Last Winter Weekend

Yes I realize the title is very... WRONG... to say the least. I should be the one to know since I am very aware Groundhogs Day isn't until Tuesday (because it's my birthday) and the winter end won't be determined until then, but its the last "Winter Break" weekend. School ended December 18th, 2009 and tomorrow we go back, after 44 days off. I did take an interim so I have been back, but it is nothing like a whole semester of multiple classes.

Our weekend has just been about spending time together. Friday I picked Brode up from day care a few hours early and we went out shopping and playing. We then had plans to go out to eat that night, but there was no way Brode was going to last through a wait at a restaurant. Matt and I went anyways and Brode stayed home watching hockey with Gramps and Grams.

Saturday after a trip to the grocery store Brode ate lunch and took a nap. His Grandma Beth picked him up when he woke up and took him to Wild Air! From what I heard he had a great time and they got to spend a few hours together!

This Sunday is definitely a lazy Sunday before school. We got Brode's crayons and markers out this morning to color. Matt and I had gotten him some toddler markers and my college roommate Leah got him the toddler crayons. They're perfect because they fit in his hand easily! He filled a lot of paper and was not happy when it was time to be done! Brode played with many of his toys and then wanted to help clean. Swiffer - not a safe toddler toy. Brode ran into everything, including Gramps face. Brode just went down for a nap and we don't have anything else on the agenda. I'm sure I'll be spending my night making sure everything is ready for class tomorrow!

RAMBRODS!

We've got a manly man! No more baby blue onesies and bottles, RAMBRODS wears camo and drinks straight from the carton!

Ok, maybe I should add to the carton topic. Brode for some odd reason loves the orange juice jugs once they are empty. He carries them around in one hand and plays with everything else but does not let go of that jug. This particular jug was glued to his hand as he got his coat on, in Gramps car as he stared out the window, and when Gramps took him out of the car at day care. Brode screamed and cried when it needed to be yanked out of his hand. He kicked and wiggled reaching back to the car as they walked in day care's door but once he saw the other kids he was a happy boy once again.

Crisis averted.

Almost.

We somewhat forgot the orange juice jug spent the day in Gramps car so this morning when Brode was headed out the door we knew his eyes would spot that bright orange plastic once he hit the car. Luckily Gramps snuck it into the recycling and we are now safe until the next jug of orange juice is empty.

A Little Bias

Now, I'm not going to pressure Brode into doing anything. If he wants to play hockey like his father, cousins, grandfather, etc. Good for him. I may be a little more excited if he chooses that he loves hockey over another sport. Maybe getting him a Badger hockey stick, a Blackhawks and Detroit outfit at 6 months old may have started it a little early... but it's growing on him. Our last 2 nights has been like these videos! I may be a little bias, but he is going to be one good hockey player!

Brode sat down in the living room and started watching hockey. He doesn't watch any TV (besides curious george here and there), and it still didn't say much because he sat and watched Keeping Up With The Kardashians with me 2 days before. We finally decided he was just being smart; hockey and pretty girls. Anyways, he sat through the first period starring. Once again tonight it came on and it was the same thing, he even threw a fit when it was time for bed.

Enjoy a few laughs of us watching the Penguin v. Ranger game: (and ignore when the camera starts shaking, I was laughing a little too much!)
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Tundra Lodge

Grandma and Grandpa Tedlie (Matt's parents) got Brode, Matt, and I a gift certificate for a night at the Tundra Lodge Resort and Waterpark for Christmas. We thought this weekend would be the perfect one! Matt doesn't work on Monday's, I have a week off between interim and 2nd semester and we got another day to be with Brode!

Our gift certificate was for a special they have called the "Warm & Cozy". It was a great package, it was so convenient! We got a room, waterpark passes, a large pizza for dinner, bottomless mugs, 2 coffees, and 2 stuffed animals! It was so easy to order and take care of everything!

Here is our weekend:

We arrived on Sunday afternoon and were able to check in a few hours early... Brode explored the room and broke in the beds:

He was so excited and couldn't stop laughing! We got on our swimsuits right away and headed down to the waterpark. I didn't get many pictures, it was hard to keep it dry and still play with Brode.

