The Main Adventures

We have a Teenager!!!!

2012-03-06T21:39:00.000-06:00

Caution!!!! Kade is 13!!!! We can barely believe it! He is growing up way too fast and changing so much. His voice is getting deeper, he is interested in girls, and has the dreaded puberty acne. We (Heath, Alexandria and I) are all kind of a nucense to him. He doesn't like us to come in to his room, which is where he would stay 24 hours a day if we let him. I'm the horrible mom that makes him come out to eat, get fresh air and Heath enforces his daily chores, which induces eye rolling. Oh, how I remember the days when I did all these things. That is what Heath and I tell each other all the time because that is what we have to do to manage our TEENAGER! Last weekend was dedicated to celebrating Kade's birthday. Friday after school Heath picked up Kade and two of his buddies and brought them back to our house. We let Kade open up a couple of his gifts and then they headed to pick up Brayton and go to the Ramada Inn Waterpark in Des Moines for the evening. They had a blast! Sis and I went down for just a little bit to let her play in the water, but that didn't happen. She was terrified! My sensitive little girl was not liking this new experience one bit. So, we headed back home and left dad with the 4 boys. Saturday evening we went up to Eldora to the Pizza Ranch to celebrate with all of the family. It was a great turnout and a lot of fun! Thanks to everyone for coming to help Kade celebrate his birthday!!

God's gift to our world. 3-2-99

Sis & the birthday boy, ready for the day.

We got Kade a case for his shotgun.

Earpiece for the WII & lava lamp.

The girls at the water park.

Kade & his crew.

Birthday cupcakes, yummy.

Sis & Grayson catching up.

Aunty Steph slow down and watch your fingers.

Kade and his Ravens.

That is not a fire, it's just a lot of candles.

Kade & Great Grandpa Dougan.

These were needed. Thanks Cathcart Crew.

Coookieeeeeeeeeeeees.

18 months!!!

2012-02-24T22:04:00.000-06:00

Alexandria turned 18 months last Saturday! She is growing up way too fast and learning new words everyday. She did well at her 18 month check, but continues to be on the small side. She now weighs 21 lbs. (27%ile) and is 31 1/2 in. long (38%ile). She is starting to show her independence with her food choices, throwing her own diaper away, shutting doors and helping pick up her toys. She is learning how to use a spoon with her yogurt or as she calls it "la-la-la", which is for Cinderella who is on the the yogurt container. It is so cute how she says it!! She is now able to say her "k" sound so "Kade" is very clear as she calls him "Kay" and she also enunciates the "k" on "boo-k"...also very cute! She is already showing her nurturing side as she tries to give her baby dolls her paci and puts diapers on them. She is becoming more playful and loving everyday. She loves to be tickled and "wrestled" with and will just giggle,which is one of the best sounds in the world!

Reverse Ed Grimley.

Sis trying out the new potty.

Sis found a new place to go #2.

Check out my new kicks.

Mom thinks I look like Dad. What do you think?

Found me some pumped up kicks.

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

I may be 18 months but I can still fit in a box.

Farewell Tour

2012-02-24T21:48:00.001-06:00

Hillside Charge had their final show (for now) last Saturday at House of Bricks. It was a good show...they sounded great and had a good crowd. The guys are all bummed about the band breaking up, but are very happy for Heath. It's hard to see Heath give up something that he absolutely loves, but I guess that's the sacrifice you have to make to follow your career path since the Rock Star thing didn't pan out...yet. :) I hate to see him give it up too...I saw and heard where they started and the tremendous progress that they made and how they just gelled together. I can see a comeback tour somewhere down the road!

Rock N Roll Baby!!!!

Have to admit, I was tearing up here.

My Kiss good bye. I love these guys!!!

Valentine's Day

2012-02-24T21:39:00.000-06:00

Our Valentine's Day was very low key. Both Kade and Alexandria got treats from us and Grandma Hendricks made all of her grandchildren little heart cakes with their initial out of red hots. Sissy loved hers and kept asking for more! Alexandria also came home with a loot of goodies from daycare. Heath surprised me with a gift certificate for a massage...YAY! I can always use one of those!! I'm going to save it for when my exercise class is complete and then treat myself. Hope your day was full of love!

Al loved Ted!!!

Grandparent Fun!

