A Trip to the Zoo

We took a trip to the zoo this past weekend. It was a beautiful fall day. Minnow loves animals so she had a blast! She ran from one section of the zoo to another, it wore me out. We saw pretty much the whole zoo except for the small mammals (bats and rats) and we didn't get a chance to ride the train that goes around the zoo--we had to save something for next time.

Looking at some monkeys:

Comparing ourselves to a baby gorilla:

Close encounter with a peacock at lunch:

We spent quite a bit of time looking at the fish, which is not surprising. Minnow loved looking at all the fish:

Tigers and Bears, oh my! (didn't get any good pictures of the lions to complete the phrase, sorry)

A trip to the zoo is not complete without feeding the goats:

Road Trip

Minnow and I spent the past 5 days in the Twin Cities visiting my sister and family. We drove with my parents, which brought back all kinds of memories as a kid on very long road trips. It was nice to not have to travel alone with a toddler.

Minnow had fun playing with her cousins and seeing her aunt, uncle, grandma and grandpa. We went to the zoo, the Mall of America and visited some family who live nearby. We also celebrated my dad's birthday.

Minnow like the zoo, especially the monkey and tigers. She looks a little less than thrilled being strapped in her stroller:


She was so excited to visit the zoo that she fell asleep on my back in the Ergo carrier:


Days were spent getting spoiled by grandma and grandpa. They love Minnow.

Minnow enjoyed being read to by her cousin:

We had a great time, but were happy to be home. Minnow missed her toys--she was getting tired of playing with her cousins' "boy toys" like hotwheels and trains. Minnow also missed her daddy and greeted him with a huge hug!

Thanks to my sister and family for putting up with all of us for 5 days--you guys are great hosts!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!
We had a good 2007. Minnow has been part of our family for over a year and is such a blessing to us. We can't imagine our life without her! What did we do before her? She entertains us, we don't need TV anymore at night we can just watch her dance to commercials. Obviously she changed alot this past year, she walks, talks and is becoming an interesting little person.

Muskie Man's job continues to go well and he enjoys it, on most days anyway. I love staying home with Minnow and doing my Arbonne business. I wouldn't have it any other way.

We are thankful for our health, our families, and our friends.
Here's to a healthy and happy 2008!

We love the W*ii

My sister and family got a W*ii for Christmas for their kids, I wonder who is going to be using it more, my sis and brother-in-law or the kids?

They brought it to our house for all of us to experience. Muskie Man loves this system and I have a feeling we will be saving our pennies to purchase one, if we can find one somewhere. Everyone got in on the fun--even Grandma and Grandpa! Minnow was cheering everyone on.

Grandpa getting ready to bowl with Minnow cheering him on:


Even Grandma got in on the bowling action:

Thankful!

Happy Thanksgiving! We have so much to be thankful for in our household: I am thankful for Muskie Man, who is my best friend; Minnow, who is the joy of our life! I am thankful that Muskie Man has a good job that he enjoys (most of the time). I am thankful that his job allows me to stay home with Minnow and pursue my Arbonne business. We have a wonderful home that is large enough for our families to gather in and celebrate holidays. Thank you, God for all of our blessings, which inlcude our families and friends!

My Thanksgiving day began with Minnow yelling from her crib at 5:45 a.m. Aren't babies supposed to sit in their cribs and jabber for a while when they wake up? Not Minnow! Actually, it was probably ok, it made us get up and finish getting things ready for our visitors who will be arriving just in time for the Packers game--all 20 of them--both of our families will be celebrating with us today.

I got Minnow something to drink and turned on the coffee maker. It brewed and brewed and very little coffee came out. It made strange noises, and very little coffee came out--time to get a new coffee maker. My family LOVES coffee, so we NEED a coffee maker. Luckily, KMart is open on Thanksgiving! KMart also happens to be the only "chain" store we have in our little town. I went to KMart(which was very busy) and bought a new coffee maker this morning. If that is the only thing that goes wrong today then it will be a good day. The turkeys are in the oven, now I have to go peel potatoes.

Happy Thanksgiving, Go Packers!

On the Road Again

Yes, we dared to travel with Minnow. . .again. This time it was the whole family, all 3 of us. We ventured to the Northwoods to visit my brother and his family for a long weekend. Muskie Man was excited because he got to do one of his favorite pastimes--muskie fishing. It was a tough weekend on the water, but he had a good time.

Minnow traveled pretty well. It is much easier traveling when Muskie Man is driving and I can help to entertain Minnow. It also helped that we had the portable DVD player in the truck. Minnow LOVES her PraiseBaby DVD's--we have 3 different ones. We heard each DVD at least 2 times during the course of our travels, that's alot of songs. I guess that explains why I have praise songs constantly going through my head!

Minnow had a fun weekend with her cousins, who always keep her entertained. She even took her first steps at their house, way to go, Minnow! She must like the Northwoods.

