NonJane- 9 months

Pure Joy

yumm yumm

miniature version of King Kong. This bridge didn't last long...

Update on NonaJane... she is 9 months old going on 9 years. She is stinking cute, FULL of personality, and on the move. Danger is her middle name, and it's a good thing the word "NO" is nestled nicely into her first name :)  If she isn't eating something or tearing something up... then she is about to.  Today I went to get her from her nap to find her face covered in white paint chips. Yep, she was eating her bed.  The other day she actually ate some of the color off of my mom's leather ottoman, and has ingested a few of Jack's coloring pages.  But I swear I TRY to watch her.  She is just so fast, and so energetic, and too FUNNY. As my friend Abby put it "She is just a ball of personality!"  Very true! Tonight she went to bed with green marker on her face and hands. But at least she was dressed and fed. As far as I can guess,  changing NonaJane's diaper and clothes is about like trying to dress a monkey.  She sees no purpose in it, and is infuriated by your interruption of he daily plans to terrorize the home.  Oh my how this little girl has changed our world.  But my heart grows each day, just thinking about her makes me laugh and puts joy in my heart. How can sooo much fit into such a teeny little girl???

She thinks she should play with the BIG kids. And always needs to be in on the action!

Adam's new ski buddy

In February of 2009, Adam and I took a ski trip with a group of friends to celebrate our 1st anniversary.  I was 9 weeks pregnant with little Jack. We bought a navy blue onesie with "keystone" written across the front, the very first 'baby' purchase we ever made. And this began Adam's dream... dreaming of the day he would get to teach his son or daughter how to ski.  On Friday all the cards fell in place, and the timing was finally right.  Our amazing neighbors over the past year had GIVEN us a pair of skiis, snow boots, ski goggles, and even his coat, bibs, gloves and hat were hand-me-downs!!! Then a crazy snow storm blew in on Thursday dropping a good 12+ inches of snow. I had a snow day from work, and  Adam took a vacation day.  We started with baby steps: first we put Jack in the skiis in the living room, then we moved to the snow packed street, and he was LOVING it.  We headed to snow creek, and boy was Jack excited! He was dancing around in his seat, and showing us how he was going to 'ski' by swinging his arms out to his side and making whooshing noises.  We were really worried that Jack would be fearful, but he was all smiles the whole time. The ski lift didn't even phase him, and every time we asked if he was cold he was quick to respond "No! Let's do that again! I want to go again!"  Adam did an amazing job of making Jack feel safe and confident thru out the experience.  My Dad then came and picked Jack up from the ski slope so that Adam and I could have a date and ski together for an hour or two.  While we were waiting for Papa, we bought Jack a cookie in the lodge. He told Adam:

 "I'm going to go skiing with you every year, FOREVER."  Adam officially has a new ski buddy. 
 Jack, you better stick to your word... EVERY YEAR... it means the world to your Daddy. 

Don't we all wish someone could pick us up and put us on the lift that first time?!!

"not too fast Dad!"

On the move

Jack and mommy

The last run of the night

5 years

It's been 5 years.

5 years since I walked down the aisle to the man of my dreams. Literally, well sort of. Actually Adam was better than the man I had dreamed of for myself. When I met Adam, I thought "oh, THIS is love. THIS is what God had in store for me."  Do you know the country song "the broken road"? I love that song, and at times I think "why did I have to go down such a twisted broken road to find you?" but the more i think about it, the more I realize that the adventure that brought me to Adam, is the EXACT reason that I love my marriage so much. I've also always been convinced that Adam is a bit too handsome for me, a bit too handy, a bit too talented, and a bit too amazing.  Now that we have been married for 5 years I not only think that he is too handsome, too talented, and too amazing, but he is also the MOST amazing DAD ever.  Our kids are SO lucky to have him. He is the calmer parent, the 'funner' parent (can we just add that word to the dictionary already? you know you use it too), the silly, exciting, and entertaining parent. The ladies at work tell me I have it too good when I tell them that Adam does the majority of the grocery shopping and the cooking. But hey, I scrub all the toilets so that should count for something! (and the laundry, the dishes, the housework... but who's keeping score?) As far as I'm concerned, I "married up".
When we were asked "does it feel like 5 years?" we both agreed that it feels longer. Longer, because it is hard to remember life before each other.
Thank You Lord for placing Adam in my life. Thank You for the two amazing children that you have given us. The past 5 years have been full, rich, and crammed full of life-changing moments... wonder where we will be in 5 more...

