining room

pantry

front room in office facing the front

side of yard

we live in a round about.

I haven't taken the after pictures, but at least this way it gives you an idea of what the house looks like.

todays lesson

2011-08-18T09:03:00.000-07:00

I really don't know weather to classify this as homeschooling or just teaching the kids important building blocks. but either way, this morning i was feeling pretty motivated and organized, so i pulled out my learning box i have for Abby and we got started.
the things Abby and I did were:
practiced drawing straight lines to matching animals, she successfully matched all 8 animals together.
learning to color with in the lines, even if its still a jumbled mess you can tell she is trying to stay within the lines of the picture.
We sang our ABC song a couple of times, and of course the F fro fish was Abby so she carried the card around for a while say awww baby fish.
We practices writing and seeing "ABBY"
we practiced her fine motor skills by having her remove the back of the stickers.
we are learning to count correctly to three, because now she has gotten in the habit of saying ONE, TWO, FIVE. so we counted the 3 flower stickers the 3 bug stickers then we counted 3 buttons she could put in her brown parer bag we decorated.
we learned different shapes of the buttons, and cause and affect of putting things in a bag and then dumping them out, we also learned about the noises they make when you shake the bag. we are also learning to say BUTTON and not just BUTT
we also read from a princess comprehension book, so after i read the book i asked her a few questions and i helped her answer correctly.
now it is quiet reading time, so she is next to me reading and talking to her doll, while I'm blogging, Ben is napping, oh how i love a child that sleeps!

Ben updates, so while i was helping Abby grow and learn to be a bright helpful sweet woman, Ben was also learning how to crawl, climb over my legs, hold onto the learning box to stand, to move his legs in a walking fashion, how things roll, like my cup that had juice in it :) he learned about different textures from pipe cleaners and felt. sounds of buttons inside a jar, where his sisters bubble was :) and looked at the bag of crayons and all the sizes and colors.

homeschool

2011-04-13T07:47:00.000-07:00

Today is my first day at doing some homeschooling, I am nervous of how it will go, I fear a melt down from me or Abby, I fear I won't do a good job, or that I will fail her. But due to friends encouragement I know I can do anything I set my mind too, plus I taught her to roll over, crawl, sit-up, walk, run, play, eat, drink, talk, so might as well have all those things I taught her go towards more activity's we all do everyday.

Today's lesson is the letter B and the color Blue
I gathered many things that are blue, or that started with the letter B.
we colored the letter B with a Blue crayon, We made blue macaroni, traced, and said words that started with B.

She played with the Alphabet stamps, she stacked them and we said our A B C's.

She loved the Macaroni the Best, She moved it back and forth from one bowl to the next. It is so interesting to see her intensity with doing a task. She has such a mind set to task and is so stubborn with doing the task.

To wrap it up we did a Baby Einstein Video, went outside to look at the Baby Birds outside.

All in All today being my first day I am very happy with how everything went.

Fun Activites

2011-03-19T17:43:00.000-07:00

Dustun is TDY he went to Mississippi for a couple of months, he will be back soon, so before he left we had a few family days together, I know he enjoyed them, he is always saying he is happy to be a dad, and I have to admit he is good at being a dad, I know I can leave and know everything will be good. We went to a children's museum in NewBraunfels , so cool, and the best part of that day was there was like 3 other family's so we had free range of the place.

We have also went to a hockey game, Candice found out about military appreciation night got a babysitter fro the 2 older kids, so us adults and Ben went to a game, so much fun!
We also got to use a hotel accommodations so we went swimming for the first time this season, so much fun, I got Ben asleep and I got to enjoy the hot tub! Abby loved the water!
We all went downtown to the children's museum, it is so much fun seeing the two kids play together.

We also went to the fair part of the rodeo, so much fun I swear I could ride rides all day long! I think of it as a positive that dustun doenst like the rides and candice loves them, so i dont feel bad riding with out him.
I have had so much fun this year, I cant wait to see what else we get to do!

Training Week of 3/6/11

2011-03-10T16:13:00.000-08:00

Here is my training schedule for this week, that my awesome cousin put together for me

MONDAY:
Cardio:
Jog/Walk for 30 minutes (jog as long as you can, walk for a couple minutes, then jog again)
Abs:
50 crunches (do as many as you can- if you need to split it up throughout the day, you can)
*I jogged for a min then walked for 2 and repeated the 30 min, at my 15 min mark I did 25 sit ups, then when i got done I did the other 25

TUESDAY:
Lower Body Workout:
Squats x 20 (feet shoulder-width apart, squat down like you are sitting in a chair. Make sure your knees don't go over your toes, this can cause injuries.)
Walking Lunges x 10 (each side, 20 total)
Standing Calf Raises x 20 (Stand with feet a little apart, and rise up on your toes then back down. You can hold onto the wall for balance.)
Side Leg Lifts x 15 (Lying on your side, lift top leg up towards the ceiling and back down. 15 lifts per leg.)
*REPEAT LOWER BODY WORKOUT
Upper Body Workout:
Bicep Curls x 10 (I usually use a 10 lb. weight, but you can use less or more depending on how you feel)
Overhead Tricep Extension x 10
Front Fly's x 10 (use a lower weight for this one, I usually use a 3 or 5 lb. weight)
Hammer Curls x 10
Dips x 5
Push Ups x 10 (use your knees for support if you need to)
*I'll admit I started on Tuesday but never finished till Wednesday, lol the life of busy and disruption and just plain tired from no sleep.

Wednesday:
Cardio:
Jog/Walk for 45 minutes (jog as long as you can, walk for a couple minutes, then jog again)
Abs:
50 crunches (do as many as you can- if you need to split it up throughout the day, you can)
*today is Thursday and I am doing this workout today, ill I have done is 25 sit ups and 25 crunches and yes i am a mom so it took me 30 minutes to do due to other priority's but something and better then nothing and i was working out and not munching on yummy junk! I plan to do my cadio after kids are down. never mind, done.

Thursday:
Lower Body Workout:
Squats x 20 (feet shoulder-width apart, squat down like you are sitting in a chair. Make sure your knees don't go over your toes, this can cause injuries.)
Walking Lunges x 10 (each side, 20 total)
Standing Calf Raises x 20 (Stand with feet a little apart, and rise up on your toes then back down. You can hold onto the wall for balance.)
Side Leg Lifts x 15 (Lying on your side, lift top leg up towards the ceiling and back down. 15 lifts per leg.)
*REPEAT LOWER BODY WORKOUT
Upper Body Workout:
Bicep Curls x 10 (I usually use a 10 lb. weight, but you can use less or more depending on how you feel)
Overhead Tricep Extension x 10
Front Fly's x 10 (use a lower weight for this one, I usually use a 3 or 5 lb. weight)
Hammer Curls x 10
Dips x 5
Push Ups x 10 (use your knees for support if you need to)

Friday:
Cardio:
Jog/Walk for 30 minutes (jog as long as you can, walk for a couple minutes, then jog again)
Abs:
50 crunches (do as many as you can- if you need to split it up throughout the day, you can)

Well I finished my week of workout, if i had stayed on track i would've been done on Friday, but since I was busy I never finished until Sunday night at 11:30 in a hotel room!
I guess the moral of the workout week is to keep with it, do as much as i can fro as long as i can and it will start to pay off.

