Home at last

Hey all! We are FINALLY home! Jamaica was amazing the flights however, were a little less than desired. We sat (in the plane on the runway) in a major thunderstorm for 45 minutes on our first flight out of Omaha. On the way home we got delayed over night in Dallas to find out that our flight would change 4 more times before we could finally fly home yesterday. I told the pilot I wasn't letting him out of my sight that he was taking me to Omaha no matter what. I chit chatted with him a bit and come to find out...He beckoned us forward, swiped our passes as the first passengers and led us down the thing to the plane and personally got us sat down! He held to his promise of not leaving my line of sight and taking me to the plane. He then told the stewardess he wanted to buy us a drink! He was so cool to help ease my nerves! He lives in St. Joe. It was so stressful and he knew how desperate I was to see my babies! I have a new appreciation for pilots and I bet he does for pushy moms!!

Bryce was a little lyre of who we were at first but he came around and Grady was tickled pink that we were home. He made a sign for us and kept telling me happy mother's day when he would hold it up! We reenacted it this morning though I tried to get him to say welcome home mom and dad he still said happy mother's day! I don't mind every day with my boys is a happy mother's day to me!!

Will post Jamaica pics and stories soon, too busy cleaning, doing laundry, and loving on my boys!

Packing

A few months ago booking this trip seemed like a FABULOUS idea.

Now I'm not so sure as I'm going to really, really miss this face...

And of course this little one...

Grady was telling Bryce "we better buckle our belts for the trip to the beach!"

Grady was playing peek-a-boo with Bryce it was pretty darn cute as

Bryce giggled EVERY time Grady opened the suitcase.

I told the boys I needed to get packing that cartoon and snuggle time was over. Grady raced to the kitchen saying "come on Bryce" as Bryce crawled huridly after him! I waited a few minutes, came into the kitchen and Grady said "we're going with you!"

Weekend Mishaps

The weekend proved to be fun-filled and entertaining as my boy's faces show. Tonight in the bathtub I noticed even more bumps and bruises that they each have acquired. Bryce has a scrap below his eye from Grady throwing the diaper rash ointment at him and a bump beside his eye from hitting his head on the tile at Grandma Marlene's house. Grady has a bruise on his forehead from falling off of the motorcycle ride at the carnival. HOWEVER...when asked what happened to his forehead he told everyone today that it was from mom throwing the butt cream at him!! Haha! Ya, well, funny but also true!!! After he hit Bryce with it and he was bawling very loudly I gently underhand tossed it at Grady and it actually hit him on the side of the head where his hair is (no where near the bruise) but he busted me out...Oh, well live and let learn I guess. The bruise on Grady's cheek is from nailing the table when we went in to the bar for lunch. He slipped on the booth seat and nailed his face on the table. Quite a weekend for my babies let me tell you! Kinda glad we're leaving so if anything did happen to them we at least won't be the one's questioned for child abuse!!!!!!

Annevar

Well, Annevar (Ravenna backwards) the local town celebration came and went. We took the boys to the carnival Friday night. Bryce just stared in amazement at all the lights and sounds going on around him. Grady bounced from ride to ride having so much fun! Saturday morning was the parade so we attended that then the boys hung out with their daddy while I helped host a bridal shower for my future sister-in-law Mallory. Grady was excited for the parade until he took a seat right along the curb and not a minute after he sat down he got a few pieces of candy to the forehead. He wasn't so sure that he liked parades after that. However, we told him he got to keep the candy and all was well!! We also took the boys Saturday night for more rides and carnival excitement. We met up with some of Brad's family Marty, Lori and kids and Trisha, Adrian and kids. Everybody had a great time!