2012-02-20T21:06:00.002-06:00

Alexandria was lucky enough to have visits from all of her grandparents last weekend! Grandma Renae came down Saturday morning and stayed until Sunday morning. It was fun having her here and I think Alexandria entertained her pretty well. She sure does get silly when Grandma Renae comes around...it's so cute! Since Renae was here, Heath and I took advantage and had date night!! We went to church first and then enjoyed a delicious meal at Bonefish Grill. We ended our evening with a little birthday shopping for Kade. Early Sunday afternoon, Grandpa and Grandma Winter came down for an Alexandria fix. She enjoyed reading some books, dancing, and being silly with them too! Later Sunday afternoon, Grandma Pam made it down to spoil Alexandria with a little bit more love. She also enjoyed reading with Nana, giving kisses and showing off her toys. It was nice to have all the grandparents down on Sunday to keep her entertained since I wasn't feeling the best and since Heath was gone most of the weekend working on a job in Huxley.

Sis got a new purse from Grandma Renae.

G&G Winter got brushed up on some reading.

Sis, close your eyes when you're kissing Grandma.

Officer Main is in the House!!!

2012-02-17T20:48:00.006-06:00

After 6 years of hard work, persistence, and dedication to his chosen profession...it has FINALLY paid off! Heath was offered a position as a Correctional Officer at the Fort Dodge prison this past week and accepted. He was one of 5 hired out of at least 40 interviewed. I'm so happy for him!! With this change comes many other changes ahead for us. His hours will be 2-10pm Wed-Sun., which means we won't see daddy Wed-Fri. every week. We will get Sat. and Sun. mornings and Mon. and Tues. evenings with him. Of course, one of the first questions from everybody was, "Are you going to move?" The answer to that is we are going to get our house ready to sell. We have some work to do and our goal is to have it on the market this spring sometime. We plan to move to Ames eventually which will make our lives much easier and the kids will get to see their daddy more. It is kinda sad that Heath has to give up the band since he will work every weekend, but that is just one of the sacrifices to be made to pursue his career. His foot is in the door and we are so proud of him!!!

I want to thank all my friends and family for their support. There were times when I was down, thinking my break would never come and your interest in my journey was all it took to give me hope. I have to give major love and thanks to my wife, I couldn't ask for a better support system. Love you Babe. - Heath

This is an old picture but it's still funny.Thanks for the gun Kade.

Snow?? In February???

2012-02-07T19:58:00.000-06:00

Ankeny finally looks like a winter wonderland. We had our first real measurable snow fall on Saturday, I believe around 4 inches. It was such a pretty snowfall too...the big, heavy, wet flakes...perfect for snowmen and snow ball fights! The kids and I stayed home all day while daddy worked. Kade enjoyed shoveling the drive and making a huge snowman in the backyard. Sis was quite angry that she didn't get to go outside and play. I haven't bought any snow boots or pants for her because we haven't needed them. I felt horrible keeping her in, but she enjoyed watching Kade roll the snow for the snowman.
Sunday we made it to church and to Jordan Creek for a short trip so Kade could get his I-Pod fixed. Later, we headed down to the Joneses for a little Super Bowl Party! We stuck around for the first half and then had to put Sis to bed. We really didn't care who won...personally, I was more into the food and watching the Jones kids entertain Alexandria. Thanks to the Joneses for all the wonderful food and hospitality!!

Old school snow blower.

Let's dance & sing, it's time to go to church.

Does the orange go with my jammies?

These must be Kade's, he's the bug.

Surprise trip home!

2012-02-05T22:28:00.001-06:00

Last weekend we (all of Amber Harvey's bridesmaids) flew her home from Vegas for the weekend so she could be with us while we picked out our bridesmaids dresses. It was a last minute decision and a surprise! When I called to tell her what we were doing and to make sure she could make the trip, she was SO excited and cried tears of happiness. It was so nice hearing her so happy! On Saturday we all met in West Des Moines as David's Bridal and got our dresses picked out. Can you believe that it only took 1 hour for 5 girls to pick out 1 dress that we all liked and fit into? What's even crazier is that we all got the same size and none of us need alterations! After that was taken care of, we walked over to Monterrey's and enjoyed some margaritas and chips and salsa...perfect combo! It was great getting to chat with all the girls and get caught up with Amber!
Grandma Renae came down to hang out and play for the day while I was gone. Heath, Grandma, and Alexandria were going to go to Jordan Creek for something to do, but Grandma ended up having car troubles, so they just played at home. Thanks for coming down, Grandma Renae!

The Bride & her Bridesmaids.

Pump up the jams, Kade.

Hugs....

& kisses. Sis will hit ya with an unexpected kiss. Her aim is a little suspect.