Snow in San Antonio

2011-02-06T16:16:00.000-08:00

Ok so it's not what I'm use too, but it is the closest i will get while we live here. It started out as I was feeding Ben and I was on Facebook, I noticed a lot of people wrote there was snow, so i asked dustun since he was up getting ready, he said there was, so i put Ben back to bed looked out my window and sure enough there was some white cold stuff on the ground and cars!! I went and woke up Candice at 6:00 am to tell her to come out and look, I though she was going to kill me, she never gets to sleep in and here i was waking her up to look at snow, lol oh well :) i got a few pictures snapped and then we all went back to bed, since work was canceled for everyone.

When the kids got up we went out side and walked in it, it crunched just enough to make me smile even more, I forgot how much I love snow and how much Ive missed it, I mean I was so excited over the tiniest amount, the major danger was the fact the roads was ice over the town was a giant ice rink, I heard there was a report 700 accidents, scary.
After that we all made a nice big breakfast, we had French toast, scrambled egg, oranges and hot chocolate.

It was also a perfect day, for pjs and movies, so that what we did all morning!
Our Snow day!!

Benjamin

2011-02-02T12:21:00.000-08:00

My little man is 7 weeks old.

And everyday he stills my heart, with his smile, his cooing, with those big blue eyes that are only filled with joy and love.
Benjamin I love you!!

Birthday!

2011-01-31T07:58:00.000-08:00

Abigail had a great birthday this year, she was so happy and just like always very cute!
I decided to do a Barbie them, so I made her a Barbie cake.
She had some cool barbie birthday baloons.
And of course her new birthday special Barbie plate to eat her cake on.
We invite over her other friend Dallyn over to enjoy pizza and cake, I was also happy to have my friend Ashely over.
She got some new pretty plates and bowls, some headbands, a happy birthday build a bear, a new school back pack, sippy/treat cup, books and some other little toys. From Dustun and I we got her a barbie, a pillow for her big girl bed and we gave her some shirts and pants a little before her birthday, and from Doug and Nancy we put the money they gave us towards Abagail's own little recliner for her room. (cant wait to see it)
After presents, we had some of the yummy cake! This year Abby was excited to see it, last year she was unsure of it all, Dustun film it, candice brought her the cake I was busy feeding Ben, so I took some photos.
After that we called Great Grandma Bartschi, had had her sing Happy Birthday, which of course made me cry and think if Ben will hear it. Then we Skyped mom and dad, Abby was on a sugar high and so was every one else so it was crazy! lol
Then we went outside and played in the ball pit, in the cars and on the slide, hey we had to try and wear the kids out and get rid of the sugar in the system.
Her best gift is her baby brother being here to enjoy it with her.
All in all we had a great day, a great birthday, I'm excited to see what new things Abby does in the next year.
From the Calrsen we say, love you!

Abby is TWO!!!

2011-01-31T07:53:00.000-08:00

Has it really been two years since she was born?

Or really a year since she was one?

Now shew is two, and just as amazing as ever!

Bye Bye Binkie

2011-01-30T22:44:00.000-08:00

Well I did it, I got rid of Abigail binkie, I have wanted to get rid of it since she was 6 moths old, but I always found a reason not to, such as, we are living in strange place, we are moving, she is teething, I am starting to babysit another baby, teething, well soon I was the one attached to it, every time I though about getting rid of it I would get nervous and be afraid of her not sleeping or her crying and me loosing my mind, I knew it was a quick fix, if she was fussy or tired i gave it to her an poof problem "gone" I have always been good about it, she wasnt one of those kids that always had it in there mouth, she got it in the car when needed, and always at nap/bed time, and sometimes just when she was a bit fussy. If you would told her to take it out to talk, she would, if you told her to put in back in her bed with her baby doll she would. I have gotten close and "tried" to get rid of it before, I almost cut the nipple so she would like it but soon my head got to me and I freaked out at the though of how she might be with out it, so i put the scissor down and popped her binkie back in her mouth and laid her down to bed.
I knew I had to get rid of soon I wanted it gone before she was 2, and all of a sudden when I laid her down for bed, I did everything we always do, books, song, prayer, gave her dolly and her sippy of milk, I told her she was a big girl and didnt need binkies, I gave her a kiss and walked out, I was scared i went downstairs in my bathroom turned the fan on to tune out the crying and screaming, after i read a few articles and I was hopping it was all over i came out, asked how long she had been upset, and to my surprise she didnt make a peep, later that night i went it and looked on her she was fast asleep, with no binkie.
That night I dreamt about finding binkies every where i tossed and turned, I never realized how much i really was attached to those things, The next day I neber said the "B" word, she had napped and sleeplt great, she hasnt ask fro them nor have I offered them to her. I am so happy to say my baby no longer has a binkie!

Birthday Eve

2011-01-29T19:33:00.000-08:00

January 29, Today is Abby's birthday eve, I cant believe she will be 2 in the morning, my baby is growing to fast.Today we went to the mall and spent the money and gift card her Antie B and Great grandma Joyce gave her. Before we left for the mall, we made the cakes so they would be nice and cooled down for me to ice later tonight, the kids loved having some batter! look out bandit is on the prowl.
First we went to the Disney store, with the money she got from Great Grandma Joyce, she got some new princesses plates, and new play cell phone. she had so much fun running around grabbing everything she could.
After there, we went to build a bear since thats were Auntie B and Sheldon got her a gift card too, she had fun picking out her new friends, and her new clothes. She was so cute kissing the heart and putting it in the bear.
When we got all done since she did good, considering it was 6:00 and she hadn't napped all day, I bought a cookie for her to share.
Last picture of my one year old, wow tomorrow is another year of excitement , lets see where God takes us now!

