The Trigstad Family...

Our celebration of Jensen Part 2...

2012-02-06T09:10:00.000-08:00

We had our family over for Jensen's 1st birthday party this weekend. We picked up Little Cesar's pizza and I made meatballs, cookies and a cake. Unfortunately, I made a measuring mistake and shorted the cookie recipe 3 tsp of oil and they turned out a little hard so I had to redo them. We got some Winnie the Pooh 1st birthday stuff from Wal-Mart so that was the "theme" I guess. It was pretty relaxed and we all had fun. Jensen got some new clothes and toys and these adorable little mini board books. He was not interested in opening presents at all. Devon helped me on her first birthday but Jensen isn't quite as advanced as she was; he ate some wrapping paper instead!

He got some cool new car/truck toys! He loves his cars and trucks!

Hanging out with Papa

His new CAT ride/walk toy. He was in heaven on this!

He wasn't really into the cake. I don't think he's into sweets which is fine by me!

It was a fun little gathering and the kids had fun with all the attention. They played and played and had a blast!

Our Celebration of Jensen Part 1...

2012-02-05T11:00:00.000-08:00

Eric and I both took the day off for Jensen's birthday on Thursday. I think it's a fun tradition to take the day off before the kids start school in a few years. We did exactly what we did for Devon's 1st birthday for Jensen: Seattle Aquarium and Red Robin!

We started our day by letting Jensen open his gifts. He got a little tool bench thing and a car steering wheel. He also got some fireman pajamas and 2 car milk cups. The Toys R Us a little South of us closed and everything was at least 60% off so I got some great deals!

After breakfast we headed out! Jensen fell asleep in the car but that was probably for the best. He usually takes a quick morning snooze so I'm sure he felt better for it. It wasn't too cold out and no rain so we were excited to get out and about. Jensen had so much fun looking at all the fish. He really liked the jelly fish. There was also a baby otter that was about 2 weeks old! She was sleeping so we didn't get the best look but she looked really cute and fuzzy.

The kids in front of the octopus.

My sweet chunky boy!

I just love them so much!

Devon got some good running in!

Me and the kids in front of the Puget Sound.

After the aquarium we headed to Red Robin which was down the street a few blocks. We ordered Jensen a grilled cheese sandwich with mandarin oranges to share with Devon. He ate most of his sandwich but the kid inhaled the oranges. He ended up having 3 cups of oranges. I got some funny video of him eating them, he didn't even pause to breath before putting the next orange slice in his mouth! We were cracking up at him.

The kids slept in the car on the way home and unfortunately this meant that they didn't take a nap when we actually got home. It was okay though, they played with Jensen's new toys and then we went to the gym. It was a really fun day and I'm glad we got to enjoy our family on such a special day!

Jensen turns 1...

2012-02-04T20:52:00.000-08:00

It's official, I no longer have a baby. I'm okay with it though because truth be told, I'm hoping this means Jensen will grow out of his super whiny/needy phase soon. I love him with all of my heart but he has been a very trying child; cconstantly at my feet crying when I'm not holding him. It's okay though because it makes the fun and happy times so much more fun and happy. Jensen is just such a little boy now. He is vastly different than his sister was. Devon was ahead in a lot of things and Jensen is a lot more like what I imagine a typical 1 year old would be like. So, all that being said, what is Jensen up to?

~Walking! He has gotten up to 20 consecutive steps. It is not by any means his main mode of transportation, he still prefers to crawl. Slowly but surely he is gaining more confidence in walking though. He started taking steps here and there about 10 days before his birthday so we made it just under the wire!
~He is in mostly 12 month clothes although he can definitely fit into 18 month stuff.
~Jensen says the following words: car, bye, dog, mama, dada, bird, mum-mum, more and sissy.
~He claps, shakes hands, gives high fives and puts his hands up in the air when you say "touchdown!"
~He is a super climber. He wants to get onto anything he can. He loves Devon's rocking chair and will sit in it like a little man making it rock.
~He is a pretty good sleeper. Maybe not when it comes to naps although it seems like he only fights it with people other than me. I can get him to take a 2-3 hour nap, easy. It's a mother's touch I suppose. He has slept through the night since he was a few weeks old and still does.
~He enjoys playing with the dishwasher when I am loading/unloading it. He has learned how to climb on it and will stand holding onto the top shelf. We put the kibosh on that when he fell off though :(
~He dances by rocking back and forth or shaking his head in an exaggerated "no". He will also shake his head no when you tell him to.
~The kid still LOVES his baths!
~He and Devon have a really good relationship. Yes, there are the occasional fights over toys but for the most part they are very loving to one another.
~He is a BOY. That is for sure, cars, trucks, Lego's. I love this!
~He has 4 teeth on the top and 3 on the bottom.
~Jensen is a garbage. He will eat anything! Hopefully it will make the transition from bottles/formula super easy!

Sitting in Devon's rocking chair sipping on a FAKE juice box :)

Chubs!

I had to give them toast because they wouldn't sit still.

We went tubing...

2012-01-25T20:47:00.000-08:00

For our friends son's 13th birthday! First and foremost I cannot believe Alek is 13! I met him first when he was 7 I think and that doesn't seem like that long ago. Now he is a TEENAGER; it definitely made me realize how quickly time flies!

He wanted to go sledding up at Snoqualmie pass so my parents picked Jensen up bright and early and Devon, Eric and I headed up to the pass. It wasn't a bad drive which was nice considering how much snow we had earlier that week. It was snowing at the pass which made it hard to keep your eyes open when sleddin but other than that it was so much fun!

I only busted out my camera a few times and because Devon had me take her to the bathroom I failed to get a shot of all the kids and the group but here are the ones I did get.

Devon and Eric after their first run down the hill

She looks so squishy!

Devon had to take a break to make a "snow angel elephant"

Making snow angel elephants and then snow angel ducks; she's got quite the imagination.

Eric and Devon digging a hole

Devon in the hole! She thought this was hilarious!

We had a lot of fun! Afterwards we picked up Jensen and then went over to our friends' house for pizza and cake. It's always fun to celebrate the kids' birthday's!!

They're looking all grown up now...

2012-01-21T09:45:00.000-08:00

What's up with that?

He'll be 1 in 12 days!

Reading on the floor, she is a total preschooler!

Stefanie vs Weight - Part 6

2012-01-19T12:28:00.000-08:00

So I'm proud to say that I'm still going strong! My current weight is 173.5lbs. That's about 11.5lbs since October (when I posted my weights the first time). More or less I average about a 1lb loss per week so I think that's something to be proud of.

For Christmas, Eric got me a Bodybugg. It is a monitor that you wear on your arm all day and it tells you how many calories you are burning all the time. It also works as a pedometer and wants you to take 10,000 steps/day. It's funny how many that is, especially when I have a desk job for 9 hours - 4 days a week. This monitor has been so great. I always logged my calories based on the machines at the gym or what my tracking website calculated. Now I know exactly how many calories I'm burning per day and per workout. It helps me understand my food intake a lot better. I know exactly what I'm taking in and putting out which is all weight loss is about.

Right now I am eating approximately 1200-1600 calories a day and attempting to burn about 2600. If I burn 2600 I will eat 1600 calories but otherwise I try and keep my intake on the low end. If I can have a deficit of 1000 calories per day that yields a 2lb loss per week. I try and abide by this but obviously I'm not spot on as I really lose about a 1lb a week. I eat a TON of veggies but I really need to work on lowering my sodium intake.

I still use the website My Fitness Pall religiously. I have started making friends on there and joining challenges. I'm participating in 2 right now: Burn 3500 cal/week and a New Years to Valentines challenge to lose as much weight as I can. It's nice feeling accountable to people, also to have a streak going of logging food/exercise for 115 days now. It's definitely become a great place for encouragement and food and exercise suggestions for me.

I work out daily for the most part. I go to the gym about 6 days a week and will let myself workout from home one or two days if I really want to. Generally I do the elliptical for 35 minutes for a 400 cal burn and then do the stationary bike for 100 calories. Or I'll do the elliptical and then jog. If I don't do machines I'm taking a step class, zumba class or the bodypump class. I've managed to make "friends" at the gym too. We chat for a bit before and after classes and it's nice because they notice if I'm not there so I feel accountable to show up.

It's not hard or a struggle to eat healthy and stay active. I measure my food, have a pretty good knowledge of what things contain now (calorie wise) and try not to eat out. I don't over think exercising. I just do it and that seems like a good mentality for me.

It's crazy to think that I'm currently 12 lbs lighter than I was when I got married 4 1/2 years ago. My body shape is definitely different since having kids but it's neat to know that this is the lightest my co-workers have ever seen me! They are all super supportive so that is great too!

Here I am on Devon's first birthday on 12/15/09 at approximately 215 lbs:

Here I am this Christmas at about 177lbs or so:

I feel fantastic and have so much energy. I'm sleeping better and just have so much more confidence.

I just want to say that I write these posts not for any pat on the back or comments about how I look but because I want a record of all the hard work I'm doing. I've been overweight most of my life and I think it's important to record the journey of becoming the person I will be for the rest of my life. I will NEVER be over 200 lbs again. I know, it's a bold statement but it's one I believe now.

I also hope that if anyone stumbles across my blog and can relate to me that they can find some hope from my journey. That would be so wonderful!

Snow Day (or a few)...

2012-01-18T19:17:00.000-08:00

We've had some good snow around here since Saturday. It's funny because it only snows in the Seattle area a few days out of the year so people tend to freak out a bit. No one knows how to drive and there aren't a ton of plows so the roads are slick. Anyway, we had snow on Saturday and again for a bit on Sunday. Devon had a blast playing outside with her friends! We got more snow on Monday night and then we had tons of storm warnings and talk of up to 12" of snow over 24 hours!

I personally live in a convergence zone where weather tends to hit harder than it does elsewhere so I decided to work from home today. I wouldn't be nervous about just myself on the road but I just was't comfortable with driving/having Eric drive the kids anywhere.

We had a fun day. I worked a lot while Devon and Jensen played and colored. Then I worked out at home while they napped. After they woke up and ate we bundled up and went outside to play! It was SO cold out! My hair was icy from the snow falling. Devon played with our neighbor who was shoveling his driveway. He's 30 but he doesn't mind hanging out with us a bit. Devon liked playing catch with snowballs with him.

Eric's work closed early too so he got home in time to play! I measured on our deck and we had 6" of snow!

Devon and her pile of snow in the neighbors yard!

Goofy girl

Eric shoveling the driveway

Jensen all bundled up.

11 Month Post...

2012-01-14T23:27:00.000-08:00

So, I was so good about taking Jensen's monthly pictures up until now. BUT, the fact that it is the 14th isn't going to stop me. I still took his 11 month pics and wanted to write a little about what he's doing now.

~Gives high fives
~weighs around 22lbs
~LOVES food. He will eat anything and gets so mad if you don't share with him!
~Adores his sister. He always wants to do what she's doing.
~Is a mama's boy and follows me around most of the day.
~Is going through his "stranger danger" phase. He gets super upset if anyone but his mom or dad holds him.
~Plays with cars and it is SO cute. He pushes them around and says "car" over and over. In fact, he barely ever says "mama" but he says "car" all the time.
~Is really into clapping. He's been clapping for a while but now he stops to clap for everything. He gets the most adorable look on his face too!
~Jensen is super into bath time still. He hauls ass to the bathroom when he hears the water running and grunts until you get him into the bathroom.
~Says dada, mama, car, dog, what I think is supposed to be "sissy" but is just him making a "ssss" sound. Who knows I could be giving him too much credit...:)
~He stands unassisted for a couple seconds.
~Cruises around furniture like a pro but I think it may be another month or so before he walks.

