Sunday again...

Its Sunday again and that means football stress. Actually I have calmed down a bit about the fantasy football drama. I think I am realizing there is not much I can do about it. I try to pick the best players for that day and go from there. This week I forgot to change up one of my players and I am kicking myself for that but there isn't much I can do now. I rode my bike to the Pig today to get some groceries and by the time I got back, showered, and sat at the computer to change my line up it was too late and I was rushed. Anyway, the Packers won and the Seahawks lost and that Favre jackass decided to win it for the Vikings. Next Monday night will be a good game as the Pack will take on the Vikings at their house. Will be intense~~

So 7 days ago I was in San Francisco with my girlfriends wishing the Seahawks would win and upset that the Pack lost and hoping Kato wasn't messing up my Fantasy Football (he did a good job). Its sad how fast the weekend goes. Too bad we can't have 3 day weekends all the time. Well I am off to watch Sunday night football. thanks for reading xoxo

Garin, Farin, Sarin, and Flash

For the past year or so Alex has had some imaginary friends. It started with Garin. He was a good buddy to Alex and everything that was going on around Alex is what Garin was going through too. Unfortunately, Garin passed along with Michael's grandpa Larry. Sarin always played a minor role but was there. Always quiet and shy and he didn't seem to be a huge figure in Alex's adventures. Sarin died before Garin when Michaels friends dads past away. Farin has come into play alot lately. He goes to school and is a doctor. He drives and lives with nobody because both his parents are living with Jesus. Sometimes Farin gets into trouble and sometimes Farin gets Alex into trouble. He is usually around 600 years old or some made up number. Today Alex started talking about Flash. Flash came over in his car today and is now playing and watching cartoons with Alex. I heard Alex tell Flash to get down from the walls and he scolded him for climbing up there. I am glad that Alex has friends to talk to but sometimes I wonder about that kid. I will have to learn more about his new friend Flash. I hope its normal and ok to have imaginary friends like this and to this extent. thanks for reading xoxo

Eagle Pride

Yesterday I took the kids to the Homecoming parade. Eli, Luci, and Alex rode their bikes and the babies rode in the stroller. It wasn't a very long parade but it was fun and something to do outside. It drizzled a bit but we were fine. Michael had a great game on Thursday against Mt. Horeb. It started a bit late but that didn't stop the Eagles from beating the Vikings. We hoped it would be a sign that the varsity team would also win but they didn't. Last night Michael got home and announced he was done with the varsity team because he doesn't get play time. I don't blame him but I don't like the thought of him losing out on opportunity because of it. Whatever makes him happy is good enough for me. The next two JV games are at home so lets hope for victory!! thanks for reading xoxo

Happy 8th Anniversary

Today Kato and I will celebrate 8 years of marriage. Our wedding was so beautiful and wonderful and fun but our life together since has been better! I am very lucky to have a good husband who takes care of his family first. I am lucky that he doesn't chose to have kids so they can be just photos in his wallet or a good story to tell the guys. I am lucky he doesn't want to be gone so much that his kids don't know him. I am lucky he treats Michael like his own and is always there for him. I am lucky that he loves us and shows it. I am lucky that he is the one I can lean on even if its not in a good way but he knows that I need it. I am lucky he can fix anything, make anything, change things for the better. I am lucky he has a wonderful family that accepts me unconditionally. I think about how lucky I am and wonder why I would ever wish for more. What I mean by that is why do I wish I would win the lottery, when money doesn't buy you happiness but his love makes me so happy or why do I wish I could travel on a whim more often when the only place I really want to be is by his side. Sometimes I get mad and sometimes so does he. Our marriage is perfect and not in the way that we don't have downs but our ups definitely out way the downs. A perfect marriage isn't being happy all the time its being able to work out the differences, loving someone unconditionally, climbing walls instead of putting them up, working it out, remembering to laugh and share. These things take work but it should never feel like work and with my husband it doesn't. I look at our kids and thank God for our creations which include Michael because Kato has been such a big part of his life for the past 10 years. Kato would do anything for him and I am lucky to have found a man who would do that because I know there are alot of guys out there who wouldn't. I can go on and on about how wonderful he is but the only person I really care about knowing all this is him. I hope you know it Kato and I hope you feel it. I love you so very much everyday all the time and love being your wife. For all the times I forgot to show it and all the times I meant to say it, its eternally there. thanks for reading xoxo