A few things

2011-01-27T13:58:00.000-08:00

So I have had a few things on my mind, maybe if I write them down I can get some insight and help or encouragement.
First thing is Abby going to preschool, she kinda is in one all ready but I would love to have a little mommy group were we all switch off on doing the weeks lesson at each other house, I wonder if anyone is doing this or teaches a class.
Also I have been thinking about becoming a substitute teacher I read this last night: http://www.nisd.net/hr/substitutes/faqs/preHire/
And from here say, you can make 75 dollars a day. I think this will get my foot in the door to see if I really want to be a teacher, and if I do then I can start school. But my question is, what to I do with my kids if I get called into work? Find a stay at home mom and have her be my back up?
My other thoughts are starting to watch a new kid, she pays 500.00 a month whether the kid is in my care or not, If i did watch her it would be from 2-10 pm M-F and she naps a little after 2 and goes to bed about 6:00, the mom is single and is on a swing rotation, so it probably wouldn't be any more then a few months that I have her. I would only have Abby, Benjamin and her for a few hours by myself, and I have been able to watch 3 klids before, then when samuel does come home from full time school, Candice will be home to help me, and dustun said he is willing to help me on his days off. I dont watch Samuel anymore, And for me I need to feel wanted and important and like I'm contributing to the house hold, I do undserstand that I'm raising two wonderful children, making sure the bills are paid, laundry is done, food is in house, and all is in order, but i want to have my "own" money to spend as I wish. I know people think that im crazy or that I might be taking on to much, but I kinda feel like I should.
And my last thoughts are Candice and Samuel continue to stay living with us, last week she went and applied for an apartment, and when i told dustun he was upset we didnt talk to him about it first, he was upset she and Samuel wanted to move, we as husband and wife discussed the pro's and con's of all of us staying living together we decide to them stay here, we know one of us will be getting orders to somewhere soon, so we will continue this living situation until one of us gets orders. We enjoy having each other around to help each other, yes it is crazy, but right now I cant think of anything better then having my best friend, my husband and Abby growing up with her best friend. Yes we get on each other nerves and there are fights, but you get that with any living situation.
So thats what in my mind currently, along with every other thing that goes along with being a good wife and mother.

first birthday school party

2011-01-27T13:35:00.000-08:00

Abby had her first school party today, last night the cupcakes were made and frosted, and today as i sent Abby to school i brought in cupcakes for her and her classmates to enjoy. I wanted to come and have lunch with her but i was afraid she would get upset if i left her again, so i opted for her to stay and have fun with her class mates. When i picked her up she was excited to see me, she kept saying cupcake cupcake, her teacher miss Barbra said she took pictures so i cant wait to see them!
After school I took her and Benjamin to the park, she played with rocks the whole time, Benjamin ate the whole time, so all was typical on that. When we came home, I had her open her gift from her teacher, it was a little stuffed animal,a book and some other fun toy.
I cant belive she is almost 2 years old, it seems like just yesturday she was born, it has been a fun, crazy, adventurs 2 years, but I have loved every minute of it!
Happy soon to be birthday my little bug, mommy loves you!

my kids

2011-01-21T13:04:00.000-08:00

I have put this blog to the side, as I have been keeping busy, my goal is to try and do at least one blog post a week, so this post will be about my kids, wow that is still weird to say.
Updates:
Benjamin, is growing up so fast, he is rolling over, holding his head up, following you with his eyes, smiles, coo's, laughs, his two favorite things are being swaddled, and my boob. He is a co-sleeper, yes i know the cons to it, but i also know the pros to it, i do take extra safety steps, but it is easier for him to sleep right next to me, since he likes to stay up at night and loves to have me as his human pacifier.
He is growing so fast, his weight is good, he nurses like a pro, we were able to wait 5 1/2 weeks before he got his first bottle, it was bitter sweet, but I know he liked it and now I can have someone least to share the feeding at night, now to pump to get more of a storage. i love his so much, I feel very blessed to have him. Thank you God for trusting me with another one of your children.
Abigail, oh my gosh in a few days she will be 2, i have no idea to what to do for her, theme, gifts, or party, I wish i was closer to family so we can have a party, and last year was a bust no one showed up except Candice and Samuel, so I'm not wasting my time in hand making invites and playing and buying stuff (ok rant over)
Abby favorite things to do is color, dance, laugh, and have tantrums, working the tantrum part, it is so hard to deal with her some days. She is loving school, I'm loving her going, I love the art work, i love watching her interacted with other boys and girls, and ill be honest i love the "free" time i get.
She has moved to a big girl bed, i was scared, i had been reading on how and when to do it, i left the crib in there I figured i would let her choose which bed she wanted, but once she saw her big girl bed she never looked back to her "baby" bed, she stayed in bed the first night, the first nap, and everyday since, only once has she pulled out clothes out of her drawer, but i had her put them back and it hasn't happed again, she gets to read her books, she will either go to her bed or the chair and read, in the after noon sometimes he sleeps, sometime she just has her own hour of quiet time.
I am very blessed to have her, she is hard to deal with, but when she is happy it makes my day. I love her very much.

some pictures for your enjoyment;

Benjamins birth story

2010-12-22T08:13:00.000-08:00

Dec 13, 2010

Water broke at 8:30 am

Got kids ready dropped them off at friends house got to Hosptial about 9:30

Had a few test done to see if it was my water waiting for results

Got results back they said it was my water

They did an ultrasound to check the fluid level and since he had enough around him that i was free to go home. And if I had another gush, or if i keep leaking to come in I also had to make sure to do my movement counts.

Came home took a nice nap, relaxed and did more decorating of the house. Drank some OJ to make sure he was moving good, have also done the breast pump which is suppose to help bring on contractions, I haven't had any, i was suppose to do it 20 min 20 min off for 2 hours, but I've only done it twice, it hurts and plus I have things I need to do tomorrow.

It's now 10:30 and im still home.

December 14th

Went into my mid wife, she checked me out, said baby sounds great, is very low and ready to come out, I'm dilated to a 4 and 85% effeced. She told me to go eat, then go home and hook myself up to the pump to keep the natural contractions going. An he should be here soon! And if he is not by tomorrow to go in a demand to be seen. She also gave me some natural medicine to help with my nervous and to help feel the contractions. It was these small pills that she put under my tongue that dissolved and tasted sweet. She also stripped my membranes. So now time to eat, and see what happens next. After lunch I went on as normal, went to post office, picked kids up from school, went to the car wash, then to target, there we had a shopping cart of stuff and I told Candice I needed to go to the bathroom when I stood up ( I was sitting in the deluxe kid seat in shopping cart) she said your water broke, my blue jeans were noticeably wet, so she loaded kids to car, I went to bathroom to see what I had, then I called Dustun I told him to stay put until otherwise noted. When I called my midwife she told me to hook myself up to the breast pump and do 20 min on and 20 off for two hours and if by 7pm I still wasn't have contractions to go in. So I lined up a sitter and Candice and I took off. Dustun was out with Abby doing one last father daughter activity before his son arrived. We went and grabbed some food knowing it was going to be a long night and they wouldn't allow me to eat. I just got a jamba juice. We went to triage and explained that my I had 2 gushes of fluid in 2 days. They did another ultrasound said he looked good. I was afraid they were going to send me home. Candice could tell I was upset, so I texted my mid wife and asked her what I should do and her response was: Are they checking to see if your water is intact? Question them re: GBS & broken water-it is a risk factor, make them explain why they're willing to take that risk. So now that I was armed with a loaded question I felt confident that I wasnt going to be turned away. But lucky for me the doctor came in and said if I wanted to be induced they would do it. So of course I said yes. After that I called Dustun told him to come. And then they started my IV and took me to my birth room. As all three of us got settled in we talked, joked around, watched tv.