My halo is working.

Mini Mommy.

Happy Birthday, Daddy!!!

2012-01-26T22:13:00.002-06:00

This past weekend we did a little celebrating for Daddy's birthday. His birthday was actually on Monday, but I wanted to celebrate while Kade was still with us. I was in a continuing education class all weekend, so Daddy got some good one-on-one time with his kiddos. Saturday they ventured out to go see Great Grandma Emerson. She hadn't seen the kids in quite a long time. We wanted to get over to her place around Christmas, but then we all got sick. I guess Sis was entertaining and wanting to get into all of her knick knacks. Then it was off to Wal-Mart so Kade could get some shells for his new shotgun. Sis got to check out the fish while they were there, which she loved! Sunday evening we celebrated Heath's birthday with Cowboys cupcakes and opening gifts. Happy Birthday, Daddy!! We love you!!!

Ya, I'm 1!!!! (That's for #1 Dad!)

I got a personalized calendar for my office. Love it!!!

Sis loved the frosting.

MMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What up?

It's just my size!

The kiddos with Great Grandma Emerson

Story Time

Fitness Revolution

2012-01-15T22:04:00.000-06:00

This weekend has been very low key, which is exactly what I was needing. This week I started a workout class called Fitness Revolution. It is 5 days a week, Mon-Thurs at 8pm and then Sat. am. It is a combination of full body workouts, kickboxing, agility/plyometrics, and yoga/pilates. I am loving it, but it is just another thing to fit into my already busy day. Heath has been great help as I totally rush around the house from the time I get home to get everyone fed, supper cleaned up (which Heath usually does), Sis bathed and played with for a little bit before I leave and she goes to bed. I keep telling myself this is only 10 weeks and it's going to get my butt back in shape. I am already feeling better physically and mentally. Then I struggle some days with the whole working mom thing and realize that I only get to spend a total of 2-3 hrs. a day with my baby. Ugh...I hate that! Then I pull myself back around and reassure myself that I'm her mom, she loves me, I love her and she is well loved and has fun at daycare. I just know that these are precious days and that she is only going to be little for so long and grow up so fast. So, I treasure those 2 hours I get with her during the work days and become a hermit on the weekends to get quality time with her. Whew...don't know where all that sappy stuff came from...maybe it's because my husband is making me watch a sappy Mercy Me video right now.

Taking Diamond for a spin.

Cold enough for a hat.

Can I get you anything else Sis?

Holden Turns 2!

2012-01-15T19:08:00.002-06:00

Luckily we were able to make it to Holden's birthday party this year! We missed his 1st birthday because Alexandria had the flu and how ironic that she get it this year again...just a few days sooner. Holden's party was last Sunday and Alexandria was home sick last Thursday and then Heath and I were both ill on Saturday. Not fun! We were all good to go on Sunday though and sing to Holdie in-person. Last year we had to do it over Skype. Holden had a sports themed party this year and got tons of neat toys. We got Holden this puppy that barks and walks around, which he was really excited about and so was Sis! It was pretty cute, every time Alexandria had it Holden would come over and take it from her and "hide" it. She didn't quite understand what was going on, but later on he let her play with it. She just loves puppies...and no, Uncle Brandon, we don't need a real one! Steph did awesome once again with Holdie's cakes and we also had homemade ice cream which was delicious! Happy 2nd Birthday, Holden!!!

Fire.

The big 2.

Sis couponing.

Sis capitalized on a nice January day.

Photos by Kade.

A thank you for Great Grandpa Dougan. We sent this picture to him. He has Presto which is a printer without a computer.

Happy 2012!!!!!

2012-01-03T22:38:00.000-06:00

Our New Year's weekend started out with my work Christmas party, which was held at the Des Moines Golf & Country Club. I have been with Accelerated Rehab now for 8 years and we've never had a Christmas party, so this was quite a treat! It was a formal party, so I actually dug out a skirt and Heath got all dudded up with shirt and tie. We were excited about the party because of it simply being a night out, free meal and drinks!!! How can you beat that?? Plus, Nana and Papa Hendricks came down to babysit and play with Alexandria. From what we hear, she was a hoot! Thanks, Mom and Mike!! The party was pretty fun because I got to see a lot of previous co-workers from when I worked in Urbandale and my previous student who now works in Altoona. We enjoyed a lovely meal, cocktails, and a little dancing. They had a raffle drawing for prizes with the proceeds going to the Heart Connection for Children's Cancer. Heath and I got lucky with us both winning prizes...I won a gift certificate for the Bonefish Grill (which we love!) and Heath won Bose earbuds (which is perfect for him to listen to all of his music!).
New Year's Eve was spent getting all the Christmas decor put away and the tree taken down. I forget every year the mess that it makes and all the work it takes. I guess I will remember again next year when I drag it all back out! We did not do a thing on New Year's Eve night...which was fine with me. We grilled steaks, played with Alexandria, and watched a movie. I am happy to report that I did see the ball drop this year in NYC (so 11pm here) and then went to bed. Heath then went down to the Joneses to bring in the New Year since I was a party pooper.
Sunday and Monday were just spent hangin' at home. Alexandria and I were all by ourselves on Monday since daddy had to work. We did A LOT of playing! She is really turning it on lately and getting to be more fun everyday. She is also turning into a little love bug, which we just hate...NOT! She loves to cuddle up with us in the evening with her favorite new blanket (thanks Aunt Jess and Uncle Brandon!) and read books. Her favorite new game is chase, which gets her so excited and very giggly!
We wish everyone a very happy and healthy 2012!!!

Hamball anyone?

Sis loves to read books.

Mr & Mrs. Main

Sis entertaining Grandpa.

Cheese.

Al rocking the Star!!!

Knock em down Sis.

Main Family Christmas

2011-12-28T21:24:00.000-06:00

We celebrated our family Christmas on Christmas Eve morning when the kids got up. I was kinda surprised that sis didn't wake up until 8:00 that morning. Kade was already up anxiously awaiting for the rest of us. After eating cinnamon rolls and taking the morning pics, we dove into the presents. After the wrapping paper mess was all cleaned up, we got ready for church. We chose to go to the first of six Hope services on Christmas Eve, which was at 1:00, so we could get back home at a decent time to host Christmas for Heath's family.  The Church service was amazing as always...they never seem to disappoint! The message for this year was "The Greatest Gift". Sis enjoyed all the singing and then went to the kids room to play. She got some comments from the people around us about her pretty Christmas dress. She also had fun "flirting" with a high school age boy that was sitting behind us.
After church, we hurried home so I could get all the food ready for our Christmas Eve supper.  Luckily, I had prepared everything the evening before so all I really had to do was get it all out and heat it up.  Once Heath's family arrived, we all enjoyed visiting while the food heated up. Alexandria was quite the entertainment and has started to really turn on her charm. After supper, we opened presents and had to quickly get all of Alexandria's toys out for her so she could check them out. It was a very nice evening, but it went way to fast. We sent the kids to bed fairly early so we could unwind and get ready for Santa to come!
Christmas morning came too early! We had to get up early because Kade left at 8:00 to go have Christmas with his mom. Kade was pumped with his gift from Santa...a 20 gauge shotgun!  I think Heath might have a new hunting partner come next season...but, not before the hunter safety course!  The rest of our Christmas Day was very relaxing and peaceful.  We feel very blessed this season! We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy 2012!!!

Hey, it's Christmas time.

Fathead Ravens.

Sis loved her stacking cups.

Angry Birds.

Sis loved her puppy pillow pet.

Bug got a gaming chair.

Ready for church.

The Greatest Gift is Jesus!!!!!

Silent Night.

Sis entertaining.

Scottyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!

The mayhem.

Nice jacket Bug.

Bug got a 20 gauge from Santa.

Merry Christmas everyone!!!!!!

Some Fun Days Off!

2011-12-26T21:46:00.001-06:00

Earlier in Dec. I took a few days off of work so I didn't loose my PTO days. It was nice to get some holiday prep done and spend extra time with sissy. My first day off I spent the whole day shopping and then an evening with mom, aunt Patty, and Steph. We ate downtown at Dos Rios and then went back to Steph's to watch Bridesmaids. It was a fun evening! The next evening, I headed up to Hubbard to have a little Christmas celebration with some good friends. We enjoyed some wine, appetizers, and good laughs! I was also able to get a lot of holiday goodies made and some presents wrapped. On my last day off, Alexandria and I were able to go to Jaxson's preschool Christmas program at Hope. It was adorable and sissy really liked it. After each song, she clapped and cheered...it was very cute. Jaxson had a lot of family there to watch him and after the program we enjoyed cookies and chocolate milk.
Heath has been recovering from pneumonia and wasn't able to go hunting as much as he would've liked, so no deer this year...bummer. Kade has also finished his first wrestling season and plans on going out again next year. Sis is getting more personality and learning new words all the time!!
Here are some random pics.

Goofing around.

Sis loves to be bounced in her blanket.

Kade leaving his final match of the season.

Not a big fan of Santa!

2011-12-26T21:40:00.000-06:00

We took Alexandria to see Santa for the first time. She was very excited by the scenery waiting in line and she was able to watch a couple other kids sit on his lap before it was her turn, but that didn't matter at all. She started crying the instant I sat her on his lap. Hopefully she won't be traumatized and will someday love to tell Santa everything she wants for Christmas!

Poor Santa.

She was brave with the reindeer.

Christmas with Mom and Mike

2011-12-26T21:26:00.000-06:00

After the Buckley Christmas, we headed to Mom and Mike's for Christmas with them. The grandkids got very spoiled and had tons of fun playing with all their new toys. Sis got 3 babies and Kade scored big on the clothes! It was a very nice evening.

Bug got some Heat.

Sis was drooling over her baby.

Al & Bud.

G&G with the grandkids.

Buckley Family Christmas

2011-12-26T21:16:00.001-06:00

Last weekend we celebrated Christmas in Eldora with the Buckley side of the family. There was so much good food as always! It was nice to see everyone, including my cousin Jamie who made it back from Idaho with his girlfriend too. We are asking for some extra prayers for my Uncle Randy as his cancer has returned. He is undergoing radiation and chemo and continues to be in good spirits. Please include him in your prayers for a full recovery!

Cousins.

Two shrimps.

Mercy Me, It's a Winter Family Christmas!

2011-12-11T15:31:00.000-06:00

Heath, Kade, Brad, Steph and I enjoyed a wonderful concert at Stephens Auditorium to listen to Mercy Me! They are amazing! We first heard them at Hope, then Heath went and saw them at the State Fair last year and was blown away by them...so, we all went this time! I have to say that it was different than any other concert that I have ever been to. We had 2nd row center stage seats and we sat the whole entire concert, which usually doesn't happen. There were a couple times throughout the concert that I had to fight back tears...the lead singer is such a great speaker...he gave a mini sermon in the middle of their performance. He mainly spoke about his family and the love for them, which was very touching. The first half of the concert they played some of their hits, then Bebo came out to sing...yes, that is his name! He played some acoustic songs to give Mercy Me a break. He was great too! The last half of the show Mercy Me played Christmas songs, which was a very nice start to the holiday season. It was a fantastic show and I think I could have sat there all night long. I would definitely recommend them and would love to see them again! Thanks to Mom for watching Alexandria that evening!!

Last weekend we had our first Christmas, which was with Dad and Brenda. We headed up early per Jeriann's recommendation to avoid slippery roads. We stopped in to see Grandma Renae and Papa Jon first. She tore their house apart and had a fun time doing it. Then it was on to Grandpa and Grandma Winter's for some homemade chicken and noodles and gift opening. Everyone got nice things and the kids loved playing with each others toys. It was a nice time and luckily the roads never froze so we were all able to make it home safe and sound.

Mercy Me

Bart is amazing.

The Ladies.

Gents.

Sis loved Grandma Winter's light necklace.

Momma got some personalized dishes.

Hey, is that Santa's sack?

Nope it was a grill.

Love this one!!!!!

Thanks Kade, for looking at the camera.

Sis got a new vacuum. As of today she plays with the balls.

Grandpa has the magic touch.

Light, check.

Sis didn't know what to think of the power outage.
We were without power for 2 hours last week, which made for an interesting evening right at supper time. We huddled around the fireplace and watched sis run around like crazy...I think she thought the lights being out was a game.

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-12-11T13:47:00.000-06:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving and were able to spend it with all of our family! We had an early Thanksgiving with Heath's family at Shawndra's and were able to spend a day with them. It was nice just relaxing, chatting and watching Alexandria follow their cat around. The night before Thanksgiving we hung out at Dad and Brenda's and enjoyed some wine, conversation, and yummy food. We were able to take Alexandria out to my mom's later in the evening so we could actually sit and relax instead of making sure she wasn't getting into anything. I went to mom's with Steph and the boys while Brad and Heath headed uptown with the rest of the gang for some more pre-Thanksgiving celebration. Thanksgiving Day was spent at my mom's house where Grandma, Wendy and Uncle Warren were able to join us too! It was a nice relaxing day with football, tons of great food, and checking the Black Friday ads! That afternoon we all took a trip to the farm to see all of Brandon and Jess' critters and to check out the updates to their home. Hopefully we'll be able to get Alexandria up on one of their horses next summer!
I braved Black Friday again by myself and got some good deals and a good start on Christmas gifts. I didn't run into any craziness, thank goodness! It is never as crazy as what most people make it out to be, but maybe that is because I don't go out at midnight?! When I got home, Heath and Kade went and got a Christmas tree. I spent most of the evening digging out all of my Christmas decor and decorating the tree. Alexandria had a difficult time going to bed that evening because she knew I was up to something downstairs. I brought her down a couple times and each time she just oooo'd and ahhhh'd over the lights and the tree. She has been pretty good around the tree...we'll see how she does once there are presents under it!