Trampoline

For Grady's birthday (May 7th) we got him a trampoline. It must have been the hot item because every store I called was sold out or the trampolines were on back order. We finally got one and got it home. Yesterday was the day to assemble it. Grady was SOOOO excited! Our neighbor was hanging around his house yesterday so I volunteered him to help Brad put it together. Boy, oh boy was I glad I asked him as it took them a little over an hour. Grady was so impatient watching them put it together that he got on and started jumping without it being fully put together. He fell through the springs once and the second time he bounced right off and on to the ground. He got up and wanted on again both times. He had tons of fun jumping with and without people. Bryce was the first to get on with him and he kept squealing and giggling out loud. He kinda looked like a bobble head out there as Grady was jumping in circles around him. Brad got on with Grady and so did Grandpa Greg and Grandma Cyndy. I'm really excited to have it as it's providing some good quality family time and wearing out our 3 year old each time he's on it!! Jump Grady Jump!!

A few side notes:

• My parents returned from Alaska last night and are at home today. They are coming up for a visit tonight as they miss the little ones.
• We are leaving for Jamaica a week from tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!
• Many friends have told me they love the blog and I'm so excited people are actually reading it! Thanks for all the comments on facebook regarding my posts. You can comment on the blog itself if you sign-up and become a follower. I too was nervous to join but did and its the easiest thing ever! But if you don't want to and want to send your comments via email and facebook that's fine, I just enjoy knowing its being read!
• My sister-in-law-to-be is having a Bridal Shower Saturday so I am looking forward to seeing her and all of my family, especially baby Cadyn
• Annevar happens in T-Minus 2 days...

Anniversary

Last night we had a celebration for Phyllis and Wendell's 60th wedding anniversary (Brad's grandparents). We had an awesome turn out with Wendell and Phyllis being very pleased with the night's events!! We had a gathering for supper, some stories of their younger years and a bit of polka music in Brad's shop afterwards. I was pretty busy managing the food and drinks in the kitchen so I didn't get any pictures of the gathering at the fellowship hall but I did snap a few later on in the evening. Phyllis really wanted to polka with someone so her sister-in-law Doris stepped in and they did a few polkas. It was neat to see them having so much fun! Deb also coaxed Cyndy in to doing a dance or two. The two of them used to be the best at polka dancing and still enjoy it!

Even the kids had a good time as Uncle Tom came carrying in Grady with handfulls of mud during the supper. Excellent timing let me tell you. He went through one change of clothes then was occupied the rest of the evening with climbing in and out of the boat and coloring all over Taylor and Harley's sidewalk chalk pictures! Bryce managed to stay awake almost the entire time and was the crowd entertainment as he was passed from table to table while mom and dad were busy. So glad he's laid back and loves attention from anyone and everyone ;-)

Bryce is 9 months old

Today my little man Bryce is 9 months old. Its so crazy to think about what I was doing only a few short 9 months ago. He's the best little boy ever and is sooo much fun. We went to his 9 month check up last Friday. He's in the 75th percentile for height, weight and head. He weighs 19 1/2 pounds, not sure about the length but he's growing big that's for sure!! He's still having his choking spells and the doctor doesn't really know why. I switched him to soy formula as that cured it when Grady was a baby so we'll see.