December 15, 2010

Once I got settled into my room I was hooked up to piton, my contractions were bearable. At 4 am they came in and broke my water. That when things started to speed up more I was still doing good. At some point I did ask for some IV pain meds which are wonderful I was finally sleeping between contractions. I do remember getting sick and throwing up and the nurse saying that was good that meant it was going to be happening soon. I just remember moving my phone off my belly so I didn't get it dirty. Yes yes I had my phone with me :) soon after that I don't remember much I do remember was asking where my epidural was I was yelling it to anyone who would listen I dont think anyone was. I would rest for what seemed to be only few seconds between contractions, and Candice stood by my side asking if I needed to push, she gave me words of encouragement and was on the phone telling Dustun to hurry to the Hosptial and to bring the kids since all our sitters that we did have lined up failed. (We had 5 set up amazing how no one could help anyways) the anastegiologist finally showed up he asked if I could sit up I told him no so I rolled on my side curled up to a ball and had many contractions and feeling like I was about to poop, he cleaned my back and gave me the numbing drugs, he kept telling me to not move, I remember Candice telling him i was in a contraction so I couldn't hold still soon after that my body could no longer stop Benjamin from coming to this world, here I was in bed on my side with his head half way out, feeling everything, no doctors paying any attention to me, upset that my friends failed me and that I didn't know where Dustun was, I was happy I wasn't alone Candice kept saying, I can do anything with Christ. So I had the lord there by my side helping me bring one of his sons into this world for me to take care of.

Finally someone noticed Benjamin coming out they stopped the epidrual and somehow I ended and the end of the bed, the next thing I remember was looking down to see Benjamin make his very quick entrance. Dustun walked in the door right as the doctor caught him. Benjamin was placed on my belly and there he was cleaned he was perfect. Dustun got to cut the cord, he was so happy.

So the things that were told to me about his delivery was done, apparently the resident doctor had his back to me lining up all his tools and the doctor tapped him on the shoulder and said, "hey see that? It's a baby catch it" then the resident doctor apparently tried pushing Benjamin back and he was stopped and was told to stop and catch him.

Once Benjamin was on the warmer I looked around and said wow there is a lot of people in the room to bad no one checked on me between 4 and 8:30 or came in at 6:30 when I was asking for pain meds and a epidrual. Amazingly I never needed any stitches and I felt great after having him. Now knowing that I did it I wish I did it at home, I feel like things would have gone smoother and more calmly if I had. And I now know I can do it with out being numbed up.

So that is Benjamins birth story. I plan on blogging more as soon as I can.

comming soon

2010-12-21T20:22:00.001-08:00

Will be blogging very soon. Here are some pictures!

(pictures are in reverse order,sorry)
12-19-1012-18-10
12-17-10
12-15-10

Date nights

2010-12-07T17:56:00.000-08:00

So the last few nights I have wanted to try and get in as many "dates" as possible, cause soon I'll be in the hospital bringing a new little one into this world, then I'll be home taking care of the new gift from God.

I was able to go shopping with Abby the other night, just mommy and daughter, we went to the mall and exchanged her boots for a bigger size, then we went to baby r' us and get her baby brother some diapers, then I decided why not finish the date with a movie, well since I didn't have any food, drink or diapers to last through a movie I bought some nessesties there also.
Then we went and got changed and made up a bag with all her new goodies to eat and drink and off we went to a late movie. We saw the new movie Tangled, so very cute. She sat next next and soon she currled up on my lap and there we watched the movie the movie theater was packed but to me it was just me and her, I watched her expression as she watch the movie, I felt her breath, I watched her laugh, and oww and aww over the cute sence. She would randomly look up and kiss me. this was the best date ever.
(forgot camera, :( so no pictures, but trust me we are cute as can be!)

The following night Abby Dustun and I went to sonic for a late dinner, she got a grilled cheese, banana, and milk, I figured since we were sitting there eating she could get out of her car seat, at that point she stopped eating and was being a crazy climber in the blazer, laughing and squealing in delight, my heart was very full of joy as I watched her.

Today when I took her to school, I figured I should probably get a picture, just in case its the last time I am not carrying a new born in with me. I love that she goes to school, she has so much fun, coloring, learning about all the great things in this world, and playing outside, or inside if its too cold. Her favorite thing is the baby's and the buggies she will always go to them, and today when I picked her up, she was carrying one around, I love it!
(Look at her hair it looks silly, like she has a flat top, lol )
After I dropped off the kids Dustun and I went on a breakfast date, we went to Denny's, we got hot chocolate, (the best) orange cranberry pancakes, ham steak, hash browns, and eggs. Dustun got moons over my hammy. Our waitress was so nice, she even gave me a free fruit cup, it really had the best strawberry's, grapes and Bananas.
So the new game we all seem to be enjoying is words with friends, its a I-phone app. Its basically online scrabble, so while we waited for our food we were playing each other trying to get a better word with more points. The first game I beat dustun, me crystal playing a spelling game won!!
When I picked the kids up from school, I took them to he park to play for a bit, here we are being goofy playing around.

After the park we came home, and after their evening snack, I let them play with the snowflakes, putting them on the windows and taking them off they enjoyed it, and it was so cute!
I am very blessed in all the great things God has provided for me, my spunky 2 year old, my almost here baby boy, my husband, all my family near and far, all my friends, my health, my security in knowing we will be provided for and never have to worry about jobs or homes or money.

Tantrums

2010-12-01T16:29:00.000-08:00

So for about 3 weeks I have been dealing with Abby and her tantrums, I don't know if it's terrible twos, lack of sleep, due to her bad dreams, separation anxiety, her knowing she no longer going to be the "baby" or what's going on. Some days I can handle her with open arms and love where all I do is give her everything and anything she wants, some days I try to help her and then end up ignoring her until she is done screaming because apparently nothing I do or offer her is what she wants. Some days I laugh at how silly she looks when she is pushing her tears out. And some days I can't handle her at all and I have to get away either by a shower or physically leave the house so I wake Dustun up or call Candice to watch the kids.

I feel like a bad mom cause I don't know why she is acting this way or how I can fix it. I feel like a bad mom cause somedays and many moments I dont want to be around her. All I want to do is run away.

As miss Tyler swift says: And you're tied together with a smile but you're coming undone

Benjamin

2010-12-01T08:10:00.000-08:00

38+4
It is still hard for me to realize that I am pregnant, I have been blessed to have such great pregnancy, the only time I notice I'm pregnant is when I walk past a full mirror, or try to put my contacts in and hit my belly on sink, or trying to do laundry, reaching and bending is hard to do. And the biggest Que is the fact he is a constant mover and grover, I love it!
My weight has been good, I have only gained 25 pounds since being pregnant, but only 16 from my pre pregnancy weight. My blood pressure has all ways been even, and the one time I thought maybe my water was leaking turn out to not be, guess I was just peeing, lol and I am 2 cm dilated I hope that means i'll be having him sooner rather then later!
I am still able to do the things I want or need to do, all though it take me longer and I have to stop to sit, drink water or relax, I can do it, if I cant I ask for help and I always get it.