I love you Adam

Jack Henry Schwatken

Mary Jane, Jack and baby Jack 2009

It happened.  The dreaded phone call came on Monday morning from Adam's Dad. "Grandpa's not doing well, the nursing home staff says the family needs to gather."  The rush of emotions, conflicting and confusing emotions that are hard to explain. Sadness that someone we love and admire is passing, relief that he is about to be freed from a life of pureed food, wheelchairs, and the stench of the nursing home. Sad that the last 9 months of his life were something he never wanted, wishing he hadn't fallen last year and suffered a brain injury, wishing once again that the clock of life and time itself could just hold on a minute.  But time will never 'hold on just a minute', and before we could even get out the door we received the second phone call "Grandpa is gone, he passed away." No emotional goodbyes, no dramatic kiss to the forehead and asking him to save room for us in Heaven.  But maybe this too was a blessing in disguise, he passed peacefully with his long time love at his side.

We traveled down on Monday and spent the afternoon with Adam's family, attempting to comfort and show our support to Grandma. But how do you comfort a woman who has lost her partner of 60 some odd years?  The only comfort is in knowing that Grandpa is with the Lord. That his pain and discomfort are gone, and she WILL be with him again in eternity.
We are so thankful for the long, healthy, and happy life that Grandpa lead. I am so thankful for his son, Ron, my father-in-law, and his grandson, Adam.  Thank you Jack Henry Schwatken for raising an amazing family, and for letting me into the Schwatken Family with open arms.  I hope our little Jack Wilder Schwatken will carry on your name well. May you be honored by his life, and watch over him from above.
Good Bye Jack, until we meet again.
Love
Kelly
p.s. and save room for me in Heaven. and tell God good things about me :)

Thanksgiving 2009

New Years 2012

May 2012

craigslist junky...continues

"fancy picture" with our new camera

So we've been thinking about starting the process of finishing our basement. (Yes we have been thinking about doing this for 5 years now but let's not rub that in.) As a continuation of last year's blog post "Craigslist Junky" I've been posting items stored in our basement onto craigslist to clear out the space.  I've been having pretty good luck.  But most of the stuff down there is baby and kids stuff, so I discovered a new forum. The Johnson County Mom's Swap and Shop.  ADDICTING. oh no! Now I can snap pictures with my i-pad, post it on the facebook page, and people start posting "take".  You wouldn't think that selling items for $5 bucks would be that exciting, but for some reason I get a thrill like it's a miniature auction. Anyhoo, I spent a large portion of my weekend on this site... much to Adam's dismay. But he didn't complain when I took us out to dinner with all my earnings :)

self portrait by Kristen. Our current and wonderful babysitter

So far I have sold more than I have purchased, but I did purchase a "new" used camera (which I am LOVING!! no more blurry pictures!!!) a new car seat for NonaJane, some spring and summer clothes for both kids, and an inflatable toddler pool for the deck this summer.  It was super fun to buy all these items with the cash that I had earned from selling things we don't need anymore! Yippee!!

The basement in its current state.

unfinished basement... soon to be new living space???

AND... I got my 2012 Blog Book in the mail!! It turned out GREAT! It did change my formatting around some, but it really made all the work of doing this blog worth it! Now we have a tangible "yearbook" with stories, memories, and pictures to have as a keepsake forever. Too COOL!

Little whippersnappers

NonaJane is turning out to be a cute and sweet little whippersnapper! "What's a whippersnapper?" you say. It is an odd saying, but I'm meaning it as a compliment! This morning she was sitting in the playroom (oops I mean "den") and I was in the kitchen making pancakes.  I called her name and waved at her. She smiled, and WAVED BACK with complete purpose and intent.  She then proceeded to crawl over to me babbling "mum, mum, mum".  See what I mean? She is a not-yet 9 month old whippersnapper :)

Jack's drawing of a sailboat, with the word SAIL to clarify for you

While I'm busy bragging... the other day NonaJane and I were upstairs and Jack was downstairs playing on his chalkboard. When Nona and I came down, we discovered that Jack had drawn a house, with himself inside (i knew it was him because he wrote his name next to the stick figure), and the house had a chimney with smoke coming out of it!!! WHAT?  So I ran to get my camera and barely snapped a picture before he proceeded to start ERASING it yelling "it's not good enough!"  AHHHHH! No Jack, it is beyond AWESOME! 3 year olds aren't supposed to draw houses at all!  He then spent the rest of the afternoon mastering triangles so he could draw a roof on his house. This included several perfectionistic melt-downs as clearly the world was ending when his triangles were lopsided.  Oh my BOY. You have the ability, the drive, the talent, and the determination to go so far. Please don't let this frustration to be perfect stop you in your tracks....
and then today NonaJane conquered the stair mountain. Forgive me for not having a picture, I was too busy being a responsible person and following her carefully :)

I love how the next few pictures make Jack out to be an innocent and studious little boy, and NonaJane appears to be the guilty "NonaMonster".  Too funny!  but don't believe it... Jack is not this innocent!

"Mom, Nona is attacking me!"

"Mom! Nona is taking my trains!!"

"Mom!!! Nona knocked down the plant!!"

Resting from all my studies

Matching Jammies :) thanks to cousins Ethan and Henry :)