Grady went with Bryce and I on his doctor visit because we did Grady's 3 year check-up also. The doctor came in and did his stuff then the nurse came in to give shots...Grady says "Bryce has to get shots" The nurse said "Oh and you too!" Grady said "No, not me I'm healthy, I'm a big boy" I said "But Grady you have to have ONE shot so you don't get the chicken pox" Grady repeated the "I'm a big boy, I'm healthy" routine and tried to convince the nurse that only Bryce needed shots. I told Grady that he got to choose who got a shot first, he chose Bryce first. Bryce didn't cry for the first shot but he did for the second and after that Grady lost it. "Nope, not me, I'm healthy" was coming out of his mouth as I was hoisting him onto the table and holding screaming Bryce in my other arm. We finally got him to lay down, well... I was holding his upper body with still screaming Bryce in my other arm and the nurse was holding his legs. The nurse hadn't even poked him yet and he started crying. After he got the shot he cried a lot louder. Bryce had stopped but because Grady was so loud Bryce started up again. This went on for about 5 minutes. One would stop, see the other was crying and start up again. I finally grabbed our things and toted them out both crying a bit. By the time we got to the receptionist ladies Grady was mildly sobbing. They LOVE Grady! She said "Grady what happened" Grady said "I had to get a shot, there was blood everywhere but I'm TOUGH" (Are you kidding me ;-)) Then he proceeded to pull up his shorts to show her where he got the shot and it was THE WRONG LEG!!!! Must have really hurt huh! She laughed and gave him a bunch of candy and two Spiderman band aids! He told everyone that day while we were running errands that he got a shot and how tough he was and was showing off his band aid. Oh Grady!! Bryce was a trooper he slept pretty much the rest of the afternoon! Shots didn't bother him a bit!

The first image is of Bryce 9 months ago on the way home from the hospital. He was too little for a carseat and wasn't strong enough to hold himself upright for our hour drive home in a regular casrseat so he went home in a carbed. Both my boys had to be sent home in one of these. They had both stopped breathing during the carseat test at the hospital. Bryce was in this carbed for a little over a month before he out grew it in length! Pretty crazy huh!! Man does that bring back some memories for this little mama...

Softball Game

Tonight I drove Phyllis, Wendell, Grady and Bryce to Brad's cousin's little girl's softball game (Mel's daughter). Harley looked so cute out in center field having a conversation with the girl next to her. Neither one of them could really care about the game going on right before their eyes!! Oh, well at least they were having fun! Harley scored one of the runs and told us the score was 9 to 4--them! Mel said that didn't really mean much because according to Harley they win EVERY game!

I hadn't planned very well as I packed no toys to keep Grady occupied. I thought they might of had a playground or something for him to climb on but no such luck at this softball field. We were all pulling quite a few things out of our sleeves to entertain him but not much was doing the trick. He did enjoy digging in the dirt with an ice scraper and burying popcorn for awhile. I then got the idea to let him us my camera to take pictures of whatever so the pics in this post were all taken by my little camera man Grady!!

I forgot that Grady was also entertained with pulling the weeds around the backstop. We pull weeds every time we go outside trying to keep our place looking sharp. We're just lucky that Grady likes to do it. Funny thing is, he likes pulling weeds almost everywhere we go! Such a little gardener he is!

Best Giggles EVER!!

Bryce and I like to take advantage of the time together when Grady is napping. Hard to believe but someone is always trying to steal the spot light from someone else at our house. It's nice just to have time with each of them and no competition. I'm attempting to download a video clip of Bryce enjoying his 'mommy time' He is the happiest baby you will ever meet, ticklish in every bone and always smiling! He's truly an awesome gift from God! Both of my boys are!

Rocking Horse

My email is down for some reason so I am not able to share this blog with anyone. I've been trying since Friday night when I created it. I will try again tomorrow. So far just my sister knows about it so I am posting for you luv! I was filling out Bryce's baby book today, catching up on some not-yet documented milestones that he's met. I was also comparing his book to Grady's and at this time in age Grady was a step ahead of Bryce in the rocking horse area. We put Bryce on the rocking horse for the first time tonight and he was not very impressed. He wanted off right away and didn't care for the rocking part. We remember Grady going crazy the first time he was on it 3 years ago. He rode it every night so much so we got tired of rocking it and pushing it around the house! Tonight we just hit a point where we finally realized that the boys are more different than we had thought. They are similar in a lot of ways but Bryce is a tick more on the laid back side. Yay!!! We've had ALL BOY for the past 3 years, easier is what we're looking for!

Grady has a big rocking horse that he got from his cousins Kaelyn and Janessa this past Christmas. Its in his room because he rides it quite a bit. When we got the little horse out for Bryce Grady thought he needed to try and get his big horse out. He settled for riding it in the doorway of his room yelling "Yee Haw, Ride 'em Cowboy" "Yee Haw" And to make it funnier for some reason he came outta the bathroom a few minutes earlier wearing nothing but his undies which were inside out and backwards! Haha! He said he was hot though I'm not sure how the underware got in the position they were in. He's one in a mill!

Master-Professor Rasmussen

I only put the title on because that's what my lovely sister was referencing me as! Yes, its true I officially got my Master's Degree from Doane College on May 16th. Quite a journey it was with pregnancy, bedrest, two little ones, a husband and a social life. But I made it and I'm NOT going back. That is until the school informs me I must have continued education then I will consider taking another class. I LOVED taking all of my classes at Doane and met so many awesome people the few years I was there. Doane also offered me a teaching job to teach early childhood or special education. Its a long story of how they asked me to teach but it had nothing to do with who I know (which is usually the case in all life's situations), I can officially take credit and say it was/is my expertise in my profession that got me the teaching offer!! Way excited for that! I will do a follow up visit on that offer next week and see what comes of it. I was not and am not willing to relocate to Crete but told them I would do summer classes at the Grand Island campus or online courses during the school year. Crazy to think at 27 I could be a Professor!!!!

P.S. Thank You to all of my Amazing Family members that braved the outdoor ceremony in the rain just to hear my name and give a little WHOOT WHOOT in support! And thank you to all the family that wanted to be there but couldn't your cards and calls were great to get and know of all the support I had that day! I love you all!!

AND by the way the teal thing around my neck is the Doane hood that they put on us to prove we graduated! It was just ironic that my shirt underneath matched it. I didn't realize until someone said it while we were taking pictures!

Boating

I'm going to get up-to-date and give you kinda a lot to read about on us to keep you busy for a day or two before I post again! A few months ago we bought a Rinker boat together with Brad's parents! We are all water/boat fanatic/campers that enjoy being outdoors and together so why not purchase something we ALL can enjoy! Grady got a tube for his birthday and last weekend was the first time taking it out with us. It has been too cold for Grady to get in the water but Brad is a die-hard as he's been wake boarding atleast 5 times this year. He's kinda crazy when it comes to that silly wake board. Its pretty much like snow boarding except on the water for those of you that didn't know. He enjoys it so much that he's borrowed videos to learn how to do back flips and tricks in the air. Not for this cat, I will stay on the tube with Grady. I've got kinda chicken in my old yet young age! Grady was the one yelling "faster daddy, faster" as I was gripping on to him thinking 'slower Brad, slower'. I'm just glad it's something we can do as a family! Soon enough Bryce will get to go out with us and we won't have to worry about sunburning is red headed, fair skinned body, someday...

Wow! That Was Easy!

This time I will try to attach a pic! Last night I tried out the idea of putting both my boys in the bathtub at the same time... A little nervous at first but they LOVED it! Bryce couldn't stop laughing in all the splashing that was going on and Grady liked having someone to 'swim around'. It was quite entertaining let me tell you. The water was cold by the time Bryce decided he had had enough. We will be doing it again! I don't remember taking baths with my siblings as a child but I know we did as my mom captured the moments with her camera. We always looked like we were having a blast, that was until the moment Tyson slipped and hit his head on the faucet. He had to have some 15 stitches in his eyebrow. Again I don't remember as I was just a baby but he has the scar to prove it. I can only imagine what will take place at our bath time for the next few months...

My Virgin Run at Starting MY OWN Blog

So much to say and so little time to say it. I too have joined the bandwagon in getting a blog. It took until last July to say Yes to Facebook and now I'm finding that I'm posting too often on there to keep friends interests. If you're reading this it's most likely that you Want to!! Also, my boys are doing something daily that I would LOVE to share their joy with all of you and now I know how to! I'm going to publish/save/post and see if it works. If so, stay tuned for more!!