I am IN LOVE with this boy. He is the whiniest, neediest child in the world but that doesn't matter. He is fun and squishy and I couldn't imagine my life without him.

Total boy, into his cars!

LOVE!

The only good pic of the two of them!

Our New Year...

2012-01-14T23:03:00.000-08:00

We had a ton of sparkler's left over from the 4th so we let Devon go crazy on New Year's Eve!

Please don't mind our messy garage. Eric is building some tool benches so everything is out of sorts!

Happy New Year!

Christmas Day Part 4...

2012-01-05T14:03:00.000-08:00

Finally, the last post about Christmas! Our last stop for the day was to my step-aunts house. She lives down the street from us so it was nice that it was very convenient! Jensen fell asleep in the car on the way there so he was a little sleepy when we arrived. Devon wanted Shirley (my step-aunt) to help her find the cats! Both the kids loved seeing everyone and they received some adorable gifts as well.

Jensen got some more toy cars. These ones wind up and roll across the floor, the kids are having SO much fun with them! Devon also got the cutest toy from her great-aunt and uncle. It is a bunny named Abigail and she comes with 3 stories. At the end of each page is a sentence that goes in the story and when you read it she responds. It's pretty cute and Devon loves her a ton!

As wiped as we all were, I'm always so glad to spend time with our step-family!!

Jensen playing with Leila, my cousin Sarah's dog

My step-aunt Chris and my step-brother Travis' girlfriend Megan holding Jensen.

The kids looking at all the cool new beanie babies they got!

Jensen and one of his new cars!

The kids were obsessed with this snowman nightlight. Great-aunt Shirley helped them admire it safely :)

It was a great Christmas and I'm so happy we got to spend it with all our families. It was neat to have our 2 kids be at the ages where they got to have fun opening presents and soaking up all the attention! It flew by so fast but I'll admit that I'm sort of glad to have all the Christmas decorations down and have my house back to normal...but I know that next year I'll be itching to put up the tree and decorations by October!

Christmas Day Part 3...

2012-01-02T09:16:00.000-08:00

Our next stop on Christmas was to Eric's families house. We always spend the most time there and open presents and eat breakfast. We got there a little after 11:30am and stayed til around 4:30pm. It was nice to be able to relax for a bit during the chaos that is Our Christmas.

We got a lot of nice things, I'm especially excited about our new vacuum and our first wet/dry vac. Our carpets have taken quite the beating over the years. Eventually I'd like to replace it all but we better wait until the kids are older!

Devon got a really cute princess dress up chest from her uncles. She instantly put on some of the items. Jensen got a new puzzle and a cute little t-ball/baseball set...among other things that they got. It was a good morning/afternoon celebrating with the Trigstad side of our family!

The tree

Jensen playing in the pots and pans drawer

Princess Devon and uncle Steve

Princess Devon and the stockings

Me and the tired kiddo's

Eating our brunch

My MIL brought out the rocking horse that Eric and his siblings used when they were little, Devon loved it!

Jensen showing grandma his clapping skills!

Christmas Day Part 2...

2011-12-31T12:00:00.000-08:00

So, after we got done at opening presents at my house we headed over to my parents house to eat breakfast and open gifts with my parents and siblings.

I got some new gym shoes (!) and some new slip on Converse which I had wanted. Eric got a ton of tool/garage stuff from my step dad. The kids got some cute clothes and a few toys. We had a lot of fun with my family. Our Christmas morning with them is always short since we head over to Eric's mom's house at about 11am. We usually have about 1 1/2 to 2 hours at my parents house, it always feels very rushed.

The kids (well, those of us in the state) Eric, Jensen, Ryan, Alissa, Travis, me and Devon

Jensen and Papa, I LOVE this picture!

My mom got a Kindle Fire, she was very excited!

Eric and I

Our family

Jensen gave us a great present, he finally mastered clapping on Christmas morning!

2011

2011-12-30T19:42:00.000-08:00

I still have 3 more Christmas posts to do...sorry :)

BUT, I saw a blog friend of mines end of 2011 post and just had to do it too.
Thanks Sarann-Rap for the great idea. She got it from another blogger which she linked to on her post so check them both out!

1. What did you do in 2011 that you’d never done before?

Gave natural child birth! My son came so fast I literally had him 25 minutes after arriving at the hospital and pushed him out onto the bottom of the bed. It was intense but I'm glad I have that experience. I think that if we decided to have another child I'd probably try and go natural again. In all likelihood I'll have the kids at home since my labor will be like 2 hours long :)

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

I'm sure it was probably something like lose weight after having my baby. If so, then yes I did keep it. I've lost about 40 lbs since March and 30 of that has been since August. I feel great and am keeping up with going to the gym every day and eating healthy!

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

I did, you don't get much closer than that!

4. Did anyone close to you die?

No and I'm very grateful for that!

5. What countries did you visit?

None

6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?

A vacation! I'm trying to convince Eric that we should take Devon to Disneyland. It will either be that or he and I will go to Vegas for the first time. I really have no desire to gamble and such so I'm leaning towards Disneyland. We went in April 2010 though so this may take some convincing!

7. What dates from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

Jensen's birthday of course, 2/2/11. August 1st which is when I officially started my weight loss journey.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Baby and changing my life to that of a healthier more active person.

9. What was your biggest failure?

Not being as good of a wife as I should be. I know I am short with my husband and it is something I struggle with constantly. I need to have more patience!

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

If you consider having a 7lb person shoot out of you and the aftermath of that an injury, then yes. I don't though, it was SO worth it.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

An iPad 2 and Patrick our hamster. I know not everyone is keen on hamsters/rodents but I'm pretty fond of the little guy.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

Hmmmm, on a grand scale I'm not sure. Out of people I know, my step-dad. He struggles a lot with finding a job (going on almost 3 years now) and his feelings about his relationship with his biological kids. With all of these things standing in his way of living the life he wants to, he manages to constantly help others, love my kids in the best way I could have hoped for and put on a happy face even when he may not want to. I am so grateful for him every day.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

The Republicans/Tea party people. Sorry to my Republican friends but it's that truth!

14. Where did most of your money go?

Mortgage :)

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

Jensen and seeing Devon become a really good big sister.

16. What song will always remind you of 2011?

Adele's Rolling In The Deep or Someone Like You.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: (a) happier or sadder? (b) thinner or fatter? (c) richer or poorer?

Happier, thinner, richer.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?

Learned more about budgeting. Travelling.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?

Eating crap!

20. How did you spend Christmas?

Running around! We had 2 Christmas Eve's and 4 Christmas Day celebrations. The joys of having so many families :)

21. Did you fall in love in 2011?

Yes, with the cutest little chunk face on the planet!

22. What was your favorite TV program?

I'll say Friday Night Lights. I watched the whole series this year thanks to Netflix and maternity leave!

23. Do you hate anyone now that you did not hate this time last year?

24. What was the best book you read?

The Hunger Games trilogy was good.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?

Adele and Foster the People I guess.

26. What did you want and get?

iPad 2, my bodybugg, a new vacuum and a full length mirror for our bedroom (I'm spoiled!)

27. What did you want and not get?

Nothing significant.

28. What was your favorite film of this year?

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. I'm sad it's over but it was OH SO GOOD.

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

Eric's mom babysat and we saw the movie Paul and went to Susumu's for dinner. I'm sure we had family celebrations too but the much needed date is what I remember most.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

Having the stupid hip pain I've had since my pregnancy with Jensen go away.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?

Casual and workout clothes.

32. What kept you sane?

Exercise and the kids.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, yum!

34. What political issue stirred you the most?

What political issue didn't stir me...

35. Who did you miss?

This may sound lame but my kids. I have never before wanted to be a stay at home mom but since having Jensen and them both being a little older now, I think it's something I would like. I feel like I don't get enough quality time with them but I do my best and that's what counts.

36. Who was the best new person you met?

Um, I don't know.....

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011?

It's important to take time for yourself.

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

You know those days when you want to just choose
To not get out of bed, you're lost in your head again.
You play the game but you kind of cut
’Cause you’re coming down hard and your joints are all stuck.
I've tried to say that’s not the only way
I never knew if I could face myself to change.

Foster the People - Helena Beat

I changed.

Christmas Morning Part 1...

2011-12-27T19:43:00.000-08:00

We started off Christmas morning just our little family of 4. We usually don't get much time to do our Christmas because everyone expects us to come to their houses therefore we need to leave our house at 8:30ish. I woke up and got the hash brown casserole's ready and in the oven while Eric fed Jensen. Then we got Devon up. While she was going potty, she yelled down the stairs and informed me that I was getting a "pretty cup". Ha, it's very apparent that we won't be able to include her in any Christmas shopping next year!

We had a good time opening gifts and got some of it on film...until the camera died (Eric always forgets to charge the camera before big events, it's like a tradition now). We got the kids a bunch of toys. My favorites for them were Jensen's big dinosaur that stands up and is almost as tall as Devon and his ball popper. Devon got a new leap frog game and a stuffed penguin from the movie Happy Feet (which is what she asked the mall Santa for).

Eric got some new ties and shirts for work and some movies and games. I got a nice mirror that is on a stand for our bedroom. Eric also got me the Bodybugg which is an arm band that you wear all day and it tracks how many calories you burn. So far it's been cool actually seeing what I burn since I normally just use a free website online and it guesstimates calories burned when you exercise. Oh, and of course I got a pretty cup :)

We opened presents for about an hour and then we headed over to my parents house (which will be part 2).

Our tree on Christmas morning

Jensen hanging out in the kitchen before Devon woke up

Playing with a car from his stocking

Devon and her Happy Feet penguin

Eric and his Lord of the Rings Pez

Jensen admiring his new ball popper

The kids opening presents. You can see the big dinosaur in the bottom right of this pic.

Devon and her recorder...in retrospect this may have been a poorly thought out gift on my part.

Christmas Eve Part 2...

2011-12-26T13:53:00.000-08:00

We headed over to my mom's house after my dad's. This celebration is with my mom's side of the family and my great-grandma. It's always a big gathering and a lot of fun! My parents really went all out with great decorations and a lot of good food and drinks.

We ate dinner first and then cleaned and visited for a while. They guys all congregated in the basement because my step-dad had redone their pool table and it is really nice! So, they were all down there playing pool and what not and the women all hung out upstairs talking and cleaning (cliche much?).

Before we gathered in the living room to open presents we had a big surprise for the kids. Santa showed up to my mom's house! Devon was a little hesitant about this. She is totally fine with the mall Santa but having him show up at my parents house may have been a bit too close for comfort.

After Santa left we opened gifts and hung out in the living room for a while.
I had a lot of fun and it was another really relaxing Christmas Eve.

Jensen and Santa (Papa)

My cousin J.J. and I. She's having a little girl in May and I am so excited!

Alissa (my bros girlfriend), me, J.J. and Elynne (my cousins wife)

4 generations of ladies!

Jensen, Eric, my bro Ryan and his girlfriend Alissa

Everyone opening presents

Devon doing some serious coloring

It takes a lot of concentration to open presents.

I got a bit drunk...but my Christmas miracle was that I didn't get a hangover!

Christmas Eve Part 1...

2011-12-25T22:28:00.000-08:00

We woke up on Christmas Eve day and I managed to do a class at the gym, get the kids down for an early nap, walk the dog and relax for a bit! This is a Christmas miracle all it's own. We headed over to my dad's at about 1 pm and hung out at his house until about 5:30pm. This is one of the first years we've carved out time to actually relax at his house. We are usually so rushed trying to make it everywhere that we don't get to spend much quality time with my dad, step-mom and her two kids.

We had quiche, ham, veggies, smoked salmon and bread. I love quiche and have it so rarely so this was a nice treat. Jensen was in heaven because he made a little girlfriend who just wanted to hold him the whole time. Devon ran around and played and I think she had a really fun time too. We exchanged gifts and then headed over to my mom's house (which will be Part 2). I'm so excited because my dad and step-mom got me a gift card to the Apple store so I can get an iPhone! Yay!!!! My phone is the most basic thing ever. It is a flip phone with a cracked screen. I don't even have free text messaging. I've been wanting an iPhone for quite some time but the fact that my screen cracked a month ago really sealed the deal.

Jensen and Rudy.

The view of the Puget sound from my dad's house.

Uncle Ryan "flying" Devon in her new Tinkerbell wings.

My brother, dad and I.

Jensen and Grandma Cheryl

The beautiful tree.

Jensen opening a present

Jensen and Auntie Bella.

It was a great kick off to our Christmas and I just really enjoyed getting to spend time with my dad's side of the family!

The naming of Patrick...

2011-12-23T13:16:00.000-08:00

Since 2/3 of you asked how we named Patrick I thought I'd just answer in a post.
Devon originally wanted to name him...gosh I don't even begin to know how to spell this but...Talkadooeea???
It sounded like a mixture of Taquito and Sacagawea.
I said no.

I'm sorry but that is just a ridiculous name.

So, I was suggesting names for her and I've always thought it was funny to name animals human sounding names. We had a cat growing up that we named Carl for example. So I suggested Fredrick and Devon said no and then I suggested Patrick and she responded with "how about Sponge bob" to which I replied with "no, you named the last one Gut, let's give this one a somewhat normal name". She said that Patrick would be a good name. So, that's how we decided on Patrick.

The Tale of the Hamster...

2011-12-23T09:22:00.000-08:00

So, we brought Gut home on a Saturday and he seemed fine and dandy. He was a calm and sweet hamster but the following weekend it was VERY apparent that he was super sick. I took him to the pet store where we got him and they said he had "wet tail". This is basically diahrrea for hamsters but because they are so little it is almost always fatal. If I had caught it earlier we may have been able to make him better but he was really bad. I felt terrible for the little guy!

So, in a panic I picked out the other black hamster they had there. I brought him home and all Devon said was "Gut got bigger". We went with it. Well that night I barely slept at all because I kept having nightmares that the new Gut was escaping. He just looked TOO much like a rat and I couldn't handle it.

On our way home from the gym the next night I stopped at another pet store and alas they had a Teddy Bear Hamster. This was what I originally had in mind because they are fluffy and don't look so much like mice. The people at the other pet store said they were basically impossible to find so I didn't even try. Turns out their rival pet store had them all along. I bought the little brown hamster and convinced Devon that the other Gut missed his friends and wanted to go back to the pet store...I know, I'm horrible.

Anyways, now we have Patrick and I love the little dude. He is soft and fluffy (although it's hard to tell in the picture). He is healthy and sweet and will sit and let us hold him. He's a good addition!

Gingerbread House...

2011-12-21T21:20:00.000-08:00

Better late than never I guess. I bought a Gingerbread Village a while back because I figured making 5 little houses would be easier than 1 big one. This proved to be correct. On Tuesday we put the houses together and on Wednesday night we decorated them. It's funny how different I am since having Jensen. Last year, I wanted the house to look like a quintessential Gingerbread house. This year, not so much. We just sort of let Devon do what she wanted to do. She had fun though and it didn't take super long since we broke it up into two nights. I think if we tried to do it all together Devon would have lost interest so this was a good plan.

Jensen supervising from under the table

Jensen photobomb

All finished on Patrick's cage. Yes Patrick is our hamster, Gut is no longer, I'll explain later...

Devon the bowler...

2011-12-19T13:45:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday we got together with our great friends the Lachner's and did some bowling to celebrate our girls birthday! It was a ton of fun. I love hanging out with Jenni & Andrew and our kids have so much fun playing together. We got some lunch and Devon loved her presents. She got some new coloring crayons that are twist up (I'm excited about that since Jensen wants to chew on her crayons), a set of markers that only color on specific paper of which they gave her a coloring book and the coolest was this set of pictures that are bigger than Devon that she can color. They all have Disney/Pixar pictures on them and Devon wanted to start coloring them at the bowling alley! She's so into coloring right now so these will be fun to do!

Ayva, Devon and Alanna

The kiddos

Jenni and I

My little bow head

Devon and daddy bowling!

Such a fun day and Devon passed out afterwards!

Devon, what are you up to...

2011-12-18T21:43:00.000-08:00

Devon,
You are such a spunky kid and constantly on the move. You are very well spoken and funny and you have an opinion about everything. About a month before your birthday it became apparent to me that 3 was going to be far harder than 2 and so far this has been holding up. You have become more defiant and sassy, accident prone and capable...it's a weird thing to watch you act so independently and want to do everything yourself.

You are about 80% potty trained. You can go accident free but I'm noticing it depends a lot on how adamant we are about it. You are far too busy to stop and request a bathroom break but you also get upset if you do have an accident. You love pull-ups which is good except they are more expensive but they seem to make you feel more like a big girl. I had really hoped that you would be fully potty trained by 3 but the biggest thing I've learned as your mom is that you have a will of your own.

You crack us up with the things you say, here are a few I'd like to remember:
-When we leave the gym you always want my "gym water". It's just the water bottle I use but it cracks me up because it sounds like such a gross request.
-You use the word "otherwise" all the time but you don't use it in context. For example, I'll ask you if you want a string cheese and when you say no and I ask you why you answer with "otherwise, I don't want string cheese."
-You call Jensen "my baby". If he's crying you say "my baby is crying" or you tell people to "look at my baby." You acknowledge that he is my baby too but he's first and foremost your baby.
-If I scold you you'll start to cry and say "that's not really nice, you're making me sad".
-No matter what the actual time is, if it's dark out it's "night night time".
-Whenever we play with the hamster you always say "he sure likes me" or "he sure likes you mom".
-The other day you were putting pieces of wood together to build a "wood castle". I told you that we needed to leave for the gym and you said "I just need to build my wood castle, I see you have the tools there" as you motioned towards Eric's tools (that cracked me up!)

You love going to the gym with me. You love your friends there and the nice ladies that care for you. You probably enjoy the coloring the most. Speaking of which, you have become an awesome color-er! You don't color completely in the lines but you use all different colors in the right spots. You used to color an entire picture with just one color but now you're a pro!

You are wearing 3T shirts and 2T pants and size 7 or 8 shoes. You weigh around 31lbs and love to weigh yourself at the gym. I have no idea how tall you are but you're not that much taller than Jensen now (but he's a big boy)!

You make these sassy faces sometimes where I can just see myself in you. We are a lot alike, very headstrong and independent. You tell it like it is and have a hard time hiding your feelings. Not that you should but I bet dad would like it if you pretended you wanted to cuddle ever once in a while :)

I love you so much and even though you test my patience I wouldn't change you one bit.
You are my favorite girl!

The night before your birthday!

I have a 3 year old...

2011-12-17T15:46:00.000-08:00

and it is ridiculous! This kid gets injured more than I thought was humanly possible. EVERY DAY there is a new bruise or cut...or as the case was on her birthday a CHIPPED TOOTH!!!!! I wanted to cry! We were leaving the gym and Eric put Devon in her seat and she hit her tooth on my water bottle. Luckily, her dentist is in the building next door so we were there within a few minutes of the incident. I don't know if they can do anything to fill the tooth but we're going to check into it. We have an appointment on Thursday for them to file it a little because right now it's a little sharp.

While I know it's not terrible it's just sad that it happened. Additionally, later that day at Target (to get some Tylenol for her achy tooth) she hit her head on the cart because she swung herself into it. A month ago she gave herself a marble sized knot on the back of her head that actually bled because she hit her head on our bed frame. And of course you all remember her big ol' gash from the other week...I mean c'mon! Give a little girl and her Momma a break! Maybe it's just a toddler thing, or maybe it's a Devon thing, I don't know.

So, anyways we had an almost perfect day with Devon on her birthday. We went to the gym and she got to color a birthday picture (that's how I talked her into wanting to go). Then we went to Build a Bear where she got to make her first bear, Babs. She was super confused as to why she wasn't taking the already made bear off the display shelf but I think she realized what was going on pretty quickly.

Stuffing her bear

The cool stuffing machine

Washing Babs

Finished product and a happy 3 year old!

After Build a Bear we went to lunch at Red Robin where Devon got Happy Birthday sung to her and enjoyed a yummy sundae. We headed over to Toys R Us after lunch because Devon had a gift card burning a hole in her pocket. She picked out a cute Melissa & Doug Tana grams puzzle and a little Sponge Bob Camera. After a quick stop to Target and 1 head injury later, we took the kids home for naps.

It was a really fun day and I think, all injuries aside, Devon enjoyed herself!

Devon's Birthday Party...

2011-12-14T19:28:00.000-08:00

We did Devon's family birthday last Sunday and it was a lot of fun! I just did a sandwich platter, 7- layer dip and chips, lil' smokies in crescent rolls a chocolate cake and cookies. Easy Peasy! Devon was a bit cranky at first since she had just gotten up from her nap but she warmed up after a bit. It's so crazy that she'll be 3 tomorrow! Eric and I have the day off and plan to just spend some good quality time with her.

Some of the decorations

She wanted a Tigger cake...yeah right. I'm not that good!

She would not hold still so this was the best pic of her alone that I could get!

Showing off her Frosty toy.

Aunt Alissa showing Jensen his reflection in the balloon.

She loved her new head band.

I got the honor of supervising her opening presents. She didn't need much help this year!

She actually blew out 1 candle. She seemed afraid of the other 3.

Devon and all her grandparents.

Santa through the years...

2011-12-11T20:47:00.000-08:00

It's crazy to see Devon with Santa over time. I really wish we had managed to get her a Santa pic her first Christmas but she was born on the 15th during a big snow storm (snow is not that normal in WA)...so it just didn't happen.

Picture of a picture...2009

2010...flashing the crotch of her tights.

Beautiful girl...2011.

Well, she'll be 3 on Thursday so that's weird. We had her family birthday party today and it was a lot of fun. After 3 years, I feel like I'm starting to figure this whole "throwing a party" thing out. I'll post more about her party later but it went really well! She is going to be 3...wasn't she just a little baby?!?!?

Hey Santa...

2011-12-09T19:42:00.000-08:00

We got our Santa pics done last Sunday. Both the kids did really good and I'm so happy with their cute little outfits. I had purchased him a cute little sweater vest outfit but it didn't really go with Devon's and I found the one he's wearing for WAY cheaper. Plus, they totally matched with Santa!

Bunches of Christmas cuteness...well maybe not Santa but you know what I mean :)

I wish she was smiling like this in the pic with both of them...oh well, both are cute.

Look at that silly chub face.

Well, at least she didn't need stitches...

2011-12-07T21:26:00.000-08:00

**Gross pictures to follow, reader beware**

Devon was going potty in our downstairs bathroom today when we heard a loud crash with glass shattering followed by Devon screaming and crying. We have this little hutch behind the toilet in there and I have these tall vase decorations that have sand and shells in them. She was trying to get her book off the shelf behind her and must have knocked them all off onto herself. There was sand and glass everywhere and at first we just thought she cut her hand because it was all bloody. I quickly realized that her hair was covered in blood and that it was pouring out of her head.

Once she realized she was bleeding out of her head she freaked out even more. Eric isn't good with blood or injuries and I am so I took her into the kitchen to assess the damage. Her cut looked pretty wide, not long but thick. I thought she may need stitches so I got her as cleaned up as possible and headed out. I called my dad on my way out the door in the hopes that he would be home. He lives close to the hospital (as he is a surgeon) and I figured I could swing by his house first to see if she did need stitches.

When we got to his house Devon was doing fine. She had calmed down a ton thanks to a Popsicle. I think the fact that I was being super calm and kept stopping to look her in the eye to tell her that she would be okay helped a bit too. My dad said that he didn't think she needed any stitches. He said that all they would do is give her 1-2 stitches and the task of cleaning, numbing and stitching her would be more of an ordeal than was necessary. So, we just need to hope she doesn't bump her head on anything for a bit and avoid shampooing it for a few days and hopefully she'll heal up just fine.

Before her bath. What kind of blogger would I be if I didn't take a pic?

All cleaned up. You can see why I thought stitches may have been in order.

2nd Annual Garden D'Lights...

2011-12-05T12:30:00.000-08:00

We went to Bellevue on Saturday for our 2nd Annual Garden D'Lights family tradition. it was really fun and I felt much more prepared. Last year I was pregnant and didn't have a good winter jacket and I was freezing! This year we all bundled up and stayed nice and toasty. The kids really enjoyed the lights. Jensen was happily grunting and making noises throughout and Devon had fun spotting all the different animals. We even got to see a guy propose to his girlfriend! They change the lights every year so that was exciting. I'm glad to know we get to see something different every year.

Decorating...

2011-12-04T12:00:00.000-08:00

I came home the Wednesday before Thanksgiving to a tree in our house! Eric's best friend was in town for Thanksgiving so he didn't want to commit to putting up decorations on Friday or Saturday so he got a head start. At this point, we're pretty much done decorating and I love it! It makes me feel warm and cozy and I just want to bake gooey treats!

10 Months...

2011-12-03T16:53:00.000-08:00

Well, he's a 10 month old now. He's still as whiny as ever but he's also more fun than ever!!

~Jensen is crawling 100% and has been for a while. He beat his sister in learning how to crawl like a normal baby, none of that army crawling nonsense :)
~He learned how to crawl up stairs last weekend and he is a pro.
~He says Dada all the time and sometimes he says Car among a bunch of other babbles.
~He can feed himself and loves finger foods, especially Baby Mum Mum's.
~Jensen is obsessed with the dogs food bowls. The minute he sees them he takes off crawling and wants to bang the on the floor. Too bad they're ceramic and we have to crush his little baby dreams by taking them away.
~He waves hi and bye very consistently and has attempted to clap but hasn't quite figured that out yet.
~He's wearing 9 & 12 month clothes and still in size 3 diapers.
~We had his 9 month well check up on 12/1...when he was 10 months old and he is 21.10 lbs (55%),
18 1/2 inches tall (70%) and his head circumference is 29 (60%).

My options were limited, he doesn't stop moving. This is Diabolical Jensen.

Grabby Jensen.

It's getting impossible to get either of them to sit still.

He's my little chunker and we love him!

It's Baaaack...

2011-12-01T12:00:00.000-08:00

We decided that Jensen was old enough to enjoy the ball pit that we got Devon for Christmas when she was one. This toy seriously tests my patience as far as cleaning goes but since having Jensen, I've learned to ease up a bit. He loves playing in it and thinks it's the funniest thing ever to get hit on the head by the balls. Devon just loves sitting in there and throwing the balls out...fun. Their little smiles and laughs make it okay though, I just clean up a ton of balls 2-3 times a day but whatever :)

Look at her mischievous little face.

Thanksgiving...

2011-11-30T13:29:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd stick to my regular way of doing things by posting about our Thanksgiving way after the fact.

We had a very nice and relaxing day! We normally have to "house jump" since I have 3 families and also my in-laws so this was the first year we made the decision to just go one place. We went to Eric's moms and it was really pleasant. I made sweet potatoes and fudge! We woke up and I managed to go to the gym, kids had a great nap and I baked all before we had too leave. Normally we're running around like chickens with our heads cut off but I can't express just how great going to one place was. Dinner was delicious and we stayed and visited for a few hours. The kids did well and I'm proud to say that I didn't over indulge. I was worried about facing all the yummy food but I had my favorites and kept it at reasonable portion sizes!

We're moving on up...

2011-11-29T12:17:00.000-08:00

Jensen has discovered the stairs. He's getting so big and curious, I just love it!!

Welcome to the family...

2011-11-28T11:00:00.000-08:00

Devon got an early birthday present and we all got a new family member. Meet Gut (yes Gut, it's not a typo).

He's an all black Fancy Hamster. He is really sweet and easy going so far which is great since Devon wants to hold him all the time. The only 2 things I'm not a fan of is the smell (which isn't noticeable unless you are actually holding him) and the fact that Devon FREAKS OUT every time we put him away. I'm hoping the second thing will go away with time. Right now he's new and exciting but hopefully she won't have a break down every time we put him in his house for the next 2-3 years because that would be so annoying.

As for his name, we have quadruple checked that she does want to name him Gut and it seems pretty official at this point. We recently went to a friends house and they have a dog named Gus so we think that may be where she got the name but I find it highly entertaining that we now have a hamster named after a body part!

Easiest recipe ever...

2011-11-27T17:15:00.000-08:00

We call these Piggies!!

~Preheat oven to 450.

~Get a premade pie crust, roll it onto a greased cookie pan and lightly smear some shortening on it.

~Sprinkle sugar and cinnamon on it and roll it up tightly.

~Cut into 1/4 inch slices and place on the cookie sheet. Bake for 8 minutes and enjoy!

*I haven't tried it but these would probably taste awesome warmed up ala mode!

Baking...

2011-11-18T12:18:00.000-08:00

I gave into a little bit of Christmas by baking gingerbread cookies last weekend. My aunt was having a chili cookoff/birthday party for my uncle and I can't show up without something. It's not so much that I wanted gingerbread cookies but I thought decorating them with Devon would be fun. Sure enough, we both enjoyed it!

A beheaded gingerbread man

Apparently...

2011-11-17T14:22:00.000-08:00

Pulling yourself up onto things requires that you sag your pants:

A little help...

2011-11-13T09:05:00.000-08:00

Jensen is on the move and getting into everything these days. It's a lot of fun and I much prefer it to the immobile baby stage. BUT that means I need to be looking around the house for all the dangers that lurk here. Luckily, our place has stayed very kid/baby friendly since Devon is still little but she has lots of little toys that could pose a choking hazard and all the plug covers have gone missing so, it looks like I am baby proofing a little bit again. Fortunately I have this kid to help me out whenever Jensen gets too close to danger.

If I just ask her to move him away from something this is what she does and he thinks it's hilarious. Sometimes she'll just drag him around the house playing and he giggles the whole time. There have been a few times that I haven't been paying attention and all of a sudden Jensen is missing his pants because Devon was dragging him around everywhere. It just cracks me up!

It's getting cold...

2011-11-07T16:35:00.000-08:00

as you can tell by Jensen's get up for our walk. It was a pretty exhausting walk for him!

9 Months...

2011-11-06T16:33:00.000-08:00

Jensen turned 9 months on 11/2. He has changed SO much this month it's been pretty fun!

-He is crawling, while crawling the same way his sister always did, army style. He moves really fast now though and I am slowly getting used to turning around and having a baby at my heels.
-He talks a ton. Mostly dadadadada's but he's said mama a very few times.
-He waves bye bye/hi a little. Mostly just copying us and waving his hand really slowly so he can watch how it moves.
-He is eating all the different varieties and sizes of puff type snacks as well as meats. He hasn't learned how to put the small puffs in his own mouth but he can do some of the bigger ones (like the cheeto shaped puffs).
-He loves the iPad. I knew I'd have to fight Devon for it but I didn't anticipate having to fight both my kids for it. AND break up fights over it.
-He is getting into his toys more every day. He likes to play with books, squeaky toys and anything that Devon has in her hands.
-He is still pretty fussy. When he's happy it's all fun but when he's unhappy, oh boy!
-He has 4 teeth and one more coming in right now
-He LOVES bath time and splashes his sister a ton.
-He is in 9 & 12 month clothes and size 3 diapers still.
-I'd guesstimate that he's about 22 lbs but have no idea how tall he is.

It's getting a bit harder to take their picture together...

Our Halloween...

2011-11-03T13:18:00.000-07:00

The Saturday before Halloween we went to the annual Halloween party that my step-dad's extended family always puts on. Devon had a lot of fun there. They had games and activities, plenty of food and snacks and a pretty decent haunted house for the adults.

Devon wore her kitty cat costume and a cute Disney shirt I had bought for her a while ago. Jensen wore a Halloween onesie. We brought his Rex costume (the dinosaur from Toy Story) but he didn't want it on.

Jensen wasn't too sure of all the costumes but he was also recovering from not feeling well the day before. He did pretty well and only cried a few times. He had a lot of people to hold him though so I'm sure that made him a happy boy!

On Sunday we carved some more pumpkins because the ones we had done a few weeks ago got gross and we had to throw them out. Eric did the carving and I roasted pumpkin seeds.

He did Minnie Mouse and Slimer from the Ghostbuster movie.

On Monday I picked the kids up from my MIL's and changed them over there so that they could see the kids dressed up. I took Devon out to the car to get her bucket and then we officially did our first "trick-or-treat" at Grandma Trigstad's house! We took off from there to pick up Sophie at my grandma's because she watches her on Monday's and my parents were over there so that they could see the kids too. We visited for about 10 minutes and then headed home. I got the kids fed and warm and added a few layers to myself because it was a bit colder than I expected. Eric got home from work and we headed out to get some candy! We left our house at the same time as our neighbor and her 2 kids that Devon loves and always wants to play with so we all ended up trick-or-treating together.

Jensen stayed warm in his Rex costume.

Devon immediately decided she didn't want ears on so it was basically a toddler asking people for candy at their door.

One of our first houses!

Devon and Kelsey

Devon, Kelsey and Dylan in front of one of the more decorated houses.

We had a lot of fun and it was so cute to see how excited Devon was about Halloween this year. I felt kind of bad because we kept having to make her run to catch up with the bigger kids. She kept yelling "Dywan, wait for me! It's Devon, it's Devon, you need to hold my hand!"

She also wanted to assess each piece of candy the moment she received it. She kept pulling stuff out of her bucket and saying "I got more of these, and some of those" but she had no idea what she was talking about. She did recognize M&M's though! I think over all we probably went to about 30+ houses so that's better than I expected for my 3 year old!

Bath time...

2011-11-02T20:17:00.000-07:00

It's so fun giving the kids bath's these days. They play and splash together and Jensen loves it so much! He just sits in the tub and grunts and splashes, plays with the toys and tries to get close to Devon.

Shocking :)

He was biting her arm and she was screaming "I'm not a cracker!"

A Guest Post...

2011-10-30T18:37:00.000-07:00

by Devon. Here are a few of her favorite things right now:

bn,jkzz6oxxb.0otew21112387543211zxvbm,./n

~Devon

Oh, is there something on my back...

2011-10-30T10:09:00.000-07:00

Stefanie vs Weight - Part 5

2011-10-29T12:59:00.000-07:00

What I've been doing - Food:

So, I've managed to be pretty committed to this site called My Fitness Pal. It's a free website where you can log all of your food intake and exercise. You plug in your current weight and measurements and then how much you want to lose a week (up to 2 lbs). It then calculates how much you should be eating per day to reach your goal. It has an extensive data base of nutritional facts making logging your food pretty easy. You can also add your own recipes and store bought food if it's not in there.

You also log your exercise on the website, too. It makes it nice to have it all in one place and it shows me, fairly accurately, what I'm putting into my body and how everything I'm doing is working. There is also a Community on the website where you could have a blog or make friends that are working on weight loss too. I haven't really utilized this feature, heck, I can barely keep up on blogging here but it seems like it would be great. I do go on and read peoples stories or the different threads sometimes.

I am eating probably about 1500 calories a day after excising, 1200 if I don't exercise. Basically, if I want to lose 2lbs a week (not that I am) I have to eat 1200 calories a day with a sedentary lifestyle. When I add in my calories burned from exercising MFP will add them into your food calories to keep you at 1200/day. I usually don't eat all of my workout calories but I do allow myself a couple 100 extra so I'm not starving myself.

For breakfast I eat one of the following (150-200 cal):
-1 serving Kashi Go Lean cereal with 1% or NF milk
-A glass of freshly juiced vegetable juice from my Jack LaLainne Juicer
-Approximately 150-200 calories of something, whether it's cereal, 2-100 calorie mini bagels, 1 piece of toasted thin bread with a little peanut butter, etc.

I generally have 2 snacks a day and they usually consist of one of the following (100-150 cal.):
-red seedless grapes
-snap peas with babaganoush
-1 serving (16 crackers) of reduced fat wheat thins with babaganoush or hummus
-A few chips with salsa

Lunch (300-500 cal):
-Salad. Usually this includes Romain lettuce, turkey bacon bits, Parmesan cheese, chicken, croutons and either Caesar dressing or Panera's lite poppy seed dressing (I just discovered the poppy seed and that is probably what I'll use going forward).
-Pizza. It's always either thin crust margarita pizza or this multi-grain thin crust roasted vegetable pizza from Safeway.
-Chicken and vegetables stir-fried with a little teriyaki sauce.
-Steamers which are frozen vegetables with a light butter or other sauce that you just toss in the microwave. It's fast, healthy and super convenient for work.

Dinner (300-500 cal):
-Taco soup made with ground turkey meat (we never use ground beef anymore)
-Chicken and vegetables stir-fried with a side of Betty Crockers 80 cal mashed potato's or I'll toss in some yakisoba noodles.
-Chicken fajitas with a 100 calorie wrap rather than the white tortilla.
-Turkey kielbasa and the 80 cal mashed potato or some sort of pasta with a veggie.

I do make other stuff but these are some of the staples that I eat. I make the kids other stuff and I'll add different sides or something for Eric if he doesn't want to eat exactly what I'm eating. The lunch and dinners are interchangeable and I certainly eat leftovers a lot. I'm all about making a lot of one thing and then having a couple meals in leftovers. This definitely applies to the taco soup and fajitas.

I basically eat smaller portions and make little adjustments to things. Like getting thin crust pizza, using turkey rather than beef and using the 100 calorie options of items. I never eat regular bread, it's always the 100 calorie thin bread for example.

So, that's where I'm at right now. There is so much pressure to look a certain way as a woman and I'm not doing this to be "hot" or fit a particular image but because I want to feel good about myself, my body and have the energy I need to be active with my children.

I do want to say that I appreciate the comments and advice you all have given me in the comments. I'm always looking for tips and class suggestions to mix it up. Most of all I really just appreciate the support!
To be continued...

Stefanie vs Weight - Part 4

2011-10-26T09:25:00.000-07:00

What I've been doing - Work Out:

Aside from 1 or 2 days off, I've exercised every day no matter what. If I don't make it to the gym I do something at home.

I generally make it to the gym 5-6 times a week. At first I was doing only cardio. I would do 30 minutes on the elliptical and 20-30 minutes on the bike. I tried mixing in some jogging and while I found that I can jog, I don't like it very much. I go to the gym right after work to avoid any chance of me talking myself out of it. I pick up the kids from whichever grandparents house they are at and we head right there. Luckily, they love the Kids Club and the nice ladies that take care of them there.

These past few weeks I've gotten up the nerve to take some of the classes my gym offers. I have particularly taken to the Zumba classes and the Step classes. I've been committed to the Friday afternoon Zumba class, the teacher is this flamboyant gay dude and he is so fun! I've also decided that I will go to the Saturday morning step class every week. I'm catching on to step and although my first 2 classes were...rough, I am getting the hang of it. The lady that teaches on Saturday mornings provides a great work out but she's also a really good teacher which I need. I am TOTALLY drenched in sweat after Zumba and step and it is a fun way to get an hours workout in.

At home I have a bunch of different videos that I switch between. I have a few of The Biggest Loser videos which I love! I just got Jillian Michaels 30 day shred. I don't think I'll do 30 straight days of it because I go to the gym often too. I already take about 1 1/2 hours out of my day with driving to and from the gym and working out that I don't really want to come home and commit 25 more minutes. With working full time I don't really want to take away more time with my kids but I also know that I deserve to have healthy time for me; so I have stopped feeling guilty about going to the gym everyday but I think doing more once we get home would be pushing it right now.

I also have a bunch of videos from that Core Secret workout from a long time ago. It's the workout that you do on the big ball. It's actually a really effective strength training workout. I will usually couple a cardio Biggest Loser video with the Core Secret work out to get an hour long full body workout. If I do the Shred video I'll usually couple that with the Core Secret's as well because the Shred video is pretty intense.

The good thing is that I do really enjoy working out. It's definitely the getting ready and driving to the gym that is the biggest turn off for me. Once I get past that though, it's smooth sailing. I love my kindle and it makes doing cardio on my own really easy and I feel like I'm getting "me" time as well. I love to read but the only time I have to do it is before bed and I usually fall asleep within 15 minutes. So, this is a nice way for me to do something healthy for myself but also get into a book.

I still have to write up a post about food...definitely my downfall.

Thank you Brandi...

2011-10-22T10:05:00.000-07:00

For our adorable aprons. We love them and can't wait to use them a ton over the holiday season and for years to come!!

Stefanie vs Weight - Part 3

2011-10-21T20:02:00.000-07:00

All that being said here is my history of weight, I'm 5'5 by the way:

~17 yo - 220 lbs
~18 yo - drastic dieting got me down to 165 lbs
~20 yo - 160 lbs
~21 yo - diet pills, extreme working out and dieting got me to 135 lbs

This was me on my 21st birthday.

~24 yo - the year I got married I was 185 lbs

Here I am a few weeks before I got married.

~25 yo - started a new, sedentary, job and got pregnant at 203 lbs
~December at 25 yo - at the end of my pregnancy 233 lbs

Here I am 2 days before Devon was born

~June at 27 yo - 205 lbs and find out I'm pregnant with Jensen
~Februaury at 27 yo - at the end of my pregnancy 225 lbs

About 2 weeks before I had Jensen

~May 2011 (28 yo) - 210 lbs

Here I am on the 4th of July at about 210 lbs

~August 1st 2011 - 203lbs
~September 16, 2011 -193 lbs
~September 26, 2011 - 189.5 lbs
~October 17, 2011 - 185 lbs

So, anyways...I finally feel like I'm in the right state of mind to do this.

What have I been doing? I'll share that soon.

Carving Pumpkins...

2011-10-20T09:32:00.000-07:00

Eric always goes all out with his pumpkins. The last 2 years he's done 2 pumkins, his own and Devon's. Last year he did an Elmo pumpkin for her. He did another one for her this year, too. I carved Jack from The Nightmare Before Christmas, Eric carved Michael Meyers from the Halloween movies, and he carved Mickey Mouse for Devon. He's going to carve the Oogie Boogie from The Nightmare Before Christmas for Jensen but he hasn't done it yet.

She probably only stuck her hand in the pumpkin twice, she said it was too "gooey". So, we had to hand her seeds because she liked putting those in a bowl.

Jensen was happy to watch from the safety of his jumperoo.

Pretty girl.

My pumpkin - Jack Skellington

Devon's pumpkin - Mickey Mouse, Eric's pumpkin - Michael Meyer's. Odd combination.

Wordless Wednesday...

2011-10-19T09:00:00.000-07:00

Stefanie vs Weight - Part 2

2011-10-18T12:30:00.000-07:00

The reason I'm doing these posts as a series is because I'm going to be sharing updates and the different things I'm doing to get healthy so I that have a record. That being said, you can skip these posts if you want, I won't take offense if you're not interested in this topic.

So, a couple of months after my first boyfriend I met a guy who would become my first "real" boyfriend. I had started college and had gained some confidence in my looks at this point. In fact, I had met him and then sort of strung him along because I met a college boy I was sort of interested it. I know, horrible right? I should have known better. In the end though, I ended up dating Josh for about a year and a half. During that time I gained back probably 15 lbs or so. It didn't really matter though because we were young and in love.

Well, we broke up. Shocking right? I was 20 and I broke up with him. I instantly jumped right into dating 2 guys (one of those guys would later introduce me to Eric but that's a different story altogether). Even though dating was fun I had an extremely hard time getting over my break-up with Josh. It was dumb seeing as I ended it but at the time it really felt like the most important person in my life had died. Again, I turned to extreme dieting. I was working out for about 3 hours a day, eating basically nothing and taking a lot of diet pills.

I started dating Eric a few months after my break-up. We dated for about 3 months and I continued to work out but not as extreme. I broke up with him in November of 2003 and for the next 6 months I starved myself and dated a bunch of different guys. I really did like and care about Eric (obviously) but I just wasn't ready for the serious relationship he wanted. I got down to my lowest weight over those 6 months. I felt really good about the way I looked and was getting asked out by a lot of guys; I worked as a barista so there was a lot of opportunity to meet people.

Eric and I got back together in April of 2004. We were both in extremely good shape. Apparently we both took our time apart to work out and date around. I think it was something we both needed in order to start our real relationship together. Over the next 7 1/2 years I got big again. From the day we started dating to the day I gave birth to Devon I had officially gained about 95 lbs.

So, you can see why I've decided to feel good again. I want to be healthy for my family. I don't want to be too tired to play with my kids. I want to show them that exercise is fun and exciting and that moving is good for you. But most of all I want to do this for myself. It definitely takes being in the right mind set to lose weight. I'm looking at it as an addiction of sorts. A person just can't give up smoking or drinking because someone says they should, they have to want it. Food is like my addiction and I'm ready to beat it. It doesn't mean that I won't eat but I need to stop letting it control my life. I need to have exercise become a staple in my days and just do it and not think of all the reasons I don't want to go.

I'm going to share my weights, exercise and eating in other posts but I don't know when. Sharing my actual weights scares the s**t out of me but if I want to record this for me and keep it real, I kind of think it's something I need to do. So, yeah.

Pumpkin Patch...

2011-10-16T13:56:00.000-07:00

We did our annual trip to Craven Farms this Saturday. It was cold but not as cold as last year, not as muddy either which was great! We got some of the pictures out of the way first so we wouldn't have to worry about it when the kids were tired. Unfortunately, our camera is foggy or something so all the pictures are blurry. I was getting so irritated. I got, what I thought was, a nice camera and I feel so disappointed in it all the time. Anyways, I guess I mention it because the pictures aren't that great and that was a bummer.

After pictures, we saw the farm animals. They had kittens for adoption and bunnies as well as a really noisy swan. Devon loved this part. She is so compassionate with animals and just loves them, it's very cute. Jensen was slightly fussy at first, he's getting another top tooth in so he's been whiny the past 2 days. We went on a hay ride and did the pumpkin slinger and then picked out our pumpkins. After Eric loaded them into the car we ate some lunch and then did the Alice In Wonderland themed corn maze. We decided to do the hard maze this year so we were lost for about 40 minutes. It was fun though since Devon didn't get tired until the very end. Get ready for blurry picture overload:

Jensen hanging out

Trying to get the requisite shot of this cut out but Devon is blurry

Happy chunk face

Hay ride

Devon wanted a green pumpkin, not surprisingly.

In the corn maze we were supposed to find a rabbit. This was the way Devon was yelling for it. Apparently covering your mouth makes yelling louder or something...

Hiding in the corn from daddy.

My boy

Dentist...

2011-10-15T14:00:00.000-07:00

Devon did an awesome job at the dentist today. Her dentist moved offices and I didn't realize that they were at this office we pass every day on our way to the gym. They have a penguin on their sign and we have named him Wade. Devon always wants to say hi to her friend Wade so it was super convenient that she was going there for a dental check-up! I took her to their old office when she was 1 but we haven't been since.

Well, this place was amazing. They gave all their equipment funny names like "silly string" for floss, "tickle brush" for their toothbrush and a squirt gun for the thing that sprays water in the mouth. They had some awesome toys to play with and Dora sunglasses for Devon to wear during her check up. They also had a prize wall to choose from after you appointment was over. Plus, Devon got a balloon that had a picture of Wade on it, win!

I remember loving the dentist growing up and I want Devon to feel the same way so I'm so happy that this was a great experience for her. Also, did you know that some of the proteins/enzymes
in your mouth come from the mom so if you had healthy teeth growing up, your kid is likely to as well? Kind of interesting, I thought.

These kids...

2011-10-14T20:00:00.000-07:00

They really do a number on you. It's interesting how drastically your life changes when you have them but then again you just love them so much you don't really notice. While I don't want to rush them growing up, I do find myself wondering what they'll be like in 15 years. Will I look at my kid and not even know them? Will they feel comfortable sharing their problems with me? Will they be awful little terrors? I definitely know I'm in for an interesting journey with Devon. That girl is a wonderful handful. It's going to be interesting to see if Jensen is like her when he's 2.

Stefanie vs Weight - Part 1

2011-10-13T21:54:00.000-07:00

September 16, 2011 ~ I've decided to take back my body. After 2 pregnancies and babies in 3 years I think I deserve the right to take some time to feel good about myself again. As much as I want to document this time in my life, I am scared. I am going to put it all out there and I hope that I will get only positive feedback and encouragement in return.

I started gaining weight when I was about 8. My parents had split up and while I don't blame that it was definitely a factor in my using food for comfort. I remember 5th grade being the first time I ever really felt "fat" and different from other kids. From 5th grade on my life was pretty much lead with my weight in the forefront of my mind.

I had crushes but the boys never really liked me back. I was always the fat girl in my group of friends. The real kicker is I don't remember being sedentary or too overly indulgent with eating but I must have been, right? From about 6-9th grade I had a lot of bad experiences with boys. I'm not a psychologist but now that I have some perspective on it all I think I felt like I needed to act the way I did because I was looking for affection from boys. With my dad leaving I think I subconsciously thought that any guy could leave, therefore I should do what I could to make them like me. I don't want to get overly personal but I also don't want you to think I was sleeping with anyone, it was more like kissing. I just felt like no guy would like me unless I kissed them because I was fat. But, it was nothing that made me feel good or fixed any of my problems in the end.

It's very sad looking back on that time of my life. If I could talk to 13 year old me I would tell myself that it's just a short period of my life and that I shouldn't compromise my values and self-worth just because I thought it might make someone like me. That if someone was worth having like me, then I shouldn't have to be anything but myself.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I played tennis my Freshman and Sophomore years of High School and while I was good at it I always despised it because I felt so out of place. What was a fat kid like me doing trying to compete with all of these skinny athletic kids? What I really wanted to do was act in High School. We had a drama program where you tried out to be in Play Production and once you were in the club you were in. We put on 4 plays a year and the students did all the work. Sophomore year was the earliest you could try out and I so wanted to but I was really afraid of putting myself out there. I finally tried out in my Junior year and got in! Apparently, I'm a drama geek and even though I still felt fat and out of place, I also felt like I'd finally found a group of people (well, most of them) who didn't care. I really loved my junior year. Acting, albeit poorly, really let me express myself in a way I hadn't been able to. I'm sure I liked it because for a period of time I got to pretend I was someone else. The bonus was that I made a lot of good friends and I also gained some confidence.

My senior year of High School was really hard. I watched all of my friends start having relationships and that just wasn't happening for me. I felt like I was constantly looking in from the outside and that was very difficult. In February of 2001 while we were rehearsing for our musical I started to do some extreme dieting. I was going to be the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz and it was going to be a much larger production than our other plays so I think there was some pressure to not want to be the "fat girl" in the play. All I would have to eat was an Odwalla juice and maybe a graham cracker a day. I would try and take walks before school and would make myself vomit if I indulged at all. I don't think I had discovered diet pills yet but I lost quite a bit of weight pretty quickly.

So, now that I had lost about 50lbs I still felt awkward but at least I wasn't super fat anymore. I also finally had my first boyfriend. Well, looking back now I don't know if I'd classify him as a "boyfriend". We dated for over a month and I probably only saw him a few times. Granted it was summer but still, not really what I was looking for. I don't think this was necessarily a good thing either. All getting a boyfriend right after losing weight taught me, was that I needed to look a certain way for someone to like me.

When we broke up I was upset in an 18 year old girl way. I think part of me felt like I would never have another boyfriend and it made me feel very hopeless. We were part of the same friend group and one of my best friends, Joe, was in the same band as my ex so if they had a show, I'd try and go with the hopes that maybe he'd see me and want to get back together. It was pathetic but it's what happened. I was keeping the weight off at this point and so I did get hit on by a few boys but it was still new and I guess I didn't really "buy it".

8 Months...

2011-10-10T19:56:00.000-07:00

Well, he's 8 months old now. He's working real hard on crawling and can get up on all 4's. He is now having 2 meals a day of baby food and snacks. He loves standing at the ottomon and sitting up playing with his toys. He's gotten so smiley and loves to play with his sister. They wrestle together and while I worry that Devon will accidentally hurt him, he seems to really like it so...they wrestle.

Holding onto a hot wheels car.

Playing and talking, two of his favorite past times.

His head isn't so bad now so that's good!

Sharing some sibling love.

The Boy...

2011-10-01T20:16:00.001-07:00

Is cute:

He reminds me so much of Devon right here.

I can't wait for him to start crawling, he's so close!

Last last Monday...

2011-09-27T14:30:00.000-07:00

In keeping with the theme of my last post and writing about stuff we did a week ago I wanted to say that I had a really fun day off with my kids last Monday. I took a vacation day to spend some extra time with my babies. Since Eric helped me scour the house on Sunday night I really didn't feel like I had to do anything but just enjoy my kids. We went to story time at the Library and then checked out some books. Then we headed to the park and played for quite a while. We went home for lunch and naps and then afterwards we went to the zoo! I just love having a year pass because I don't have to feel obligated to stay for long. We got there a little after 4pm and it closed at 6 so it was the perfect amount of time for all of us.

We saw turtles

Sat on snow leopards

Watched kangaroo's jump

Smiled ridiculously big next to the fake otters

Smiled ridiculously big at the Bald Eagle exhibit

Posed in front of the grass where there were no animals.

It was such a perfect day. The temperature was just right and, at least now, I can't remember there being any meltdowns! I love my kids and really enjoy taking them on fun adventures.

Last last weekend...

2011-09-26T19:39:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I'm behind...oh well. So, last last weekend we went to another birthday party. This time it was for our friends youngest girl. Unlike her older sisters ice skating activity, Ayva wanted to go, wait for it, roller skating. It was interesting to do with a 2+ year old. Devon seemed ok with it at first and we went around a few times. My arm was so tired because I basically had to hold her up. After about 4 times around she said she was done and wanted to play the games so I let her just run around and pretend to play the video games. Luckily, I got to go around a few times on my own which was a lot of fun. Jenni and I were talking about how we should just go without the kids sometime. I think that would be awesome!

The children

Jenni and I

Me and my girl

Eric stayed home for the rollerskating part because Jensen was still napping. After we skated I picked him up and we went over to Andrew and Jenni's to have McDonald's and some awesome ice cream cake. Devon had a lot of fun playing with her friends!

Silly girl...

2011-09-17T09:54:00.000-07:00

Panties,car, popsicle and some rain boots...what else does a girl need?

9-11

2011-09-16T09:20:00.000-07:00

I know I'm late with the 9/11/01 post but I thought I'd put it out there anyway. I was 18 years old and it was my first year of college. I had my first job and worked at a local bakery. I had to get up early to go to work that day and I remember my mom telling me that the twin towers had been hit by airplanes and were collapsing. I didn't know what the World Trade Centers were at the time (I've become much more informed about the world since then)...BUT I knew that something horrible had happened. I knew that I would remember this moment forever and that things were going to change tremendously.

So, while I reflected on all the lives lost and just how differently our country is 10 years later we did the most "American" thing you can do, we went to a baseball game! Eric was supposed to go with our friend Andrew and their boss but their boss and his wife dropped out so Jenni and I got to join our husbands at the game. We had seats in the Terrace Club which is the expensive, padded seat, get served food and beer at your seat place. I'm not a big sports fan but if I have to go to a game, please oh please let it be like this.

Eric, his flag and the Terrace Club's walls painted with Seattle Mariner legends.

September 11, 2001 tribute

Andrew, Eric, Jenni, ME!

Circus...

2011-09-15T08:20:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine couldn't make it to the circus so she offered her tickets to us to buy. I dropped the boy off with my grandma and Eric was at work so we made it a Mommy+Devon day! I was so excited to be able to do something fun with just my girl. She and I do get time together but it's usually just going to the store or something. Anyways, we headed out North and got there in time to see the elephants and clowns out and about before the official show. I bought Devon a little spinney toy that seemed like something she'd enjoy. We didn't get snacks or anything, plus it had a 2 year warranty so the $20 didn't seem SO bad (but jeez, stuff is so ridiculously expensive now a days!).

The circus was neat because there was more of a "magic" theme to it. There were also a few cute parts where they had cats jumping through hoops and doing little tricks and then later did the same with little dogs. Devon loves "baby" anything so she was all about the "baby kittens" and "baby puppies". They weren't really kittens or puppies but that's OK.

7 Months and my boys giant noggin'...

2011-09-14T20:10:00.000-07:00

Jensen was 7 months old on 9/2. He is getting to be so fun and I love the relationship he has developed with his sister. They are best friends and it's so cute to watch them play together. The other day I took her to the circus and left him with my grandma and before we even pulled out of the driveway Devon said she missed her brother and needed to go back to give him a kiss.
At 7 months Jensen is:

Sitting up but I still put a pillow behind him.
Says "dada" and "mama"
Is getting more interested in crawling. He holds himself up really high with his arms and is starting to try and propel himself forward with his knees!
Loves his jumperoo still.
Eating solids and started trying meat solids recently. He has about 2 servings of solid foods a day. Sometimes 1-2 containers in a sitting depending how chunky he's acting :)
He weighs 19+ lbs and is in the 50-60th %ile for height and weight.
His head is in the 80th %ile...he's smart.
He is a pretty fussy dude.
He has his 2 bottom teeth and his top left tooth is just about to break through. That's fun (that was meant to be sarcastic, in case you didn't get that).
He is wearing a size 3 diaper.
He is in mostly 9 month clothes but can squeeze into some 6 month stuff still.
He must grab anything we have and he has really great hand eye coordination.
Likes puffs and yogurt melts.

As for his misshapen head, we saw the doctor again today. Although it is still not completely normal shaped we've decided not to do the helmet treatment. In the 2 months since his first appointment it has improved and I feel like it is less noticeable. I also think that as his hair grows in it won't be a big deal. The doctor said that if at 8 months we look at his head and assume it will be that shape forever and we're happy with that then we shouldn't do the helmet. Well, I feel like that now, so that is that. He's got a big Norwegian head and that's just how it is. I just think it's indicative of how smart he'll be :)

I love that they are totally sitting the same way in this picture. I didn't even notice until I was editing it.

Ice Skating...

2011-09-05T09:19:00.000-07:00

We were invited to our friends daughter's 11th birthday party this weekend! She wanted to go ice skating and so Devon got to experience it for her first time. She was actually pretty good at walking/running (even though I asked her not too!) in her ice skates without holding any one's hand. By the end of the session she was a little more solid on the ice.

Us girls getting ready to brave the ice

My little ice skater

Jensen hung out with dad while we skated

Eric did a lap or two as well!

We had a lot of fun and enjoyed going back to our friends house for pizza, cake and presents afterwards! Devon loves a good birthday so she had the time of her life playing with her friends!

Apparently I gave birth to a dancing machine...

2011-08-24T09:29:00.000-07:00

We are done with weddings for the year! They were all fun and exciting but the last three weekends alone have been filled with weddings. Last weekend we had my friend Jen's wedding. She and I grew up together and she got me a job at the company I work for now. I've known her for 23 years and I have to say that her wedding was probably one of the coolest I've ever been to. You could tell that she thought about every detail and it was very uniquely "them". The ambiance was amazing too and it was neat because I got to catch up with a bunch of the neighbors I grew up with. Granted it was a little weird because they are all my parents age so I felt like an impostor sitting at their table; like I was pretending to be a grown-up or something.

This last weekend we went to a wedding on Whidbey Island. We got to ride the ferry over so that was a fun treat!

It was at this beautiful little location that felt sort of farmish but was more like a giant garden. We went to the fair beforehand so the kids were tired. Between the mini-meltdowns Devon seemed to have a lot of fun though. I missed the ceremony because I was walking around with the kids trying to not disrupt the ceremony but that's ok, this was a wedding for a guy that Eric grew up with so it was more important for him to be present than me.

Devon made little friends (as usual) and had fun running around. She went crazy on the dance floor which was absolutely hilarious! She was too funny and had me cracking up with her amazing moves!

It was a beautiful wedding and I had a lot of fun hanging out with my in-laws. Devon sure does love her uncles and aunt.

Devon and her friend Ella

The little corgi puppy that looks identical to our dog when she was a puppy.

Jensen and Uncle Bryan

Devon adores her Uncle Steve

My girl loves her sweets

I just love how he looks really skeptical of me...I was a couple of glasses of wine in.

The end

Screaming...

2011-08-23T09:00:00.000-07:00

Is apparently what you have to do when riding rides at the fair. We took the kids to the Island County Fair on Saturday. We got a shaved ice since it was pretty hot out and Devon rode a bunch of rides!

We were so happy that Devon was a trooper and none of the rides freaked her out. She did awesome on the little fun house. She passed the other kids that were older than her and couldn't figure out how to get through the little window/mirror maze in the beginning.

Now, for the best pictures ever...Devon screaming, cause that's whatchya do at the fair:

It's blurry but it's too funny not to share.

This one absolutely cracks me up.

Devon also got to ride the pony which she loved. It was cool because in the past at this other fair they definitely time how long the kids get to ride and this lady just sort of let the kids ride until the were done.

Jensen had an okay time. He was a bit fussy since he'd had shots the day before but he slept a little bit and lasted in the stroller for about 90% of the time.

I love his little hat! We're all UW alumni (Eric, myself, our siblings & parents).

6 Months...

2011-08-22T08:45:00.000-07:00

Jensen turned 6 months old on August 2nd! I'm late because he didn't have his appointment until this past Friday, plus I'm just really bad at blogging now. At his appointment he was 18lbs 6oz (70th %), Devon was 20lbs at a year old so this kid is a chunkster! His height and head were in the 75th % but I can't remember the exact measurements. He had to get 3 shots and the poor guy was so upset about it. He was pretty fussy the rest of the day and passed out on the girl at the gym while I was working out. He was also really upset the next day because his little thighs were sore.

Jensen can sit up unassisted for short periods of time.
He can roll over both ways but doesn't really roll as a means of getting places yet.
He definitely wants to crawl and tries to get into the position, he hasn't gotten there yet.
He is wearing 6 & 9 month clothes.
We're just about to put him in size 3 diapers.
He is eating some baby food, we're trying to remember to give him some daily but we forget...
He does awesome in the gym's Kids Club. He really loves watching the kids play.
He loves being held. He is happiest in someones arms.
He is still a tougher baby than Devon was. He is far moodier, needier and fussier but that's ok.
He enjoys bath time a lot. I can't wait until he is even sturdier and can sit up and play with Devon. She gives him toys and likes to help pour water on him.
He has really found his voice this last month. He likes to scream in a really high pitched voice.
He also likes to blow bubbles/spit a lot. He tends to do this in the car mostly.
He has his two bottom teeth. They are both through the skin and teething with Jensen, not shockingly, was hell. It was one full day of inconsolable screaming for each tooth.
He likes being outside more than anything. If he is upset chances are he'll calm right down if you get him outside in the fresh air. He is in heaven if you take his jumperoo outside. I heard our neighbor close their door because Jensen was screaming so much out of pure delight, oh well :)
Jensen giggles a lot now too; especially at his big sister.

She is saying "awwww" in this picture.

Well, that's all I can think of for now but soon enough he'll be 7 months and I can't wait to see what new stuff he'll be doing then!

Zoo...

2011-08-21T09:44:00.000-07:00

I took the day off this past Friday and took the kids to the zoo. It was a lot of fun! We got there right around opening and only stayed for about 2 hours but that is the beauty of having a year pass, we don't have to see everything in one day. I have to say that I am really enjoying the sit n' stand stroller we got, too. It's nice since the double stroller I have is so wide and I haven't really figured out how to collapse it. I like that since Devon doesn't really sit still we have a couple options for her when she does want to take a break from her busy life.

Looking at the penguins

He liked them!

Jensen didn't even notice the gorilla right in front of him...

According to Devon, the sound a turtle makes is "turtle turtle".

My Cousins Wedding...

2011-08-08T11:47:00.000-07:00

My cousin Korey got married last night. It was a fun wedding with some of the best food I've had at a wedding! Devon got to be the flower girl so that was ah-mazing. She did pretty good, too. She walked down the aisle with a 5-6 year old little boy who later told his mom he wanted to marry Devon. She only threw about 2 flowers on the actual aisle, the rest she tossed onto the ground once she was up front. I really didn't know what to expect from her, especially since they wanted her to stand up front during the ceremony, ha! I can't imagine my child standing still for more than about 1 minute let alone 20 minutes. She went and sat with my grandma, my aunt, wandered around and clapped intermittently throughout the ceremony. The little boy told her to "shhh" at one point and I guess she said "no, I want to keep clapping!"

My brother left his wallet in the cab so he had to hang out by the parking lot through most of the ceremony to wait for the cab to come back. The maid of honor got so drunk they had to call an ambulance. Devon stole no less than 5 cupcakes, at least one of which was prior to the bride and groom actually having any. I had wine and took the day off today so, yeah, I had wine :) Oh and Devon was ADORABLE!]

We had to crop out the ring bearer. We wanted to get a family photo but he came and stood with us and how can you tell a 5-6 year old boy that he needs to move when he's posing so nicely?

Stewart & Devon

Pretty girl

He was showing her how to throw the petals, apparently jumping is necessary.

He kept trying to hold her hand but she didn't want to. It was hindering her throwing.

Elynne & Korey

My family. (L-R) Eric, my brother Ryan, Devon, my brother's girlfriend Alissa, my mom, Jensen, and my step-dad Mick

Jensen was obsessed with the glasses. He kept wanting to drink water out of them all night!

Playtime...

2011-08-07T13:27:00.000-07:00

What is she gonna bring me now?!?!

Devon is teaching Jensen about her toys

How many can fit on the tray? I'll answer for you, 4.

Not sure about this "Bullseye" character.

The picture in which my son looks terrified...

2011-08-05T12:39:00.000-07:00

So, since 2/3 comments on the below picture had a question I thought I'd quickly answer them.

Devon was trying to show Jensen all of her toys. She kept piling them on his little tray and I was snapping pictures. It wasn't until some of them fell off and she put Bullseye on the tray. He had had enough. So, he wasn't scared or anything, he was just done being overstimulated. I thought it was a funny picture.

Devon is saying "Oh, brother, it's Bullseye, it's ok". I have a couple others that I'll post from this little "session" so you can see that he wasn't being tortured or anything. It was quite cute thought because he was doing that stereotypical baby pout/cry, I love that (well, as much as you can love when your baby cries).

Wordless Wednesday--Thursday Edition...

2011-08-04T16:05:00.000-07:00

Sitting up, sort of...

2011-08-01T20:04:00.000-07:00

I snapped some pictures of Jensen yesterday. We were trying to work on getting him to sit up. I think he's finally getting to the point where he can see the benefits of it. Suddenly he can see the dog and cat chasing eachother, he can watch his sister play better, and it will also help his head re-shape itself (he doesn't know about the last benefit but it is a big one). He has only sat up by himself a few times and for a few seconds but he looks adorable doing it!

Not so sure about this whole sitting thing.

Oh look, a toy!

Daddy's always there to catch him.

Success!

Best Friends...

2011-07-28T09:26:00.000-07:00

I love watching these two interact. Devon loves her brother so much and I can honestly say that she is a really good big sister. I am very proud of how she has adjusted to a baby being in her life all the time. She never gets jealous and barely ever throws a fit about us holding the baby. Pretty much the worst thing she's done is told me to put the baby down over and over again so I will read a book to her or help her with a puzzle, but even then it isn't in a mean way.

Playing with his little piano toy in his crib.

Teaching Jensen how to "fly"

I can't wait to see how their relationship grows as they do.

Girls Night...

2011-07-27T13:30:00.000-07:00

On Saturday the 16th a few girls and I went out to celebrate our friend who is getting married soon. Jessica did not want a "bachelorette" party so we opted for more of a fun girls night out on Capitol Hill. This was my first real girls night in 3 years and the last time I was pregnant with Devon!

We met at Jessica's apartment and headed out from there. We had yummy sandwiches for dinner at one of Jessica's favorite Capitol Hill spots The Honey Hole. After that we pretty much bar hopped and had fun. We did a lot of photo bombing (sneaking into the background of strangers pictures and doing something stupid) and drinking!

It was so nice to just go out and let loose with friends. I'm grateful that I didn't feel too awful the next day too!

My best friend Jenni

Me, Jessica (the bride to be) and Trina

Jessica, Trina, Ashley, Jenni, dude photo bombing us, me

Wordless Wednesday...

2011-07-27T11:00:00.000-07:00

Stuff and things...

2011-07-26T18:21:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been sort of busy around the Trigstad household. A couple of events and just busy with the kids and work.

I gave Devon her first hair cut...well trim. I think I got it pretty straight!

We had a BBQ with some of our best friends

The kids and Devon...I admit that I actually forgot about Jensen and that he should be in the picture, too.

My best girlfriends: me, Alissa, Jenni and Jessica

Devon and her sparkler, she loved the sparklers and pop-its.

Our BBQ was pretty fun although Eric got drunk and burned all the food...oh Eric. It was nice hanging out with our friends and my brother and his girlfriend. We did a bunch of fireworks and Jensen did pretty good. He did have one moment where one of the loud pops freaked him out. I had to take him inside and he was screaming bloody murder. Luckily, it was his bottle time so he calmed down when I fed him. Everyone started heading out pretty early since they were going to a fireworks show. We opted not to go because I had to get up at 5:20am for work the next day and it just seemed silly to drive 30 minutes, find parking, get a spot to sit and then potentially have Jensen freak out and then we'd have to leave right away.

I'm excited for next year though. I want to take the kids to the Edmonds parade and just take it easy. I'll try and have the foresight to take the 5th off from work and maybe go to the big fireworks show depending on how Jensen reacts next year.

Anyways, I know I'm late with my 4th of July update but I finally uploaded pictures to my computer so I thought better late than never.

Jensen @ 5 1/2 Months...

2011-07-13T19:09:00.000-07:00

I wanted to wait to do his 5 month post until we had his appointment about his head. We had it today so here is his "5 1/2 month" post.

Today Jensen was:
17.24 lbs- 60%
Head- 66%
Height-40%

He has become such a smiley guy. He loves to laugh and watch his sister. So far he only really giggles for her. I caught some on video but my camera deleted it, so I'll have to try again. He is just enamored with everything she does and it is so fun to watch!

He has rolled over a few times from stomach to back but he's been doing that since 4 weeks. The problem is that it is really few and far between. I'd say he's rolled over 12 times since he was 4 weeks old. 5 times at/around 4 weeks and the other 7 have been more recently.

Jensen loves his jumperoo and the door jumper which is good because it seems like he'll be having to use them a lot more now, but more on that later. He can spend about 30 minutes in there before he gets fussy but he really enjoys it up until then!

I'm pretty sure he is going to have blue eyes like his sister. Perhaps I mentioned it before but the odds of our kids having blue eyes is like 7%, so it's interesting that both of them have them.

So, we saw the craniofacial doctor today and here is what happened:

She didn't seem too concerned and basically asked me how concerned I was on a scale from 1-10 about Jensen's head. I said a 7 but it was more concern aimed at the fact that it's misshapen not that something is wrong. The vibe I got was that this is pretty common.

She said that sometimes, between 6-8 months, the head can sort of reshape itself so an option may be to wait 2 more months. Or we could start helmet therapy right away. Basically helmet therapy means getting Jensen's head laser scanned and having a helmet made for him. He would then wear it 23 1/2 hrs a day for 3-4 months. Quite the commitment, right?!?!

The doctor showed me a sheet which had 4 columns. The first was of a normal head and then went from mild deformation, medium to severe. Jensen is in the medium column. Basically, his head will never be a "normal" shape but it could correct itself (or be corrected) to the mild column.

Anyways, I decided that we'd wait until mid-September to see if there has been any improvement before deciding whether to do the helmet therapy. Aside from the hope that it will reshape itself, I also don't think it would be comfortable for him to deal with wearing a helmet during the summer.

In order to help in any natural progression in the next 2 months we have to refrain from putting him on his back too much or laying him on anything flat (aside from sleeping). I'm going to look into a new car seat for him because the one we have has a really flat head support. Plus he's so big I need to check that he isn't getting too close to the weight limit! Basically, he'll be spending a lot of time in jumperoo's, front packs and his bumbo chair.

I'm very relieved that this wasn't a big deal. It's more of a cosmetic issue than anything else and I certainly realize that things could be a lot worse. I'm so grateful for an otherwise healthy (aside from the reflux) and happy boy.

That's a noggin for ya!

He's still loving sucking on that bottom lip!

Commenting (please read)...

2011-07-05T13:52:00.000-07:00

So, I just spent like 15 minutes replying to peoples comments to me via email only to realize they won't get them. I'm also realizing I've done this plenty of times before and never gotten a reply so that makes me feel better :). I've been having trouble commenting on some peoples blogs (Sarann-Rap and A Mighty Fine Life, you're the ones that come to mind first) and so I've emailed you before off of your comments to me but I realized today that you guys have that no-replycomment email address which doesn't allow me to email you off of your comment (holy run on sentence!). Brandi did a post about this a while ago but I only changed my settings, I didn't pay attention to the details on how to spot whether you can email someone. Anyways... here is a link to change your settings if you want to so that I can reply to you!!!

http://www.homebodyholly.com/2010/10/no-more-noreplycomment.html

Happy 4th of July...

2011-07-04T14:35:00.000-07:00

Here are my children in non-4th of July outfits since I didn't get them any:

I hope you all have fun BBQ'ing, fireworking, drinking, and celebrating.

Popsicles...

2011-06-26T19:13:00.000-07:00

I love these popsicles by Dryers that are sugar free and only 25 calories. They are so good and I don't feel bad for having one...or two. Apparently Jensen loves them too:

He gets upset when you don't keep sharing with him. He'll grunt and start to cry a little. I'm glad the days are getting a little warmer cause I see lots of popsicles in our future.

My Day Off..

2011-06-21T12:00:00.000-07:00

I wanted to give my Mother In-Law a break since she watches the kids 2-3 days a week, plus I have a lot of vacation time accrued so I took Monday off. It was so nice! I have Thursdays at home but I have to work and so I don't really get to do anything fun with the kids. Especially since one of my co-workers put in her notice and has since left, I find that I have about 6 hours of work on Thursdays, not fun. So Monday, I didn't think about work at all. I took my kids to the zoo! They have a really cool Dinosaur exhibit that is going on right now. It is a bunch of animatronic dinosaurs but they are really high quality. So we hung out there and then got some soft serve ice cream and visited the elephants. We spent about 2 hours there before Devon got tired and Jensen woke up. I love having a membership to the zoo. I don't feel like we have to stay and fit everything into one visit we can just take our time. We headed home and I put Devon down for her nap, fed Jensen and put him down and just relaxed. I put away some dishes and tidied up...then I laid down for about an hour. I have a nice little head cold at the moment so it was just what I needed.

This one sprayed water, she was running away from it.

Our Father's Day...

2011-06-20T19:48:00.000-07:00

We took Eric to the Mariner's game for Father's Day. It was both the kids' first game and neither Eric or I had been in a while. The game was sold out and we won, so that was cool! It's definitely an experience taking a 2 1/2 year old and a 4 1/2 month old to a baseball game. Jensen was okay but fussy. He kept falling asleep and then being jarred awake by the cheering. Poor kid would start crying that startled baby cry. Devon couldn't sit still so she and I walked around some. There is a kids area but it was full for the game so we found some tables where they had coloring and did that for a while. She did really like watching the game though, she loved the cheering SO much! The craziest thing was that we were sitting in our seats and I hear the lady behind me say, "Jensen, sit down!". I turned around and asked if their daughter's name was Jensen and it was. How weird. I really thought I'd go my whole life without meeting another Jensen and then we sit in front of one at a Mariner's game. Small world.

The kettle corn Devon ended up not liking.

She didn't want to sit still

It was a really fun day! I hope everyone else had fun celebrating the dad's in their lives!

My poor boy...

2011-06-17T22:04:00.000-07:00

So, Jensen has been a lot different than I remember Devon being. I absolutely adore his giant smiles, how he talks so much and how ticklish he is. But he's so much fussier of a baby. Poor kid had colic for a few weeks and now he has acid reflux, a diaper rash that is more like a yeast infection and, AND some issues with the shape of his head.

We've been noticing for the past few months that his head was much flatter in the back than it should be and that a dent was forming in the middle of his head going across the back horizontally. We figured it was from laying on his back a lot. I'm sure we put him down on the ground more than we did with Devon and he takes naps in his crib whereas she pretty much slept in my arms, but it's pretty severe. At this point, we have no reason to believe the flatness and dent are caused by anything else. The doctor said that his skull seems to be developing well otherwise. She figures that he probably keeps his head in one position and this has created a nice, comfortable flat spot. She was a little hesitant about the dent and has now referred me to a cranial/facial doctor at Children's Hospital. She thinks in the end they'll probably want to make Jensen a helmet that will help reform his skull to a more normal shape. Poor kid, a helmet?!?! It makes me so sad to think about but it's kind of unavoidable. Well, let me rephrase that, it's unavoidable that something has to be done because his head is clearly misshapen, at this point we're not sure what is to come. There is no roundness to the back of his head.Here are a few pictures although they really don't give you that good of an idea of the severity of it:

As for the acid reflux, he has been prescribed liquid zantac to be taken twice a day for two weeks. The hope is that we can get his stomach acid to a normal level and reduce/cure the inflammation in the muscle the closes off his stomach from the esophagus and allows acid to travel up. Some kids have to be on medicine for long periods of time but we're hoping giving his stomach a break will help cure the problem.

He spits up a TON, cries in pain sometimes when eating and tends to want to eat pretty quickly together. The doctor said that some babies tend to overeat with reflux. Much like when we have it as adults and we'll try to eat a little something to try and push the acid back down. Anyways, I have high hopes that we'll be seeing a much happier little boy soon!

I have to put jock itch cream/athlete's foot cream on my son's penis to help his "situation". 'Nuff said.

I've also been delaying all of Jensen's vaccinations so I finally had them do them. These were his first shots and this kid did not like them. I suppose no baby does but he has been especially fussy today.

As for his stats:
16lbs 1oz = 75%
26" tall = 90%

He's a hefty little fella!