Here is how he is growing according to baby center:
How your baby's growing:
Your baby has really plumped up. He weighs about 6.8 pounds and she's over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). She has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold her hand for the first time! Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.

Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? You may not be able to tell right away. If she's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If she's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time she's 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after she's born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.)

How your life's changing:

For many women, the next couple of weeks are a waiting game. Use this time to prepare your baby's nursery or to take care of necessary tasks you may not get around to for a while after your baby's born. Take naps, catch up on your reading, and spend uninterrupted time with your partner while you can.

Some swelling in your feet and ankles is normal during these last weeks, but call your practitioner without delay if you notice excessive or sudden swelling of your feet or ankles, more than slight swelling of your hands, any swelling in your face or puffiness around your eyes, or have a sudden weight gain. Also let her know immediately if have severe or persistent headaches; visual changes (such as double or blurred vision, seeing spots or flashing lights, light sensitivity, or a temporary loss of vision), intense upper abdominal pain or tenderness, or nausea and vomiting. These are symptoms of a serious condition called preeclampsia.

The only thing that I have that I didn't with Abby is some common bacteria infection the only thing is I will be on antibiotics when I go into labor, so that way I don't give it to him.

I have also wanted to do a at home water birth I have a mid wife in my ward, here is her website:
http://beginbeautifully.com/
I have done a lot reading about pros and cons, I'm still at a toss up, I guess I'll just see what fills right when it starts to happen. I am excited to have this little guy join our crazy family!

A typical Day

2010-11-30T11:32:00.000-08:00

Here I am about to have a baby and here is what my day was yesterday:
Wake up at 5:30 gotta pee for the 5 time
Toss and turn until 7:00 get up get ready for day
Finish putting hang up clothes away.
Pack lunch boxes, and diaper bags, make breakfast.
Feed kids, load up kids and dog in car, pick up dustun.
Drop kids off at school
Drop bandit off at groomers.
Go to military clothing sales, find winter PT gear for Dustun.
Call around to get an estimate to get a window fixed
Go to the other base pick up a package Candice needs to mail.
Go to ATM, have homeless lady ask for money, drive off go to another ATM.
Go get Breakfast, which it is 11 so we get a big mac and fries
Go home, eat our lunch
Dustun finally goes to bed.
Watch a half hour of tv in peace. :)
Get up to pay bills
Get a call saying window guy is on his way.
Finish bills
Start dinner.
Put Benjamin clothes away and start a donation pile of some of Abby's old things.
Talk to window repair man.
Almost finish dinner, start fire while trying to boil water (don't ask)
leave house, pick up kids from school.
Drive to hospital both them and I have appointments
Drop Samuel off at front door with Candice,.
Drive around forever to find a parking spot.
Go into hospital get Abby BP checked.
Take her with me to get my blood drawn
Wait 45 min to get my medicine.
Samuels all done with his appointment and getting shots, we say good bye
Go back to peds office wait to be told my appointment was canceled some how.
request to speak with doctor, this has been a 3 month process to get seen by her normal doctor and 3 reschedules, ( I'm frustrated)
Ask to get a medical form signed for her school.
Got lost trying to find my car, find it, put Abby in car, and I sit on a bench next to car and take some deep breaths because ever since I said I picked kids up from school Abby has been in complete melt down mode ig: kicking screaming,crying wont walk, doesn't want to be held, throws everything you give her on ground, ext. (no nap at school today, and she didn't sleep well that night)
Get a voice mail saying bandit is done and they will be closing in 10 min, I'm 20 minutes away.
Drive to get bandit
Pick bandit up
Drive home
Abby finally asleep 5 min away from home
Bring her inside, lay her down realize her room is a mess from me not finishing my project 4 hours ago.
Go downstairs, finish Dinner
Call up Ashely and invite her and her son over for dinner and so Candice can do hair cuts
Dustun wakes up
Abby wakes up
We all sit down and eat dinner
I get a package from my mom that has been to 3 different addresses. I thought it was lost
Dustun gets ready for work and goes.
Abby is still been in melt down mode since waking up
Give her a bath at 6:30 and lay her down for bed at 6:45
come downstairs, talk with my friends while hair cuts for boys is going on.
Candice puts Samuel down for bed
then we all go into office and talk
Ashley leaves
Candice and I sit down and watch an hour TV show, and eat pumpkin pie
I think about cleaning kitchen and thats as far as that went.
went to bed at 10:00pm passed out until 8:00 am today. I don't think I woke up to pee.

Doctors

2010-11-28T14:29:00.000-08:00

The last few weeks has had many doctor visit for Abby's BP monitor, 3 times a week is a lot, thankfully I have had a lot of help and it really hasn't been that big of a deal. Candice, Dustun and I have all taken our turns in taking Abby, or watching Samuel, so I haven't needed to take both kids into the hospital by myself, (Thank you guys, with out you I don't know where I would be, you both help out so much and I love you guys)
Abby does so well waiting to get checked in, and getting it done, her BP has been good, they are higher then the normal kid range which is 88/42, and hers is 95/52, but that is a lot less then it has been in the past it use to be, 117/90's and one time it was very high they had to immediately give her meds to drop it it was in the 140's/ something cant remember.
Everyone at he office knows her and are excited to see her.
My cute little bug, watching toy story 3 on my phone.

Auto trade show

2010-11-28T13:39:00.000-08:00

On another weekend we went to a auto trade show, to look at all the new 2011 model cars, it was fun they had all kind of vehicles from all sorts of makers, Abby loved sitting in the driver seat test "driving" them all, I never wanted to me a min van mom but I found one I like a lot, the Toyota sienna, go here funny (http://youtu.be/ql-N3F1FhW4) and I also found a 3rd row car I love, the Chevy traverse and of course dustun found his dream cars,this is bubble bee from the transformer movie.

Dustun got into the car, look how happy the kid is!
But not so happy when he and his partner in crime got caught driving to leave the building in the car, lol
And since chevy is an American car they had this one painted very patriotic, it was an awesome paint job, I wish it wasn't so dark.
This was a real pool table I think that is awesome!
Samuel, Abby, and Candice in the old Army croozers.
Abby had to put the "hat" on, it was way heavy even for her head.
I am so happy we brought the wagon the kids did good, they got to play and run around but also loved being pulled in it.
I look tired, maybe someone who is about to give birth should not go into an inflatable bounce house and do the obstacle course! oh well I had fun!

weekend fun for Abby

2010-11-28T13:29:00.000-08:00

While Dustun and I were in Austin, Candice watched Abby for us, she and my other best buddy Morgan, took both the kids to the natural bridge wildlife ranch, which is 400 acres of wild animals that come up to the car so you can pet them and feed them. They said they loved it. I am so happy Abby loves animals and going on adventures!
Nice Zebra
Zebra wanting more food.
my favorite zoo animal.