After a few hours of playing we explored the hotel. We took our stuffed animal vouchers and checked out the gift shop. Brode picked out a moose and a monkey! He loved running through the hotel. They had large animals and unique wood carvings that Brode was very curious about:

"Hey guys look at my fish face!"

We headed back to our room and played for a while! Brode was so silly and excited all day. It was great getting to spend so much time goofing around with him!

(His favorite part of the room)

Our package included a large pizza so Brode helped us pick one out and we ordered room service.

I always worry about Brode eating enough in strange places but he was thankful for a break to sit quietly and eat. He ate a TON!
After we were all filled up we went back down to the waterpark for another hour and 1/2! This time Matt and I tried out the slides, but they were way to fast and dark for Brode to try. We also spent some time on the lazy river. Brode, being the curious boy he is, loved sitting on my lap and watching everything! We went back to our room and Brode got a bath and in his pajamas.
This was also my biggest worry... sleeping in the same room as him when he goes to bed at 7:00. Because of the TV placement we moved the furniture around and built Brode his own little room. By blocking him off in the corner we were still able to watch TV and keep some lights on when he was in the dark alone. He slept great from 7pm to 8am!
He was very ready for breakfast by 8:00! He ate a banana, cereal, and 2 mini donuts in our room.
We then went to the Caribou Restaurant in the lobby and had their breakfast buffet. They had great made-to-order omelets, pancakes, etc. Brode again ate a ton of fruit and donuts! He enjoyed coloring as well.
He was very sad to leave!
The rest of today isn't anything exciting. Brode is napping (and will for a while with all the activity) while I update the blog, do laundry, and pick up the toys from the little boy hurricane that came through! This week we'll just be working, playing, and getting books and supplies for second semester!

Our Week

We had a pretty slow week. This was my last week of interim class! I was ready for it to be done and will be enjoying this week off before 2nd semester starts! We did get out and do a few things including shopping and dinner with our friend Claire and visiting Gramps and Grams work to see their office and co-workers. Brode loved visiting work because he got candy from everyone's desks!

Today was our typical Saturday. Brode slept in for a little bit, had a big breakfast, then went with Grandma Beth to the Mom and Pop Place downtown! They said it was pretty busy so Brode had some friends to play with. We got him dressed this morning and Gramps put his sweatshirt on, including the hood. Brode isn't a fan of anything on his head unless it is his hat outside, but he loved the hood! He would whine to have it back up if anyone took it off. He walked around the house dancing all morning with his hood up. Grandma also said he kept it on the entire time she had him! What a goof.
We have had a new thing around the house, favorite blankets and stuffed animals. Brode has never had a favorite blanket, animal, or never taken a pacifier, but some of that seems to be changing! We emphasized before and after surgery the 2 stuffed Curious George's he has, and he is okay with them, but nothing ever really caught on. The blanket he has a day care stays there except on Fridays to come home and get washed, but around the house he loves it. Last weekend we had a very hard time getting it away from him to wash! He has been carrying it with him all day! He also loves a soft Tigger stuffed animal I got from Walt Disney World so that has been in his crib quite a bit lately. Looks like we may have to stock up on a couple blankets in case anything happens!

Eventful Saturday

We had a very busy Saturday! Last night Brode slept at Daddy's so I could have one morning to sleep in and not wake up to an alarm clock or a jabbering baby. It was very refreshing to wake up on my own even if I wasn't able to sleep in much! Daddy and Brode also had a great time. This morning Grandma Beth pick Brode up and they went back to her house. Brode was able to spend some time with her, play with all of his toys there, and eat delicious pancakes! He came home around 11, had some lunch, and went right down for a nap. at 1:45 when Brode woke up we went to The Building For Kids downtown Appleton. Brode loved it! He spent time driving the Jet, in the Vegetable Garden, in Kwik Trip, in the Doll Hospital, climbing the Story Tree, in Water Play, in Move It, and by the Golf Simulator:

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After a few hours at the museum we headed home for some dinner. After we all had something to eat Matt, Brode and I went to the Neenah hockey game at Tri County. It was Brode's first hockey game. The game didn't start until 6:30 so I was nervous he wouldn't last long with bedtime coming up at 7. He sat contently through the first two periods until 8:00 when we decided he should be heading to bed. Brode did yell yay twice and danced to the music a few times, but he was very satisfied wrapped in blankets following the people with his eyes.