Ladies Football Weekend

San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks September 20th 2009

Friday night I didn't get to sleep until 1 am. We had some company, we had some flu shots, I was excited!! Jade wakes up 3:15am with a sore leg and needs Tylenol. My alarm scheduled to go off at 4am so I can get ready for ladies football weekend. I decide to just stay awake. After my shower, getting stuff ready I look at the clock and its 5:07am. I have a flight at 6:45am. Kato isn't up yet and I need to get to the airport by 5:45am. Now the rush is on. Jade is asleep and I didn't want to wake her. We ask the cousins to listen for her and Kato and I are quick to get to the airport. I board and the flight is delayed due to engine problems. They call in a mechanic and fix it. Forty five minutes later we are on our way. I arrive to San Francisco around noon, no sleep on the flight cause I am too excited. I meet up with Joann and we get to Union Square to meet up with Julie, Jodi, Erin, Jane, and Candy. Once there and at the hotel we split up and some go shopping and hang poolside while Julie, Candy and I go for a bike ride. We started at pier 41 headed to the Golden Gate bridge and then proceeded to Sausalito. Up hill, downhill and the wind is chilly but the sun is out!! When we get to the bridge the fog starts rolling in and the wind picks up like crazy. At each pillar it gets harder to ride and poor Candy is blown up against the railing by the wind. Our ears are burning and our faces are frozen but we carry on. Sausalito reminded me of Door County, cute and fancy. We had some great photo opps. It was so much fun! We caught the ferry back to town which had live entertainment. The views were amazing and the entire bike experience was so worth the workout! We returned the bikes and headed back to the hotel about 6pm. We got a little fancied up and headed to an Italian restaurant for dinner. It was good! Since I only had 2 hours of sleep the night before and it was about 10pm San Fran time and I had biked 8 miles that day I was really super tired (that would be 12am Wisconsin time) so some of us went to a bar while us old tired ones went back to the hotel for rest. We stayed up and talked for a bit and giggled like girls do but we were all soon fast asleep dreaming of the next days events. Sunday morning arrives and I get up and get ready for the game. I grab my phone and wallet, head to Starbucks, get a coffee and phone home. After, I went back to the room and everyone was busy getting ready. We hit a local hole in the wall for breakfast and it was fast and good. We meet up with Dawn and the 9 of us hop a bus for Candlestick park. Julie, Joann, Jane, Jodi, Erin, Dawn, Candy, Molly, and I are decked out in Seahawks stuff and we get alot of sh*t for it but at that point, its all good fun. Once to the park we have to hit the bathroom so the higher maintenance ladies can get prettied up. We grab a beer and head to our seats! We are so close to the field, 5 rows up. We get to watch the Hawks run out onto the field and the sun is bearing down on our left sides. It was a rough game and Hasselbeck got hurt. We lost and the fans made sure we knew it. They weren't always nice which sucked but we kept our heads up and for the most part tried to ignore it. At times it was really mean and it was sad that the fans laughed and thought it was good that our guys got hurt bad. I don't understand why you have to be such a brat and so mean about injured players but they were drunk buttheads. There was a fight in our section and the cops were involved. An older lady got hurt and had to be removed by stretcher. After the loss we were sad but we thought it was still fun and to think we were in Candlestick park. That place is full of so much history it will be bittersweet when they tear it down. I guess its supposed to happen by 2014. Anyway, we had to wait for the bus and more and more people kept saying rude things but it was tolerable and we continued to ignore most of it. We got back to our neck of the woods and after walking for a bit we settled on a fancy dinner spot called the Grand Cafe. It was super yummy and we had dessert. At about 9:15 we finished up and started back to the hotel. I was tired and most of the girls were burnt on the left side. We got two bottles of wine and only got through one. As we all decided to hang in and chat it up I realized that I am pretty lucky. We laughed and almost cried, we shared and sometimes disagreed but it was so much fun. At about 12:30am it was time to sleep...I had a flight in the morning and had to get up at 3:50am. We turned out the lights and Jane saw something flash red on the ceiling and was very concerned so we turned on the lights to investigate and were up for another 30-40 minutes laughing and sharing some more. It was a fantastic ladies football weekend and I can't wait for next year. As usual it was hard to leave cause I really miss my bestest girlfriend Julie. Well thanks for reading xoxo

Pretty Pretty

Jade had her 9 month check up and everything is looking great. She weighed in at 18 pounds 1 ounce, her height was at 27 inches and her head...well its still way bigger then the rest of her. She ended up getting a flu shot which in turn got a flu shot for Kato and I as well. Alex and Michael went in for one today. Anyway, the doctor said she is going well and not to worry that her head measures in the 75% range and the rest of her doesn't make it to the 50% range. She is meeting all the milestones and exceeding them. I am happy with her progress and just love her even more! Since she got her shot in the leg I can only imagine it was sore which is why she decided to wake up at 3:15am and was a bit fussy. She is standing alone and she cut her first top tooth on Wednesday. thanks for reading xoxo