Morgan and Abby

Weekend fun

2010-11-28T13:20:00.000-08:00

A few weekends ago, Candice suggested that Dustun and I get away for a weekend before Benjamin arrives, so we packed up and headed to Austin. They were having a comic con, I knew Dustun would love it and all it's geekness, and I knew I would love to people watch,I was right. there was so many people dressed up in so many characters from different things, some costumes were awesome, some not so much. I got to see the original, bat-mobile, and batman and robin, and the hulk, I was excited.
We had a really nice hotel, and had a wonderful dinner, and for breakfast we order room service, it was so good, I stuffed myself silly. It was a nice getaway.

look at her arms! wow I want them!
bat-mobile
the Hulk
Dustun and his storm trooper friends
me and hit girl form the movie kick ass

Christmas list

2010-11-10T08:24:00.000-08:00

I figured I would write down a christmas list so that way I can answer everyones questions all at once.

Abby loves baby dolls, cars, trucks, dress up stuff, shoes, jewelry, books, educational DVD's sesames street, baby Einstein's , anything with a princess on it, coloring/art stuff, anything that will get her imagination to work.

Her sizes are in these general areas: Shoes she is currently in a 5 but will soon need size 6. Pants are about 18 months, shirts, 24 months, PJ's 2T.

Dustun would love gift cards to game store so he can buy some games, any cool new DVD's or CD's

I would love a digital picture frame, a new vacuum, gift card to get a massage :) and of course the always popular anything pretty and sparkling!

Benjamin, he will be really little so a new rattle, binkie, swaddling blankets, PJs, clothes. we will be in the size ranging on newborn to 0-3 months.

Doctor drama update

2010-11-10T07:31:00.000-08:00

Man who would have thought uping Abby dosage of blood pressure medicine would have been so stressful. Her appointment at Santa rosa was last tuesday and just as of monday i got it all worked out, Wilford hall for liability reason couldn't check her blood pressure and Santa rosa wanted me to come in and get charged for every doctors office visit. I was told I need to have tri-care approve an at home nurse for Abby or get an at home blood pressure monitor. Finally I gave the nurse the santa rosa doctors number and she spent all day figuring it out, conclusions is Wilford hall will see abby 3 times a week every week for 2 months but if there is any changes that need to be made in her medicine they have to have written consent from sana rosa hospital. Fair enough, as long as she is getting checked and we can get her medicine to be correct for her new height and weight. Then I will be happy.

So one of the last appointments I had for abby at wilford hall her doctor asked in Abby was enrolled in the EMFP I had no idea what it was so she explained what it is:

The Military Services use the term Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP) to refer to two different functions: a personnel function and a family support function.

The EFMP personnel function:

Is a mandatory program for all active duty service members.
Is standard across all Services.
Identifies family members with special medical and/or educational needs,
Documents the services they require, and
Considers those needs during the personnel assignment process (especially when approving family members for accompanied travel to overseas locations).
Involves the personnel and medical commands and the Department of Defense educational system overseas.

The Air Force’s Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP) is designed to provide support to military family members with special needs. EFMP Services includes a variety of personnel, medical, and family support functions. The Exceptional Family Member Program – Family Support (EFMP-FS) is the community support function provided by the Airman and Family Readiness Centers (A&FRCs) that includes, but is not limited to, on-and off-base information and referral, parent training, support groups, relocations assistance, financial management, and school information.

The Special Needs Identification Assignment Coordination process (SNIAC) provides medical information management support for EFMP enrollment functions, and coordinates relocations for families who have medical or educational needs. "Both EFMP-FS and SNIAC work together with EFMP-Assignments at the Air Force Personnel Center (AFPC) to provide comprehensive and coordinated medical, education, community support, assignment coordination as well as housing accommodation to families enrolled in the EFMP program.

EFMP enrollment is mandatory and required immediately upon identification of a special need.

I wish I would have known about this last march when we found out about everything, but now I know and I can turn in the paperwork and get enrolled. It will be nice to have specialist help, I am nervous about moving to AZ because when I looked up this:

For the 2010-11 rankings, U.S. News requested data from 170 pediatric centers and used survey results from thousands of physicians in 10 pediatric specialties who were asked where they would send the sickest children. In all, 62 hospitals ranked in at least one specialty. The Honor Roll features eight hospitals that ranked in all 10

In kidney and urology AZ never made the list but in the list Texas made the list 4 and 3 times for each specialty. And Here in San Antonio we have the highest ranking hospitals for her condition, I know if anything God for bid happened she would have the best of the best care here, in AZ i'm unsure.

I have to put my faith in the Lord he knows the best thing for us, but sometimes its hard to fully understand whats going on.

Doctors apointment

2010-11-02T12:24:00.000-07:00

Well today has been a long long day and it's not even over.

Abby and I went to Christus Santa Rosa for her kidney appointment, it took 3 hours, and a lot of waiting, we had to get a urine sample, the good thing was they did the bag rather then a catheter, and had to get her blood pressure take 5 times, then they had to give her an oral medication to bring her pressure down cause it was so high. The side affects were she seemed really tired and her temputare went up so her checks and ears were red. They asked all the normal questions. They told me they need to increases her blood pressure medicine from 2 ML once a day to 1.5 mil twice a day, and the other medicine she stays the same dosage. And now I have to go to the hospital, monday, wednesday, and friday about the same time to get her blood pressure monitored for 2 months. I am very grateful for Dustun working nights, so he can watch Samuel while I go or he can take abby, so I dont have to take both kids with me.

The other news is the doctor ordered a complete liver and kidney scan inutero for baby B, so I have to go in for my self sometime soon.

I'm not worried, I'm not stressed, there is no reason to be, all this is Gods will, He has a plan and He will continue to watch over us. I will follow some advice and "give it to God".

Thank you to everyone who has offered us much support in all of this new knowledge we have been given.

Happy Halloween

2010-10-31T20:38:00.000-07:00

Our little sesame street family! Abby Cadabby, her mom and Elmo.

October 30, 2010

2010-10-30T18:46:00.000-07:00

Abby is 21 months old today! I am amazed at how smart and funny she is, I feel so blessed to have her in my life!
This morning I made homemade pumpkin pancakes and cinnamon syrup! We all loved them!
Then we all got together to carve our pumpkins, Abby loved helping scoop and eat the guts, so cute.
Here are our pumpkins, a motorcycle, a face, a ghost, a face, and Darth Vader.
With the candles glowing.
She also was so happy with her baby doll she kept telling her jokes and laughing so hard.
Today I am 34 weeks, and while we were outside not once but twice Abby randomly came up to my belly and kissed her baby brother, made me tear up.
Tonight was the ward, trunk or treat, it was a lot of fun looking at all the different costumes.
Candice and Samuel went as Woody and Jessi from Toy Story.
Abby went as Abby Cadabby, from seasme street, dustun wore an elmo shirt, and I was dresed as Abby Cadabby mommy.
They are so cute they loved running around, and dancing.

I forgot to get our group shots, but tomorrow when we go trick or treating around the neighborhood, Ill remember then.

33 weeks 3 days

2010-10-28T06:10:00.000-07:00

Not a belly shot, but here I am! I am so excited, I definitely think the pregnancy glow has me!