Brode had a very fun day and was sleeping in a matter of minutes. I love being able to get out and do new things with him. He is interested in so much more it is a lot of fun! Tomorrow isn't bringing anything exciting except for homework and maybe a trip to the pet store.

Counting Calories

This is very atypical for my blog, but today at Kelly's Korner it is Show Us Your Life - Diets, Exercise Programs, Weight Loss Ideas and I figured it was something I can greatly relate to so I would give it a try.

Not only am I studying Kinesiology: Exercise Science at school, but I also lost all (I can't believe I'm going to say this, I've only told a few people) 51 pounds I gained with Brode, and ended up losing even more! Different things work for different people, but I HIGHLY recommend calorie counting. You can exercise all day long, but if you go home and eat the same amount as you burned, you'll be stuck. Many people believe that when they eat healthy they assume it is a small amount of calories so they don't count - wrong. Many products like "1/3 less fat" actually have more calories. By writing down what you're eating and counting you feel a little more guilty and are aware of your choices and portions.

I used the "Lose It" program on my iPhone to count calories and it worked amazing for me. You can go the old notebook and pencil route, but it may be difficult to figure out what is in each thing if it is not labeled well. The Lose It app and many websites have extravagant lists of restaurants and grocery store products so it is a lot easier!

While counting calories, aim for 1,200 and by exercising it will be easier to stay around your target! You don't need to exercise for 6-8 hours a day like the people on The Biggest Loser, some simple varying of cardio and weight lifting will be good to get started and stay toned. While I counted calories I also went to the YMCA and did the elliptical, ran on the tredmill, did an ab workout, then lifted weights that focused on upper body.

Before I got pregnant with Brode I had a personal trainer at school so I was in similar shape as playing sports every day in high school. I then gained 51 pounds and did NOT like it. September 26, 2008 when Brode was born I lost 16lbs, but not much after that. February 2009 when I went back to school and Brode was in day care I began working out at 176 lbs and counting my calories and by the middle of June I was back down to 122, 3 lbs under my starting weight!

This years goal is that I want to become more of a runner. I really like training with all of my own weight and resistance. It allows me to work out at home without a huge gym center!


Before and After

(On the left)

Language, Bottles, and Incidents

Brode has been working on his language a great deal lately! He has been trying very hard to listen to anything people say and copy their sounds. It is so funny to listen. Words like "Hot" and "Yes" are very dragged out so there is a lot of emphasized "T's" and snake like "SSSSSS's" going on. Any words with these same sounds he masters pretty quickly. Brode knows typical words like Dog, Ball, Car, Block, Apple, Hot, Yes, and No, but he also learned some I didn't expect. The first color he learned: Yellow, he says it all the time! Not Red or Blue, that long Yellow (probably because he is obsessed with bananas). The first animal sounds: an elephant and a lion. Those are definitely going to need videos. He has also been learning everyone's name in day care. If you know us well you know that he does not have typical kids names in his room. Brode spends all day every day with Hudson and Dante. He can pronounce these very well, but he has yet to even come close to his own name. Lastly he has been catching on to songs. He came home from day care singing the "row row row" part from row row row your boat so he just repeats that part when it comes up. He also knows the "E I E I O" in old McDonald. He is quite the entertaining little kid.

Brode's New Years resolution was NO MORE BOTTLES. He was 15 months old the day after Christmas and it needed to be done. I told myself we would start at 12 months and be completely done at 14. That did not come close to happening, so we took them all away except the bed time one. Occasionally he had an afternoon one but at day care but I cut it off and we started cutting back milk amounts. Finally the last 2 nights we simply gave him the cup, read our books, sang ours songs, and there was not one peep out of him! He seems to be doing well, hopefully he'll forget about them and we can move on!!