Go, Go!

Minnow loves sports. She has been going to sporting events since she was about a month old. She has been to volleyball matches, football games, basketball games, a wrestling tournament, baseball and softball games. . . pretty much any sport Muskie Man's school has, she has been there!

For the past few months, when Minnow notices a game on TV, she drops what she is doing and starts clapping her hands. Anytime she hears the crowd cheering, she joins in clapping. She also does this at games. She often ends up clapping for the wrong team--we have to work on this!

Lately, as soon as she notices a game on the tube she drops what she is doing and says, "go, go!" She repeats this phrase over and over and over again as she watches the game. Now we just have to get her "cheering" for the right team!

Traveling 250 miles alone with a one-year-old

Minnow and I traveled 250 miles to the Twin Cities to visit my sister and family for a long weekend. I had the trip planned out perfectly (in my mind, anyway)--we leave when Minnow is ready for a nap and she sleeps for the majority of the trip. She wakes up, I stop at the next McDonald's, change her, make her a bottle, treat myself to an Iced Coffee (totally addicted), and go the rest of the way with a well-rested, changed, and satisfied baby. WRONG! Part of the trip went as planned. Minnow slept for 2 hours, then woke up crying. We stopped at the nearest McD's, changed her, got her a bottle, got me an iced coffee (YEAH!) and started to drive again--then the screaming began.

What to do?! I had her backpack diaper bag next to me--what was in it? A toothbrush--I handed it back to her--silence for about 20 minutes. The toothbrush is then tossed and the screaming ensued. What else is in the bag? A book--hand it back to her--silence for a few minutes until the book is tossed. More screaming. This "game" continued for the remainder of the trip. I was down to the last item in my "arsenal," an empty water bottle, when the exit for my sister's house appeared. We made it!

We enjoyed 4 days with my sister's family and then prepared for the trip home. It began the same as the trip there with a nap, waking up, McD's (changed diaper, bottle, and iced coffee!), but then the screaming began and didn't stop. My well-prepared arsenal of distractions failed! I was even more prepared this time--more books, her doll, a photo album she likes. No luck, she screamed and screamed for 40 miles! Then, as we pulled into our town. . .silence. She sleeps.

Hayride

Minnow had her first hayride and visit to the pumpkin patch on Sunday. We met “the girls” and their families and had a great time. “The girls” are 3 moms who I became friends with from a new mom’s group. We decided we are no longer “new” moms so we kicked ourselves out of the group and now just do things on our own. We also email daily, sharing funny stories, advice and the challenges of being moms. I love “the girls!”

We don’t usually get together with the husbands so this was an extra special outing. The hayride was just that--we rode on a flat bed trailer filled with hay that was being pulled by a tractor. We got dropped off in the woods where there were various animals in pens—animals such as reindeer, goats, donkeys, miniature horses, a lama, an alpaca and a rabbit. (These animals were in separate pens, wouldn’t want the reindeer to step on the rabbit—that could be traumatic for the kids!) We all got a pumpkin to take home and got some great pictures.
It was a fun outing—Minnow loved the animals, especially the reindeer.

Babies!

I’ve watched a 10-month old little boy 3 times in the past week. I will have him once or twice a week through October. His babysitters from summer went back to school so the family was kind of in a bind and both sets of parents thought it would be nice for the kids to play together.

I have a whole new respect for mothers of multiples! These babies keep me on my toes. Minnow has had socialization with kids her age up to this point, and has been kind of wimpy. A kid would take a toy away from her and she would just let them. Well, not anymore! Maybe it’s because he is on “her turf’ or whatever, but Minnow is kind of a bully. She takes toys away from J and cries when he takes them back. Sharing is just not part of her lifestyle right now, but we're working on it.

She also did kind of box-out move which I was actually kind of proud of, being a former basketball player. The kids were by a window sill looking out the window and Minnow gave J a little forearm and tried to move him away. The only thing is that J didn’t really move, he out-weighs Minnow by about 7 pounds which at this size is quite a bit, Minnow tried for the box-out but wasn’t very successful. Keep trying, Minnow!

So we have baby-proofed the house, but some things just cannot be put away, locked down, or out of reach. These things include the T.V. and accompanying audio system, consisting of speakers, DVD player and receiver, the gas-log stove, and the various remotes we have scattered about the great room.

We’ve barricaded the T.V. and audio system with a baby papasan chair Minnow has not used for months, blankets, and a boppy. (and wow, do these items really add to the classy décor of our great room!)This barricade has proven to be successful and impenetrable. Minnow will occasionally try to get through the barricade and her maneuvers are met with a chorus of “no!” She now looks at the T.V. and says, “no, no.”