Perfect day

2010-10-21T08:47:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a lazy day, so I put in little mermaid, gave the kids some water, and some snacks and we curled up on the couch and watched the movie. The best part was when the song "under the sea" come on both kids started to dance, then pretty soon baby B stated to move and grove. We were all laughing so hard. I loved it!
My cute girl in her princess PJs

Such a cute boy, he loves to cheese up his smile, like his mommy

Dewberry Farms

2010-10-21T08:03:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, Auntie Autumn, Candice, Dustun, Samuel, Abigail, Bandit, and I all loaded up and went to Houston. We stopped off at the ranch to drop off a trailer and to say hi to Doll and Big Tommy, (Samuel great grandparents)
It was a good weekend, Saturday, Brett, Jessica and lailyn (Candice brother, sister in law and niece) were at the house we just all sat around, talked, laughed, ate pizza, it was a good relaxing day. After the kids were down, Candice Dustun and I drove around she was showing him around her neighborhood, I was happy that dustun finally had time off to go with us, so now he knows where if been.
The next day Autum and I went and got a manicure, and pedicure. It was the best one I have ever had, I had two ladies working on me at the same time, I had the paraffin wax, a hot stone and a neck massage, while my hands and feet were being worked one. It was so nice to get out with Autumn and just have girl time, I am going to miss her, I think of her as my sister also. Afterwards we went home and picked up, Miss Arlene, Dustun and the kids then we went to Dewberry Farms. It was so much fun they had so much to do for every age group. Everyone had a good time, I was hot and my back kept hurting, but I was happy to be doing something with the family.

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The kids loved feeding, petting and looking at all the animals they had. I am so proud of my brave girl for not being afraid to feed the goats, or pet the bunny.

Playing outside

2010-10-21T07:46:00.000-07:00

Since moving to the new house, the kids are outside almost all morning, they wake up about 8:30 and after breakfast they are outside from 9:30 to 11:00 then they come in have some water and snack, then off to nap. They love playing out side, they play on the club house, the empty sand turtle, the plastic teeter tater, and all the other toys that are out there, or that they put out there.
The other day, Candice was outside with them playing hid and seek the kids loved hiding and finding everyone. I am so happy to be living here, the kids love the yard, i love the quiet time it gives me!

Pumpkin Roll with Cream Cheese Filling

2010-10-21T07:41:00.000-07:00

So I decided yesterday to be adventuress and try and make something new, I called my Aunt got her wonderful baking advice, and with that I took off. I made Pumpkin Roll with Cream Cheese Filling, and let me tell you I dreamed about it all night woke up and sliced it up for breakfst and I did such a good job! I am so proud, so here is the recipe in case you want to try it!

Ingredients

1/4 cup powdered sugar (to sprinkle on towel)
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
6 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup powdered sugar (optional)

Directions

PREHEAT oven to 375 degrees F. Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan; line with wax paper. Grease and flour paper. Sprinkle towel with powdered sugar.
COMBINE flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt in small bowl. Beat eggs and sugar in large mixer bowl until thick. Beat in pumpkin. Stir in flour mixture. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle with nuts.
BAKE for 13 to 15 minutes or until top of cake springs back when touched. Immediately loosen and turn cake onto prepared towel. Carefully peel off paper. Roll up cake and towel together, starting with narrow end. Cool on wire rack.
BEAT cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter and vanilla extract in small mixer bowl until smooth. Carefully unroll cake; remove towel. Spread cream cheese mixture over cake. Reroll cake. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.

Final Day in Utah

2010-10-06T10:07:00.001-07:00

We stopped at he meat Packing plant to say our goodbyes to the busy bees, dad and Amanda, the fall in upon us when they live there, well at least 15 of 24 hours they do.

Amanda showing Abby buddy the llama

Abby showing Grandpa the llama.

Grandparents and granddaughter.

Our little group a few missing but they are there in our thoughts.

The flight was good, abby did very well on both planes, we gave her the head phone while she watch back to the future with daddy, my little girl is growing up so fast.

The trip over was good, I wish it could have gone better, but Im happy to have went home to visit and celebrate with little boy growing in me.

I hope you all enjoyed reading and seeing the pic from our trip!

Last day in Utah

2010-10-06T09:50:00.000-07:00

We went and said our goodbyes to Grandma and Grandpa Bartschi, We were able to eat dessert with them, and Grandma was able to give Abigail ride back to the room. Abby tried giving grandma a ride for a minute it was scary but made us all laugh.

I am so happy to have such wonderful and loving grandparents, I hope they are here to see Benjamin.

After our visit we went to Idaho to get lotto tickets and to kill time so Abby could nap, I spend 5 dollars and bought scratch offs, and won 22 dollars so happy to have money for the airport.

We stopped at the Utah sighs and got picture, that felt familiar since Abby did this for every new stare sigh from here to Utah!

For dinner we went to Doug and Nancy house, we had the local hoggie shop sandwiches, "Logans heros" so yummy and fresh!

Nancy also made her Cinnamon rolls for us, I haven't had one in years, so good thanks mom for sending us home with some extra!

After dinner Grandpa and Abby went out to play in the yard, they played Frisbee, It makes me smile the way they interacted I am very grateful for this time we have with Doug knowing his past I am amazed at how strong he is, he is my inspiration to keep going when things get tough, love you dad.

Abigail

2010-10-06T09:46:00.000-07:00

My beautiful Daughter who I love and adore so much.

Train ride

2010-10-06T04:59:00.000-07:00

The next day, mom, dad, and Abby also came up to enjoy the mountains, we went to eat at dads favorite mexican restaurant he and abby loved the coloring part.

After lunch we had some issues, Dustun locked the keys in the car, and we had a time to be due to go for a train ride, so I called up usaa, and got a locksmith come out to open the door. we left dustun to ge the car unlocked and the rest of us loaded up and went to the train I figured loosing 20 dollars wold be better then loosing 20 dollars for each of us.

Dustun I and the locksmith were awesome and got he car unlocked and he made the train, about 5 minutes before it departed, I was happy we were all together!

Abigail loved the train ride she kept looking out the window and pointing and telling us everything she saw, it was so cute!

I am so happy to have Abigail as my daughter she is the most important thing in my life, I dont know what or where i would be with out her. I love doing activities with her, we are creating so many memories together. Abigail I love you.

Abigail and Grandpa.

Our little family of 3 soon to be more!

R and R

2010-10-06T04:42:00.000-07:00

While in Utah mom got a condo and dustun and I were able to have a nice relaxing getaway from everyone, it was a little past park city in the mountains.

It was so beautiful, fall and the all the colors make me so happy, I could drive, walk and look at the mountains for a long time. I love seeing how the leafs turn the colors right before your eyes.

It was so nice that Dustun and i decided to go for a walk on the trails, i could use the fresh air in my lungs, i swear this whole trip all I did was sit and eat, so to actually do something healthy mad me happy.

I was able to sit and read a book, I ate a rocky mountain chocolate truffle and enjoyed listening to the birds, this was as close to perfect as I could get.

Thanks mom for giving us a night away, and watching after abigail.

visits

2010-10-05T13:33:00.000-07:00

Dustun, Abby, Doug, Nancy and I were able to go out to dinner we went to firehouse pizza! so good, abby got penna pasta, which looks divine, and for dessert we got a cookie and ice cream very rich, but oh so yummy!Abby enjoyed it also!

After dinner we went to a show, it was called "pretty Abby" she loved to put pretties on and dance for everyone, she loves playing with the dogs.

Afterwards we stopped by Aunt mino house for a quick visit, Abby loved playing with everything she had, (which is very breakable)

Finally we found a big red exercise ball, she loved it!

Maddox

2010-10-05T13:22:00.000-07:00

Dustun, Abby, Mom, Amanda and I went to maddox for lunch it was so good! I had the turkey steak, the corn on the cob, well more like abby did, and the seafood cocktail with shrimp, then for dessert I ate the fresh peach pie, so good, I love there food!

Gateway

2010-10-05T13:17:00.000-07:00

At the gateway on Salt lake they have the fountains, so after build a bear we went to the fountains to eat ice cream and run through the fountains so much fun!

Build a bear

2010-10-05T12:57:00.000-07:00

I have wanted to take abby to build a bear for a while, and since we went to the gateway after the airport, I decided why not. So cute she picked out a dog and watched it get stuffed.

Then she picked out a heart for it, gave it a kiss and put it in the dog.

Then we go the dog washed and fluffed him up.

After the dogs bath she grabbed him and started to dance.

Abby, mommy and her new puppy "patches"

Good byes

2010-09-29T18:30:00.001-07:00

I was happy to have Candice and Samuel come to Utah. It was nice to have her see where I came from and the beauty of fall in the mountains. The trip went as i had expected not hoped for but as a expected.

Candice is my best freind, she has always been there for me and I know she will always be there for me, I can trust her with Abby I know Abby will be taken care of in the way I want her to be I know she will eat healthy well rounded food, and she will get her meds at the proper times and amounts, I know Abby will go to her if she is hurt or upset.

I have watched her son grow for the past year and the kids have grown just as close. when Samuel is upset Abby will go over and try to comfort him she will hold his hands and dance.

We all do everything together, sometimes just me and the kids, sometimes, the moms and kids and sometimes dustun and us.

Dustun is a good man, he is a great father and a wonderful husband, he is always helping around the house, and when he knows i am stressed he offers to watch the kids so i can go out a relax.

I know people question why Candice and I are always together, they say I am different around her, (i still dont know how, neither does dustun) but we are Friends best friends, we are like sisters, we help each other out, we know each other in and out I know when she puts up her shield and she knows when i put up mine. WE click (we as in all of us) I wish my family could she the real Candice and how much she does like help my grandma in and out of the car, or help frost baby shower cupcakes, or cut up fruit or always offering her help.,or taking care of Abby if she is crying and I'm busy.

She is in the Army she does have "tough abrasive personality" i know she is loud, but i also know she is wonderful mother to her son and wonderful Friend to me and will do anything for my entire family. Thank you Candice for coming to Utah to help celebrate this little miracle growing in me. WE love you.

Hatch Family chocolates

2010-09-29T18:17:00.000-07:00

On TLC they have a show called the little chocloateriers it is filmed in Salt lake when I asked candice to come with us to utah she asked if we could go to the store, so on the last day before the airport we went to it, but first I had to take her to the lion house and to show her some of the temple grounds, then we got dessert. So good, its must if your in salt lake and who knows you might get to meet them.

Mommy and her chocolate covered raspberries baby:

Daddy and his baby:

Candice and her baby:

Our last group picture before they left.

Abby and carmel

2010-09-29T18:05:00.000-07:00

So a long time ago I saved a cat, he has been mine, all though I have never moved with him he stayes with mom and dad, but a few months ago he wandred off I figured he got smooshed, but when we came back to Utah he re appeared. Abby loved seeing the cat she finally learned to meow. The cat didnt know what to think so he always ran away, one day Candice held the cat so happy could pet him it was so cute! I loved seeing her smile and be so happy!!

Salt lake

2010-09-25T18:25:00.000-07:00

Before Candice and Samuel left town I wanted to show them around Utah and do something fun, so we loaded up and drove to Salt lake City, we ate at a Italian restaurant, which was good.

Then we went to the clark planetarium kinda lame but the kids loved walking on mars and the moon, and watching this weird contraption dropping and picking up balls.

After that we decided to go walk around the gateway, and we ran into a childrens musuem, which was awesome! I loved it, I could have stayed there all day, I think the kids could have also stayed had they not been ready to close. I wish I would have gotten more pictures, but i was having to much fun!

After the museum we went to the fountains and let the kids play in the water, fun fun!

All and all another great day!

baby shower

2010-09-25T10:08:00.000-07:00

I was so happy to share this wonderful little miracle with my family and my friend.

I still cant believe I am pregnant with our little boy this is so amazing!

I want to thank, kami, amanda, candice, my aunt mino and my mom for all there help in putting this shower together, with out them I wouldn't have had a house to host it in, food to feed people, decorations to make it look nice, and every other detail that was much appreciate. Thank you to all that showed up and brought gifts. It was a beautiful shower.

The only thing I wish I got was a picture of my girls who helped out with this shower, Or a belly shot, oh well it was still good! thanks again!

Peach days

2010-09-25T08:37:00.000-07:00

Sorry its been so long but I have been busy! Dustun, Candice, Abigail, Samule and I all flew to utah on Septempeter 8th. The flight was good, the kids did great. We came home to have a baby shower, do peach days and visit family.

Of course for me peach days is all about food and peach treats. I ate and ate so much and I still wish I could have had more! I have peach cobbler from 3 different places, peach fritters, a peach and strawberry tart and maddoxs fresh peach pie and the seafood salad, gyros, burgers, popcorn roasted nuts, ate at my favorite utah only reasurats and picked off what others had ordered (geeze no wonder I gained so much weight)

Dustun went hunting with his mom and dad and mom watched samuel and Abby while they took there naps, candice and I went to the car show, it is so amazing to see all the cars and what people do them.

This year Abby was born so she actually got to see the parade, the year before i was pregnant with her. maybe in next year ill have both at the parade. The candy part was dumb, she got one taffy and one tootie roll, I didnt get to sit a relax and watch the parade, cause when you have two kids that want to dance and run with all thats going on your always up and going. We all had fun though!

I think the funnest part for me was this guy that pulls these old barrels behind the tractor, this old man was crazy I was laughing the whole time, when we got done dad asked so who had more funthe mommys or kids??! I say the mommys!

All and all I got a good time at peach days and I was happy to share it with everyone!

hello

2010-09-22T20:29:00.000-07:00

I am here, just been busy, went on vacation to Utah, had a baby shower, and now that i am back in SA been moving into a bigger house, will post detail and pics as soon as i can. love to you all.