Finally, Incident Reports. I think Brode has one of the thickest files at day care. This is not necessarily a bad thing, just unfortunate. An incident report is a sheet the parent receives with a description of an injury, they sign it and it is saved for future reference and office use. Brode has had these in the past... he bit his lip, another child scratched him, he tripped over his own feet, etc. Every 2 or 3 weeks we'll come in to a small bump, sign the paper and leave. The past week I tell ya, rough on the little guy. He has been a victim. Friday Brode came home with 3 very large scratches down his cheek that scraped skin so they were open that bled and needed to be cleaned, apparently the children weren't getting along that day. Monday I walked in to a line of reports. #1 Brode tripped over his own feet and got rug burn about his right eyebrow, great. #2 Another child bit Brode while waiting in line for lunch. The teachers all stated he did not do anything to deserve it, he did not cry, and he did not do anything back... but when the teacher lifted up his sleeve, it was no minor bite:
I signed the papers and we headed home. Yes you guessed it, I walked into day care today and there sat Brode in the corner with an ice pack. He was chewing on the ice pack and all I could think was his lip, not again, luckily it was not this time. The teacher turned around and Brode put the pack directly to his ear (the little stinker knew he didn't have it in the right place) and she states "Brode has a small incident report today." Surprise Surprise. While playing Brode was bitten in the ear, it became very red and swollen but once again he didn't make a fuss:
Why do I have pictures? I think I may need to start an album with all of his random injuries and have a 50 pound book by the time he graduates. Talk about a laugh to look back on when he is a grown man.

Now don't get me wrong, we love day care, and these reports and incidents are not because of the teachers or center. Who really can control 8 little boys every second? This is completely random and bound to happen, and all of the girls handle every incident wonderfully, washing and comforting the child!

Back to reading. This interim is really challenging me in trying to get everything done!

Weekend

It was a fun weekend at our house. Friday night we hung out at home. Libby has been carrying snow in on her paws and Brode loves playing with it on the floor. He has been outside in the snow, but he always has gloves and can't touch it. We brought some in on the entry rug and he loved playing in it! He may have even tried to eat some of his first snow! We put the little guy to bed at 7. My parents were going to be home all night so Matt and I went and saw Blind Side. We tried to go a couple times but it was always sold out so when we got gift cards for Christmas for movies we decided we would go now that it has been out for a while. It was amazing, definitely worth all the hype it got!

Saturday morning I got Brode up and gave him breakfast and a bath, then Grandma Beth came and picked him up. They usually do swimming lessons on Saturdays, but since it's been so cold and Brode gets colds easily they're going to spend this session doing other random things together in the morning. He always enjoys his time with Grandma. He came back at lunch time so he ate and took a nap right away. I eventually had to wake him up so that we could go to Aiden's 3rd birthday party! It was Brode first party and he had so much fun. I think he behaved for the most part and sat as still as a 15 month old little boy can. We came home before dinner to hang out with daddy for a bit. That night my mom and I went to Christmas with my Grandma's family while the boys had a guys night at home. We always play white elephant and unfortunately my mom and I both won prizes. Mine did not make it home because I was WAYYYY to embarassed to be seen with it, and my mom brought hers home for Brode to play with!

Sunday we spent the day playing! Brode slept in, ate great meals, and took a long nap so he was very happy all day! Gramps had to work but he tried to get him to stay by making him feel guilty. He read books and the newspaper with him all morning. We made a trip to the library in the afternoon so I could get some books for school, and he was very interested in everything going on. I tried to get him to sit in the children's section, but he is always too curious to sit still and read.

Silly Boy

Brode has been learning so much lately. He is really catching on to new things, copies even more, and understands you much more clearly. He is slowly learning more words and is a lot quicker at trying to repeat them when you say them.

Although Brode got mounds of new toys for Christmas, he is still finding the boxes more fun: