Spring is in the air...

The weather is steadily improving and before long, we'll be complaining about how hot it is out. Unfortunately, we did not take advantage of winter like we should so we won't make that mistake again. We took the boys ice skating just once and they loved it and still ask to go again. We continue to make our house in Hibbing but we hope that changes before winter. We have been working towards building out in Chisholm and just about have all the plans in place to make it happen. Just a few more details are left to work out, such as whether the well is good, what kind of septic we need, and who exactly will do the work. I know the boys will love being at the new house, especially with all that land to roam free in. Each and every time we're out there, the boys play very nice with one another. I know they will get more and more adventurous, so much so, that we'll have to work hard to rein them in. We've even played with the idea of putting up a fence, even though they have 40 acres and complete seclusion to play in.

I've been spending a lot of time with different folks gathering up quotes and information on the construction phase. This last time I was out there, across the yard, Logan pulled his pants to his ankles to go pee. We all looked over there and just kind of laughed at this bare-butt little boy peeing right there where he was playing. A short time later, I see Logan with his pants down yelling at me that he went poop. Embarrassing because I had to ask the guys to excuse me while I went and tended to Logan. Before I got there, he pulled his pants back up but it was too late because he was full of poop inside and out. Dan arrived a short time later and we cleaned him up with wet wipes and grabbed a pair of sweats from storage and were set to go. I had to tell Logan to be sure and go potty at the edge of the woods so people wouldn't step in his pee and poop. If I told this story in person, it'd be pretty funny.

This past weekend, we went to the Split Rock Lighthouse. I must say that this was a life-changing experience for the boys. It was actually a completely spontaneous trip that went incredibly well. We arrived at the Split Rock State Park and purchased a State Park Annual Pass and headed in. The visitor's center there is incredible, brand new with some fantastic exhibits. There's weren't too many people there either because the tourist season hadn't quite hit yet. We looked at the exhibit area and the gift shop with the boys behaving pretty well. We decided to sit in on a 23 minute movie they show as requested. The move was made probably 30 years ago and described how the light house came to be as well as what it was like to manage it. Logan was very interested in this even though it was geared towards older kids and adults. After the movie, we finally headed out to see the light house. The movie helped explain everything they were about to see so actually seeing the light house just brought it all together. All the way home, that's all they could talk about. And still, Logan talks about how he wants to live in a light house. We've discussed it and I think we're going to have to build a light house play area instead.

I went sturgeon fishing for the first time up on the Rainy River. I was pretty thrilled with my catch and was so excited. I now want a boat to expose my kids to big fish fishing. How cool will that be?

Gage's potty training is still a work in progress. He has only pooped on the potty twice in the past year and will only go pee when told. I definitely need to do some research on this one. Sometimes, he looks at me as he's going in his pull-up and says, "I go pee."

Daycare has been going OK. I miss the structure Lola's daycare in Little Falls offered but I really like the flexibility this one offers. I know my boys would benefit from a different, more organized day care, but I just can't get the time to search out one that offers both the structure and flexibility. I'm fortunate right now that I am not traveling for work because otherwise, with Dan working, I'd have to try and find some nanny type to help out. When the boys first started going to this day care, they acted out, threw fits, screamed and cried, and were completely disrespectful. I see this behavior almost each time I'm there, but it's mostly because of their own son. I had to tell Logan especially that how he acts at day care is not acceptable behavior for home. It's made a difference.

Work has been going well but with the falling of the economy, things are a little scary around here. I am surrounded by layoffs of 7 to 15 weeks although I have been spared for now. That may change but I'm OK with that, as long as I still have a job to go back to.

Moving along...

Things have been moving along nicely.

We all went ice fishing yesterday. I wish it'd warm up though. Anyway, it was the first time we went as a family and neither of the boys fell into a hole. The first time we went, it only took about 1 minute, didn't even get a line down, and Gage's foot went in the hole. The next time, we went 2 weeks later and Logan fell and his arm went in - again before we even got a line in the hole. This time, we protected those holes full time. We stayed for about 1 hour and caught a bunch of little perch. Gage enjoyed it but Logan couldn't care less. Logan wanted to just play outside and avoid the ice house all together. Gage hung out by the door the whole time to see what was going on, or he sat on the bench between and Dan and me to hold the pole or reel the little fish in.

Logan is still our little clean freak and really enjoys how nice he can make things look. Every day, he makes his and Gage's beds, and he does a great job. When he cleans up toys, he wants to do it the best he can so he not only picks them up and puts them where they belong, but he also makes sure the containers they go in are neat and straight. We have a hard time getting Gage to clean and when he does, he goes real slow.

Potty training for Gage is no where. He just doesn't want to try. I am going to have to go to the sticker chart pretty quick. We went to pull-ups this summer and seemed to be making good headway, then it just stopped. Now he cries because he doesn't want pull-ups. I need to sit down and really think this one through.

Last night, the boys were going to bed, and they should have been pretty tired, but instead of falling fast asleep, they sang Bingo together. B-I-N-G-O. Gage wasn't quite saying it right and Logan was arguing and trying to sing over him. But Gage has that super loud voice so all we could hear was, "B-A-N-G-O". Dan and I stood outside their door cracking up. It was so very cute. Eventually, they were truly singing together. Very funny. Logan is improving on his musical abilities and now seems to be able to hold a tune. And Dan really thinks Logan has good rhythm.

We had a litter of puppies back in December and now have just one left. We had two go to Texas, one to Maryland, one to North Dakota, and 2 to Central and Southern Minnesota. Our last one is soo adorable and so smart. Even though we wouldn't mind keeping him, I just can't help but think we have our hands full already. So we may have to post another ad to get rid of him. Dan already has him pointing to a grouse wing and whoaing on command - a very smart puppy.

Life in Hibbing has continued to go well. There's a lot of layoffs in mining right now but I think I'll be alright. As for Dan, he spent 4 weeks working as an iron worker, and it went well. He's laid off right now but that's alright. The four weeks he worked were long 6 day weeks so he was ready for a break. But he's ready to go back now.

Lots going on...

Above is at Grandma's and Grandpa's house.

Time has flown by and I can't remember ever being as busy as I am now... final project for my masters, starting a new job, getting Logan enrolled in a new school, finding therapy for Logan, trying to sell a house, trying to buy a house, filing a complaint against our realtor, dealing with the relocation company nearly daily... it goes on and on. I keep telling myself, "It's only temporary." And as a co-worker says so well, "It will all work out, and if it hasn't, things aren't done yet."

Logan is doing quite well. I am thrilled with the quality of care he's getting with OT and PT. We decided to put him at the Duluth Clinic in Hibbing even though we are living in Grand Rapids. The PT is better than any I've seen work with Logan. She is on it and is constantly re-evaluating him. In St. Cloud, a PT would do an evaluation then pass him off for therapy, and reassess after a period of time. With this PT, she is truly evaluating at each visit until she gets him figured out. In addition, she has tons of neat tricks and tools to help him along, such as resistance bands, neoprene wrap, and more. In addition, Logan will be fitted with new orthodics and she works very closely with the person who will do this. Often times, she goes along to discuss options.

Logan starts preschool in the Grand Rapids School District next week. Unfortunately, he will now go twice a week instead of the 4 times a week Little Falls offered. That's a bummer. Oh well.

Gage went potty in the big potty for the first time this evening. He was very clearly requesting and he did go. Hopefully, it will click now. After all, he is 2 1/2 and is ready to get going with it.

Grandma and Grandpa Goehring are doing fabulously well with the boys and keeping them busy as well as being kept busy. They have a pretty good system worked out where my dad gets them out of the house to the park each day while my mom cleans and does the chores. Here, with them, the boys are able to have more freedom than they've had so far. The boys help Grandpa out with working on cars and motorcycles, yard work, cleaning out the garage and sheds, and anything else outside. It seems to be the highlight of their days. I'm not sure how long we will continue to live here with Grandma and Grandpa. Daddy is still stuck down in Little Falls until he can either find a job or sell the house, and neither of the two have happened yet in the last 3 months. Dan's getting a bit depressed... well very depressed, and hates being away from us. I was hoping it would get easier but instead it seems to be getting harder. Yesterday morning, Gage woke up crying for Daddy. He even made my mom cry as she tried to deal with his emotions. Then later in the day, Logan came out of my bedroom with our weekend bag packed and ready to go to Little Falls. When I said we weren't going, Logan cried and wanted to see Daddy. Very sad. We are soooo hoping that change is around the corner.

In less than 3 weeks, I will be done with my masters and can try and keep this blog up more. I wish I added more as it's such a great way to remember memories.

I just reread the previous entry. Funny how it states we are moving to St. Cloud. Yeah. The job kinda fell apart after I didn't meet their educational requirements (no masters yet and no undergrad degree in a computer related field). They still wanted me but had to put me on a temporary contract until my masters was complete. That didn't sit so well. So I contacted Hibbing and the job was still available, so the rollercoaster ride seemed to finally come to an end. Whew! It has been meant to be. Even though the distance is killing us, I am constantly reminded of how nice it is to bring my family together with the rest of my family. the other day I got to witness my 16 year old nephew playing with Logan while watching my 14 year old niece play volleyball. That would have never happened before. These are the memories my boys will remember, and the relationships their building with grandparents and cousins are priceless. I'm sooo glad I figured this out sooner than later.

More stories to share....

Yes... a lot can happen in 2 months.  We went to a water park this last weekend in Brainerd and stayed overnight with my brother and his family.  It was sooooo much fun since the kids loved it more than I ever expected.  I can't believe how fearless they both are.  Gage didn't like it at first but before long, he was walking himself all over the area and going down kiddie water slides without prompting.  Pretty neat.  Logan on the other hand was an accident waiting to happen.  Logan is not able to stand up from a kneeling or sitting position without using his hands.  So, if he falls in the water, he tries to use his hands to help him get up, but doing that means he has to get his face in the water, which doesn't work for him.  So he would just struggle to stay above water - of course he was wearing a life jacket - the whole time with the biggest smile on his face.  I know that if I had him at the parks more often, he would learn not to use his hands which would be great therapy.  Anyway, it was hard to leave the next day.

Now onto priceless stories...

Story #1

Let's start with Logan and potty training.  He's been doing pretty well, so well that we moved to underwear.  After about a week dry in pull-ups, we thought we were ready.  He did well for about 4 days, then we had four days straight of accidents.  But I was determined that Logan really was trying so I wasn't giving up on him.  Well, we had been doing OT twice a week, and it was getting so hard trying to drive to St. Cloud each time, dragging my overactive Gage along, trying to make it home in time to cook dinner and get myself off to Taekwondo so I could come home and do school for a few hours.  Mondays and Wednesdays were no fun.  So, this one Wednesday, I decided I was going to tell OT that I just couldn't do it anymore.  I needed to cut visits down to once a week.  After OT, I talked to the OT person in the waiting area about it, the whole time trying to chase down Logan and Gage.  Logan planted himself down by the desks in the middle of the hall, laid right there in the middle of the floor.  I left him be since he was still and I could keep in eye on him while visiting with OT.  I don't even remember what Gage was doing.  In the end, the OT folks convinced me to try it one more time and gave me some tips.  So I went to gather up Logan and there he was, still laying on the floor, drenched in pee.  So I asked this mom I've gotten to know over there to watch Gage so I could change Logan, and I just happened to have his school backpack with that contained a change of pants and a pull-up.  I finally made it out of there carrying Gage tightly in one arm with him struggling to get down, and Logan in the other carried like a suitcase by his coat zipper.  They just wouldn't listen.  The next week, I enlisted the stroller to help me. Finally, I felt human again.  That's been working better.

Story #2:  Gage and the K-NEX.

I headed to Taekwondo one night and left Dan playing with Gage and Logan on the living room floor with KNEX.  KNEX's are like legos... you put them together to make shapes and other things... but they have many different shapes including long pieces shaped like straws.  Kinda cool.  When I came home, Dan had this face of disgust, like he had been through something terrible.  He said they were playing with the KNEX.  Logan was really into it and Gage was kinda into it, grabbing pieces here and there and walking around with them.  So Dan grabbed a piece to put it into another piece and he thought to himself, "Boy.  That one went in easy."  He picked up a few more, then saw some brown chunks on another piece and gave it a smell.  Sure enough, there were poop on the pieces.  He grabbed Gage and checked his diaper and of course, he had poop in there.  But not just poop, he was putting KNEX pieces down the back of his diaper.  He had like 4 of the straw-shaped ones down there.  By the time I came home, all the KNEXs were in the sink and Dan was looking for other poop spots around the house.  He didn't think it was funny but I cracked up laughing.

Story #3

Logan has now been wearing glasses on a regular basis.  (I have to get some pics posted.)  He's doing OK but he often asks for them off and we don't argue.  We let him take them off but whenever he asks for something, he has to put them back on first.  We spent about $300 on them so we are kinda protective of them, of course.  It's not like there's insurance on them.  The first time we're out in public with them, we go to Wal-Mart.  About 30 minutes into shopping, Dan looks at him and says, "Where are your glass?"  Logan just took them off and threw them on the floor.  We traced back our steps and found  a nice couple who were searching for the owners of these glasses they found in the toy section.  This same thing has happened a few times, including at the arcade this past weekend at the water park..  That's why we say, "Logan.  You can take your glasses off anytime but you have to give them to us when you do."  Logan still calls them sun glasses since that's all he's ever seen us wearing.

Story #4

Gage's words are finally starting to explode.  He isn't quite making sentences but he's close.  Every morning I drop him off at day care, he says, "Hug?" and he gives me a big kiss by grabbing my head and pulling it close, then gives me the sweetest hug.  I am reminded every single second how much he loves me. :)   He slept with me at the hotel last weekend and when he woke up, the first thing he saw was my face.  He got a smile on it and said, "Mama?"  Priceless.

A story I must tell....

I keep forgetting to tell this story so I better get it out now.

Logan has been working on potty training for quite some time.  He has his moments where he does well but more often than not, he just doesn't consistently get the job done.  Well, we were at a friends house for New Years Eve, celebrating in family style, when Logan disappeared.  Then I heard one of the other dads yell that Logan was walking around with no pants on.  I ran upstairs to see the scoop and noticed he had seemed to go potty on his own and needed a new diaper.  When I got closer, I realized that he had pooped in his diaper, removed it himself with the help of his feet, and threw it in the trash.  Then he wiped himself up putting the icky toilet paper in both the toilet and the dog's water dish that was also in the bathroom.  Of course, the poop soaked socks that helped get his diaper off showed the path he walked throughout their over-sized bathroom.  The mom of the house came up stairs and asked if I needed anything.  I responded with, "Some paper towels and 409 please."  So, I washed Logan up, dressed him in the change of clothes we had with us, borrowed some socks from their boys, and sent him out so I could clean up the poop that was all over their floor, toilet, dog dish, and yellow bathroom rug.

Amazing.  I felt terrible but fortunately, everyone had kids themselves and understood.

Logan can color... and can color very well.

It takes me so long to update this thing since I've been going back school. It's been going very well but I am soooo busy now.

Anyway, let's talk about Logan.

We have been working hard on getting him potty trained and have made some success. He has moved on to pull-ups but still has regular accidents. I know he wants to stay dry but it is hard for him to know when it's time to go. Going #2 is now a piece of cake for him, and that makes a big difference for us. He has a had a few days where at the end of the day, he is just a little damp. Not bad.

Logan finally has started to enjoy coloring. See the picture below.

This picture he colored a couple days ago in two sittings. I have to pinch myself over this because it wasn't that long ago, like 6 weeks ago, that he wouldn't even pick up a crayon, and he certainly didn't enjoy coloring. After I had him evaluated by an OT, she gave me some suggestions. One of these was to buy those clear markers and color sheets where the color would just come out as he colored. That did the trick. He now has a lot of pride in the pictures he colors. The other day Logan drew a picture on the MagnaDoodle. He said, "Look. I drew a truck." When we looked, there were two circles with a line connecting the two. It was pretty cool to see things come together for him.

Logan's eyes are doing great. I am soooo happy with where they are right now. Most of the time, they are perfect and I haven't really noticed any misalignment unless I'm looking for it. I still have to schedule another visit soon and of course we'll keep up with eyes for the years to come.

Now, let's talk about Gage.

Gage is doing as good as ever. He is about 25 pounds now and as happy as can be. We did have his ears checked today and he's on antibiotics for an infection, but this is nothing new. Dan and I cracked up with him last night when Dan asked him to say sorry to Logan and he responded with a pathetic little face and a little "sorry". When I say pathetic, you'd know what I mean if you saw it. I'll try to tape it tonight. It is sooooo funny. What extra funny about it is how he puts on the face to go with the phrase even though there's nothing wrong.

Christmas!

With Christmas around the corner, we are getting more and more excited about it, especially now that Logan understands what it's all about. He talks about Santa and the North Pole often and has even started asking what he should get Santa for Christmas. I am expecting gifts for the boys to be books, trains, cars... the typical I guess. We'll hopefully get our tree up today or tomorrow and go Christmas light driving tonight... even though there's a snow storm outside right now.

I'll try and update again soon with some nice videos and more pictures.

Wow.... A lot to say.

I can't believe it's taken me so long to update the blog. I guess you can say grad school is taking up all my free time, which by the way is going really well. Having a blast and learning a lot.

So let's talk about the boys.

Logan is a potty training fool. He always has to go and sometimes he goes and sometimes he doesn't. I think he does this so he can wash his hands 20 times a day. For the longest time, we'd put Logan on the potty but he wouldn't do anything. Then he started saying he had to go so we'd put him on again just to have him again do nothing. Once he could go potty by himself - take his own diaper off and get on the potty without any help, he began to take off. He can go a day with just one or two new diaper changes. Sometimes, he doesn't do as well. And poops.... They are coming along nicely.

Logan started preschool this past week. I guess he gets on a school bus each morning and after his 3 hours at school, he gets a ride back to day care. For his first day on the bus, I specifically tried to make it back to day care to film his first day but the bus came 15 minutes early so I missed it. :( I was pretty bummed. He loves school and loves the school bus. It's pretty amazing the America feels a need to give extra help to those who need it. We're one of the only nations to invest in special education. I really feel that Logan has come a long way. He is very verbal and pretty easy to understand. He's just becoming a big boy.

PT ended late last month so I no longer drive to St. Cloud twice a week. After I stopped coming into therapy with him and instead waited in the waiting room, he just took off and blossomed. It was amazing to see. The St. Cloud PT people are amazing there. We'll go back in 6 months for a re-eval just to continue tracking his progress.

Logan will have eye surgery the week after next. I am a little nervous about how he'll do not that he's bigger. He was about a year old the first time and so his recovery was pretty easy. His inner eyes looked like raw hamburger but he didn't seem to care. This time, we'll have a little boy who will communicate how he feels and require us to communicate back in a way he can understand. We'll spend one night in the cities.

Gage is approaching 18 months of age and he's as busy as ever. He has started to beat up on Logan - - pulling his hair, hitting him, taking toys away from him.... Logan just takes it for the most part. I try and get Gage to stop it but he just keeps on going. It is hard to know what kind of temperament Gage is going to have. I guess time will tell.

Gage still has 6 teeth - 4 on top and 2 on the bottom. This seems to be enough for him though as he's a pretty big eater. He's catching up in size as well. I would expect at his 18 month appointment, he'll show some good growth and catch up to the 50 percentile. We'll have to see though.

Gage still sucks his fingers but he seems to listen to Daddy and Lola when they tell him to get them out. He listens to me, too, but only for a few seconds.

Dan has been spending a lot of time up north finishing his hunting shack in time for deer season. That's where he's at today and has been all weekend. I would expect that the end result of his cabin will be exactly what he's looking for. At least that's what I hope.

I will attempt to update again soon and this time try to include pictures.

More news...

Some new things have happened around our house and it's been neat to see. First off, Dan and I went to Hennings Furniture in St. Cloud Friday night and bought Logan a new bed. After a lot of searching and thinking, we decided to go for quality and bought a solid birch bunk bed and a couple matresses. It was assembled in time for him to sleep in it Friday night but in the end, he slept in the crib instead. But for last night, Logan fell asleep in his new bed and slept straight through the night. His bedroom is all Thomas the Train which Logan affectionally says, as he points to his bed, "Choo Choo Tain".

Also, this morning, Logan went poopie in the potty for the first time, although it was one tiny little terd, and after putting his diaper back on, he finished the job. But it's a start.

I had a TKD tournament yesterday, but because of my hand, I wasn't able to participate in all events. I did do the board breaking and pattern which went well. Lots of fun. I am excited for the day Logan can participate.

When I get some time, I'm going to try and post some pictures here.

Progress...

Tomorrow is a big day. The boys are going to their first birthday party. Chad and Amy are hosting a party for their kids Jacob and Madison. Jacob is just a few months older than Logan. We're really excited about it.

It's official. Gage is sitting up now and can go in and out of sitting up if he pleases. Also, he started standing by putting his hands on something about 6 inches tall and getting to his knees and then to standing up. He can't quite straighten out his torso so his butt sticks up in the air. It's still pretty cool to see. And of course, he follows his big brother everywhere, and Logan totally eats it up. Daddy often chases Logan around the house and scares him by jumping out at him. Now Logan does that to Gage. And Gage laughs and laughs. Tonight, as Gage laid on his back, Logan was kneeling on Gage's belly. Of course, we disciplined Logan for that behavior even though Gage thought it was funny and laughed. Tough kid.

I had Gage in the Dr. office yesterday regarding a persistent cold. They prescribed him with antibiotics, although I may have passed on those but Gage has been ultra-crabby for past couple days, yet he's not running a fever. Strange. I'm really hoping he gives me a night of rest. Anyway, Gage weighed 20.3 pounds. Holy cow! I can't remember how old Logan was when he reached 20 pounds, and oh, how we celebrated. Well, now it becomes apparent we need to get Gage a new car seat. He's grown out of the infant carrier. How exciting.

Logan still has slowed on the potty things, but it doesn't help much that Dan nor I want to put him on the potty since every time he asks, we strip him down just to have him do nothing. So, Logan wanted some M&M's but I said he couldn't unless he went on the potty. He looked at me trying to comprehend what I had just said for just a moment, then said, "Go potty?". So we put him on the potty and pee he went. It has worked pretty well but still little progress.

PT in St. Cloud has continued to go well, although the 2 times a week is already getting to be a little much. Last week, I dealt with new snow and icy roads, and today, I had the ice (freezing rain). And of course, we're in St. Cloud by 7:30 AM each Friday. Tuesdays are after work so we don't deal with darkness. At PT, Logan has been progressing on the tricycle which is great in my opinion. I think that the tricycle will really build his muscles which is the whole point of PT. The thought is that if Logan can gain strength, he'll gain balance, and with better balance, he'll gain more coordination, and with more coordination, he'll fall less. The good thing is that Logan doesn't mind going and actually enjoys it. He works hard for his 30 minutes and when it's time to go, he's ready.

Gage has his 9 month appt. soon. I see the ortho about my wrist next week. And Logan will continue his twice a week PT.

Back to our movie. We're watching Superman.

I think we're ready for Christmas...

All the shopping is done and the presents have all been somewhat unwrapped over the last week or so, between Curious Logan and Cruiser Gage. Tomorrow we head up north to hit our families, then it's home for Christmas Eve and Day with just us 4. Looking forward to it. :)

My hand has begun to mend nicely. I cannot yet make a fist but my pinkie is starting to bend. I think I'm about where I was when the injury first happened. I am hoping in 2 weeks, I will be where I was before surgery. I think in a week or so, I'll be cleared to start PT - just for a pinkie. LOL.

Today, Leslie, a friend from work, came over to help me bathe Cyrus, since I can't get my stitches wet. Cyrus may be moving in with Leslie and her family since I am not able to give Cyrus the love and attention he so very much deserves. We are heading to their house today for dinner to try it out. I think he'll be a good fit over there.

Logan will start PT twice a week now. We'll add Friday mornings into our routine in St. Cloud as we continue to work on his legs and feet. The hopes are that since he's still so young, therapy now will make a huge difference in his future. This past Tuesday, Dan was able to attend Logan's PT for the first time. It was amazing!! Logan was a total show off for daddy. He rode the tricycle like a champ and jumped on the tramp like there was no tomorrow. It was really neat to see. He was so wound up though that it was hard to keep him on task.

The potty training at home has slowed to a crawl. He asks to go sometimes but when we put him on, he does nothing. Oh well. Maybe in a month or so, he'll show some genuine interest. Gage still isn't crawling although he continues to be quite mobile. At this time, he is on the living room floor rolling around next to Cyrus. Cyrus keep looking at me as if to be sure he's not doing anything wrong.

We've almost all beat our colds now. All of us except Dan are ridding ourselves of running noses and coughs. Dan has yet to catch the bug.

Surgery tomorrow.

I went and saw the orthopedist today about my hand and they decided I'll need surgery. I was originally scheduled for Jan. 3rd but I got a call tonight that there's an opening for 7AM tomorrow. This works out much better because now I can have it done without paying a penny out of my pocket as my deductible was met nearly 7 months ago (birth of a baby, Logan's PT, my 1 week hospital stay at Abbott, my constant perinatal visits all winter...).

The boys are doing well as always. I still can't believe how perfect life seems right now... I have to pinch myself. Being a mom to these wonderful boys is such a blessing. I had no idea that they could be so entertaining.

They took a bath together again and this time, I got it on tape. Sometimes our camcorder works and sometimes it doesn't. Also, Logan went potty again. He's been doing really well with this, sometimes going 2 times in one evening. Lola says he hasn't shown an interest there yet.

The tree is up...

It took a while but the tree is up and decorated. Already, we can see that monitoring it will be a full time job. Thank goodness Gage isn't walking around and pulling himself up on things. Then we'd really have our hands full.

Logan has been doing pretty well with the potty. He is now going nearly once every day - no poop yet though.

We went to St. Cloud with Marla, Austin and Alyssa today to do a little shopping. We pretty much just looked around though and didn't buy much of anything. I'm trying to do most my shopping online and it's going pretty slow. It'd be way quicker in the stores.

I'm going to cut this short since I've been battling a cold, but I will include two pictures. One decorating the tree (above), and the other of Logan being his typical self at Grandma's. Notice the ring of chocolate around his face (below).

Logan's favorite phrases...

I hear this all day... "Mo wata peaz"... "Where Lola?"... "What's that?"... "Where daddy go?"... "Hi, Gage"... "Turn TV on"... "A ca-ca. Vrooom"... "All gone"... "Hungy, Hungy, Hungy"...

Of course, all these phrases have different pitches and tones attached to them.

At this moment, Logan's digging in his toy box, playing with his toys and destroying the house. Gage is laying at his feet waiting for dropped toys like a baby bird waiting for a worm from mom. When he gets one, he squeals in delight. Gage consistently army-crawls his way to Logan just to hang out. I hope they continue to get along as well as they do right now. When they have each other to entertain, I get entertained, too, and much less effort is required to maintain the household.

Last night, Logan went on the big potty for Daddy while I was at Tae Kwon Do. Still no poop but pee here and there works for me.

Right now, Logan saw Gage by one of his toys, the air popper, so Logan went over there and sat down next to him and the toy, turned it on, bent over and looked at Gage's face and laughed hoping to get Gage to laugh too. Very cute. Now he's patting him on the belly and giving him hugs and kisses. I have to constantly remind Logan to be gentle. "Careful" and "Watch out for Gage". Logan eventually starts to wrestle, at which time I have to get up and break things up. No harm is meant but he's only 2 1/2. :)

Both boys bathed in the tub together again but when Logan started throwing toys across the tub, separation was required. Logan had a short bath. Gage could have stayed in there all day but of course the water gets chilly.

Today, Logan had his PT appt. in St. Cloud. It went real well, although we still can't get him to jump. The funny thing is that last night, Logan was jumping all over the house to entertain Gage but his jumps were from his knees - hopped around like a Frog - knees banging on the linoleum. (Logan just got a time out for throwing toys in the house.) That takes coordination, too, yet he still can't jump.

Dan's getting his hair cut right now and picking up more diapers. It feels like we've been buying diapers all our lives. Tomorrow night is Tae Kwon Do and Thursday is reffing for me. Marla's coming to visit Friday and Saturday. Friday, Logan has an eye appointment in St. Cloud... Maybe we'll get the tree up this weekend.

A quick update... Thanksgiving, etc.

We went up north for Thanksgiving... Dan's side on Thursday and mine on Friday... then we came home Friday night. There's no place like home. It was great seeing everyone as usual and the food was wonderful.

On Sunday, I was giving the boys a bath together and Logan said, "poopie", so I took him out and put him on the potty. After about 10 seconds and some toots, he said "All done." So I put him back in the tub and let him play some more. He then said "poopie" again so I put him on the toilet again. And again, he farted and said "all done" after just 10 seconds or so. So I put him back in the tub and finished with Gage ASAP. Sure enough, Logan pooped just after I got Gage out of the tub. Two little terds floating in the water. So I emptied it all out and showered Logan instead. Little stinker. :)

Gage is edging closer and closer to crawling. He spends a lot of time on all fours but can't quite figure out how to motor. There's no doubt that it's just around the corner.

I keep hoping that someday soon, Gage will sleep through the night. It's just not happening which is starting to wear on me. I get up usually twice a night. I am looking forward to the day when Gage is a year old and can handle just solids as his main source of nourishment. He's 8 months old so I only have 4 months left. Chin up.

Logan is still my perfect little angel. I hope it never ends. He's been so good and communicative. He requires a lot of attention but the way he goes about asking for it is easy to manage. He gives hugs and kisses and follows me every where, babbling about his day... It is impossible to do anything requiring concentration until the boys are to bed. Ahhh... Motherhood.

I do have one complaint and that's how difficult it has become to take Logan out to eat. I know we need to keep taking him out so he can learn how to behave. I think we need to stick to typical family restaurants and not the fancy ones.

Gage has had some pretty dry skin for quite a while now. I am starting to really watch this and see if I can't get it under control. He'll have to go back to the Dr. soon for his flu shot follow-up. At that time, I'll visit with the Dr about it and see her thoughts. One of his cheeks is really dry which may be caused by his drool and sleeping in the wet drool puddle all night.

A post from Daddy...

Logan went pee-pee in the big potty again at 8:32 p.m. on Monday the 20th of Nov. . Heather wanted me to put this in this blog. I hope I don't have to enter a post every time he goes.... this could get repetitious. Anyways I (Dan) shaved my beard off after deer hunting and all I get now is crying from Gage, and "beard all gone" from Logan. Probably won't hear the end of it from those two or Heather "great the pricklies are back". Well that's all for now, until we write again, so long, fair well, and good day.

Have to write again....

Logan tried the potty thing again tonight. After a few minutes of trying with no success, I took him off the potty and went in search of a diaper. To his surprise, and mine, he peed on the floor outside the bathroom door. This potty thing will take a long time, I can tell. I've dug my feet in for the long haul. :)

On a sad note, Amy and I went to visit a friend 3 days ago in Long Prairie that we used to play softball with. She had been battling cancer for nearly 2 years and had taken a turn for the worse. On our visit, she slept the whole time so we didn't get to talk with her. I received word that she passed away this morning. She was 68 but certainly never acted like it.