Seahawks and kitchen helpers

Well as suspected I lost my first match up in fantasy football. The thing that sucks the most is that it was only by 1.08 points. Anyway its ok I just need to learn to let it all go. So this weekend is a special weekend for me. I am on my way to San Francisco to meet up with 8 other ladies for the Seahawks vs. 49ers football game. Its a great time and there is no testosterone!! Not that I mind the boys but sometimes a grown woman needs other female friends to hang out with. I am super excited and can't wait to see everyone...especially Julie. Julie and I have been friends for like 10 years at least. She is the one with long reddish hair in my wedding party. Last time I went to ladies football weekend we stayed in the same hotel as the Seahawks and I got to meet Matt Hasselbeck and I have my pic with him. I also got to meet Deion Branch and some other players. It was so much fun even though they lost to Arizona. Last year I didn't go because I was pregnant with Jade and she was having some problems with her heart and I didn't think it was safe to go. So this year in California there will be 9 ladies in the rowdy girl section! Its gonna be fun but I will miss my family.

Lately I have been having little helpers in the kitchen and only when I am not actually using the stove. Its funny to watch Kale and Jade in there with me. They get so excited to be in the kitchen. Probably because I usually keep them out. I don't want them picking up little pieces of dropped food or whatever off the floor and I don't want them to hit their heads on the table and chairs. But aren't these pics so cute of them! thanks for reading xoxo

Fantasy Football

I know that fantasy football is just that...a fantasy but I had no idea it would be this stressful on me. I am pretty competitive and if I am going to play something I want to try and win. There are a few exceptions such as when I play with the kids or when there isn't money on the line. This is my first year playing fantasy football and I really have no idea what I am doing. I can for the most part figure alot out myself but how can you predict who is going to play and who isn't. You don't know if someone is going to start or not until its almost too late. Plus it doesn't help that I don't know all the players that well and have to pick from a list created by someone who went off of last years stats. So yesterday was a big day for me. I watched way more football then usual and got way more frustrated then usual. I wanted the Packers to win but I wanted the defense to have big plays, which they did, and I wanted to see how Jay Cutler played. Why?? Because on my FF team I have Green Bay defense and Jay Cutler is one of my QBs. I also have some pretty sucky running backs and wide receivers compared to the other teams on my league. I wanted to change all my players but wasn't sure if I should because they don't always suck and most of them are pretty good but yesterday my most valuable player was Joe Flacco, my other QB. I have to do something and I just don't know what to do except change my players. When we drafted I picked 8th and even though I got two picks somewhat close together I still ended up with players who didn't play well yesterday and with one more game tonight I think I will end up losing my first match up. I am ok with that...sort of. I don't like losing but understand that I will sometimes lose. There were times yesterday when my husband said "ooh can you get him?" and I would check and say no he is taken and my heart would sink because I couldn't understand how the other ladies had such insight on the players and would pick them up before they even played. I guess with time I will get better but at this point I am not sure if Fantasy Football is for me. It supposed to be fun but what fun is it when I can't enjoy the games without thinking " will that give me points or take them away?" I am going to sit down and do more research on players and hopefully created a better team with the slim pickins that are left. Wish me luck! thanks for reading xoxo

Crystal and Brian's Wedding

We went to Crystal and Brians wedding yesterday and it was beautiful. Crystal is such a wonderful person all around. She is gorgeous, smart, wonderful with kids, loving, caring and everything you could possibly imagine a good person would be. Brian and her had been dating since they were practically in diapers. They planned their wedding in about 4 months and even though at times it was overwhelming everything went off perfectly and I hope that she was happy with everything. They were married outside in a park near a lake and they had their reception at a different park. They had this great idea of creating a painting of their hands during the ceremony using white and black paint. It will be something they can cherish forever and I loved the idea! They walked down the isle to the same song that Kato and I walked down the isle to and it brought back so many wonderful memories of my wedding. They created a house blend coffee sampler most likely from Starbucks as their wedding favor. It is super yummy as we are enjoying it this morning. Both her parents walked her down the isle and gave her away. She is so loved by everyone and deserves only the best! She looked so amazing and I was lucky to be able to have a moment alone with her before she walked down the isle. I could tell she was a little nervous and I gave her chap stick and wished I could have done more but I felt very lucky for having those few minutes. I wish her and her new husband all the best!! WE LOVE YOU CRYSTAL!! thanks for reading xoxo