Minnow is intrigued by the gas-log stove, and although we have not had it on during these summer months, we still want her to be used to not touching it as it does get hot when operating. When she crawls toward it and wants to touch it she is met with a chorus of “no!” She now looks at the gas-log stove and says, “no, no.”

The remote controls—we try hard to keep these out of reach, but once in a while she gets her little hands on one of the remotes and is met with a chorus of “no!” She now points at the remotes and says, “no, no.”

What are we teaching Minnow? In her little mind, the T.V. is a “no,” the gas log stove is a “no” and a remote is called a “no.” Poor little thing, she is going to grow up confused!

Deer!

One of the many things that makes Muskie Man a proud daddy is the fact that one of the first words Minnow said is the word “deer”—as in the animal. A favorite hobby of Muskie Man is deer hunting, second to fishing. Many hours are spent reading hunting magazines and watching hunting shows. (We even have to pay a few dollars a month extra on our cable bill so he can get the Outdoor and Sportsman channels.)

Minnow sees deer on TV or on a magazine cover and exclaims: “deer!” She also gets excited about the deer head that is mounted and hanging in our basement. This deer head has become kind of a family mascot and is affectionately named Charlie. If Minnow is in a crabby mood, which doesn’t happen too often, we just take her downstairs to see Charlie and all is well in her little world.

Many an hour are spent with Minnow’s little face pressed up against our windows, staring out at our backyard, looking for deer. We regularly have deer passing through our backyard, pausing to eat leaves and grass. Minnow gets very excited when she sees deer in our backyard. She starts rapping her little hands on the window and saying “deer” over and over again and practically jumping up and down. The picture is Minnow and two of her cousins watching deer in the backyard.

Minnow even spots the deer before we do sometimes. One afternoon she was getting all excited, standing by the window, saying "deer" over and over again. Muskie Man asked me if there were any deer in the backyard, I looked out the window and didn't see anything. Sure enough a minute or two later, two deer appear from the brush at the edge of our property. What any eye for wildlife little Minnow has! Muskie Man is so proud of his little outdoors-child.

Copycat

Minnow has taken to copying us. She imitates the sounds we make. . .I cough, she coughs, I clear my throat, she clears her throat, you get the picture. The following story is a great example of our little copycat—

I woke up one morning not long ago with a horrible headache and took an Aleve and had a yogurt. I should know better than to take pain medication in the morning as this usually makes me nauseous, but I thought eating the yogurt would help. Muskie Man left for work and I was hanging out with Minnow. I felt nauseous and went to the bathroom to throw up. I kept the door open so I could keep an eye on Minnow as she’s been getting into everything lately. Minnow crawled to the bathroom door and just stared at me. A few minutes after my not-so-nice experience of throwing up, I find Minnow standing by the toilet (the lid was closed, thank goodness, or we would have a whole other story). Minnow was making coughing/throwing up noises, just like I had been doing. Not very lady-like, Little Copycat!

Is she a minnow or a barnacle?

My dear, beloved minnow is becoming a barnacle! A barnacle is a crustacean that attaches itself to bottoms of ships and other various aquatic things. Well, my minnow is turning into a barnacle, and it's not a good thing!

I have this little creature attached to my leg as I'm working in the kitchen--so I've given up cooking and am making DH grill every night. I wouldn't want to endanger the little barnacle with cooking hot food near her! I've also had a hard time unloading the dishwasher as she is either attached to my leg which makes putting dishes away rather difficult, so I've given up unloading the dishwasher too!

The bathroom--the barnacle comes into the bathroom when I'm in there. I could be showering or doing business, she is there--no privacy whatsoever!

The barnacle wants to sit on my lap and "read" all day long! She is a speed-reader and just wants to turn the pages of the books, doesn't really care about the story in the book, she only wants to look at babies and animals, over and over and over again, and on my lap!

She wakes up during the night and usually just needs her nuk plugged back into her little mouth and drifts back off to sleep. The past two nights have been like this: reach for the nuk in the crib--feel two little arms, or tentacles, wrap themselves around my neck in a death grip and hang on. My little barnacle!

I'm really touched that she wants to spend so much time with me, but give me a little space, will ya, barnacle?! This better just be some sort of phase you are going through.

Welcome to Minnow Musings

Welcome to my blog--I've decided to enter the world of blogging. My blog will be about the everyday goings on in the life of a SAHM who is also a Work at Home Mom, and will tell that tales of our little minnow.

A lttle bit about our family, We are a family of 3 - there is Muskie Man, my DH, who works in education, loves to hunt and fish, and loves his little Minnow; there is me, Muskie Mom, I love to spend time outdoors, fish, work from home, and I love my little Minnow.

Minnow just turned one and came to us through the miracle that is adoption. I'll tell her adoption story one of these days.

The main reason for this blog is to write down the funny little things she does to add humor to my day. People are always telling me to write down these little stories, so here they will be.