9-11-09

Its been 8 years already and yet everything still hurts when thinking about the tragedy our country faced on this day. In some way or another that day impacted everyone I know. I remember driving to work that day hearing about it on the radio. It was drizzling outside and it was 11 days away from my wedding. Kato was going to a school that is supposed to help him transition from Navy life to civilian life. I was at my desk working when my phone rang and it was my soon to be husband. He said "baby, I don't know where I am going, I don't know when I will be back, but I know I love you." My heart sank I was afraid he was shipping out and our wedding wasn't going to happen. I was afraid he would get into some kind of war and I wasn't sure when I would see him again. I was so upset not just because Kato was gone to who-knows-where but because so many people were killed. Innocent people lost mothers, sisters, daughters, sons, husbands, fathers, friends, and family. Strangers we all were, yet one day this tragedy forced everyone to come together. There was no news of robberies, gang violence, children taken, only news of death and destruction caused by people who don't like what we stand for. All the service men and women of our country went to work that day and they worked twice as hard for twice as long and then some. The news was so sad and constantly on. Every hour the death toll went up and once all the damage was done and accounted for it was sickening to hear who was responsible, why they did it, and how they did it. We as Americans were hurt and then we got angry and we, in my opinion, have yet to get justice. Maybe we are not supposed to. Maybe we are just supposed to remember that day and for just a moment thank God that we still have our freedom, our military, our country, and our love for each other. A war still rages on and battles are fought everyday as a result, people are still dying, people are still healing, some people will never heal. We go through our day to day activities and some of us think in the back of our minds as we go up to the 30th floor of our offices will it happen again. We get on a plane to travel and look around wondering is it possible again. Its always going to be with us and there is nothing that we can do or should do to forget. Kato and I got married 11 days later and as far as I was concerned the only thing that mattered was we were finally husband and wife. Everything seemed so frivolous to worry about, many things went wrong just before our wedding but it didn't matter really. I thanked all our helpers and helped clean up. They told me I was the first bride to do that. As you look at the photo of our wedding day and you see all those attendants, my little boy who is now growing into a man, my wonderful husband and the smile on my face you would never have imagined that 9-11-01 happened. I just want to thank everyone again for that beautiful day. Thank everyone who was able to fly in from all over to be with us. For some of you it was the last time you saw Kato before he too was deployed for 6 months. So today take a moment to reflect where you were, how you felt, and perform a random act of kindness and say a prayer for those who lost their lives and loved ones. Don't ever forget 9-11. thanks for reading. xoxo

Monday through Monday

Its been a great week. Monday night I drafted for Fantasy Football. It is my first year playing and we will see how it goes. I think I did ok. Tuesday was Rylees last day at daycare and she is now officially a kindergartner. Logan started kindergarten too and is no longer with us everyday. It was bittersweet and as I was creating their photo books and DVDs it brought back so many wonderful memories. So on Wednesday it was pretty quiet around here. I told Alex he is now the biggest and the oldest at daycare and his response was "Yep, and that makes me the boss!" He starts back up at preschool on Wednesday. I can tell he is excited and ready. I will miss him when he goes to school full time. We celebrated Packer Backer day on Thursday and the kids wore their Packer gear. too cute huh? Too bad they lost but then again its only preseason. Michael had a great game on Thursday. He played the JV game against Monore. He ended up getting 3 sacks, one forced fumble, a blocked field goal and they won!!! Then Friday he played varsity and he finally got playing time! Being a sophomore he doesn't get much playing time on varsity and he doesn't like that much but he sticks with it, goes with the flow and is getting some great experience. Anyway, he had a great tackle and it looked like it hurt. I felt sorry for the other guy. They won which was nice cause it had been a long time since varsity won their first home game of the season. Saturday was cow chip here in town. It was extra busy as Culvers was also celebrating 25 years or something like that. We went down to the parade, walked through the craft fair, ate some yummy food and called it a day. We didn't go down to the beer tent for the concert this year and it was perfectly fine with me. We hosted a block party with our neighbors on Sunday and we had a great turn out. Ms. Maria came and played guitar for us and sang, we roasted marshmallows, the kids played and we had awesome burgers, brats and dogs!!! Everyone brought a dish to pass and the boys stayed up real late again. Next year will be even better!!! This morning I got up made scrambled eggs with ham, and waffles, took some to Dan and Ellen, cleaned up and Kato is napping off and on. He's tired but I would be too if I were up till 3:30 hanging out with friends and then making loud banging sounds in the house. I thought something bad was happening but it turns out he was just cleaning the kitchen. Go figure but thank you Big Daddy!! Anyway, its the start of a new week and pretty soon I will be on my way to San Fransisco for ladies football weekend!! Go Hawks! thanks for reading xoxo