Chilling.

The definition of chilling (Mike had a knee scope done).

Sis loved dessert.

Kade & Jaxson filled in some holes to pass the time.

The Gamblers.

Jess & Brandon gave us a tour of the homestead. This is the horse pen, any questions?

Brad & Holden straying from the tour for a photo opt.

15 months!!!

2011-12-06T22:12:00.000-06:00

Our little darlin' is 15 months already and I have no clue where the time has gone! She is becoming quite the entertainer. She is very curious, courageous, sneaky, loving, and predictable. She's walking all over the place and constantly has to know what mommy is doing. She wants to be where ever I am and see what I'm doing and get into whatever I'm doing, which makes everything a challenge. I feel like I say "no" ALL the time even though they say you are not to say no all the time...but, it is definitely a word that she understands! I've tried other phrases, such as "please don't do that", "stop please", "don't touch"...yeah...and none of them work! She will point at something she knows she is not to touch and say "no" and then proceed to touch it. So fun!!! She is learning to sign, point and say more words to let us know what she wants, which is very helpful! Alexandria is definitely in the Christmas spirit with all the oooing and aahhhing over the lights and tree.
Her 15 month check was more of a not well visit as she was not responding to her antibiotics for her strep throat as we believe she is allergic to amoxicillin. So, she couldn't get her shots that day, but we did get a different antibiotic which worked! Her stats are: weight 19 lbs 15 oz (10%ile), height 30.5 in (51%ile). She continues to be our string bean. We are just so thankful that she is happy and healthy!

Baby brown eyes.

Dad, nooooo, I have moms plant on my chin!!!!

Al loves to brush her teeth, WITHOUT HELP!!

Wasn't me.

Catch up time!

2011-11-23T10:30:00.001-06:00

I have been quite the procrastinator lately. We've been pretty busy around here and just haven't found time to sit down and do a worthy blog. Well, today is your lucky day. A couple weekends ago, Heath and I spent a weekend away up in Minneapolis. We enjoyed our time away to go out to eat, walk around the Mall of America, and check out a very unique ballet...which is whole other story. I ended up being sick the whole weekend, which was just perfect timing, NOT! I was glad that I didn't have to worry about doing any mommy duties, but probably would've enjoyed myself more if I had been healthy. Alexandria spent the weekend with Grandpa and Grandma Winter and found a new pal in Casper, their dog. I guess he never left her side while she was there and loved giving him kisses and hugs.

Last weekend we went to church on Saturday evening and then hung out with Brad, Steph and the boys. The kids had fun playing together, but little did we know it would lead to Jaxson, Holden, Alexandria, and Brad all getting Strep throat. So, over the past week, both of our households have been dealing with sick kids, plus Steph and Brad have been sick too. No fun! On a more positive note, Kade has started wrestling and is really liking it. He hasn't won any matches yet, but he is also wrestling kids that have been doing it a lot longer than he has.

This past weekend we REALLY enjoyed watching the Cyclones pull off their biggest win in school history against Oklahoma State!!!! Sunday we had our first Thanksgiving with Heath's family at Shawndra's. The food was great and it was nice to just hang out and enjoy family. We are looking forward to a short week of work this week, more family time, and all the great food!!!
The Mains wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving!!!

Sis not to sure about the leaves.

Photos by Kade.

Kade in his wrestling warm ups.

Waiting to get it on.

Sis loves her beads.

Kade & Levi.

Baby Grayson, let me tear your toy apart for you.

Happy Halloween!!!

2011-11-01T21:44:00.001-05:00

Heath and I have been talking for years that we would love to get all dressed up and go to a Halloween party...well, this was the year! We had good reason to too!! One of my old roommies, Sarah, and her husband Brice had their wedding reception...FINALLY...only about 4 years after the fact. Anyways, they had a Halloween party for their reception and it was great! My other roommie, Sara, and her husband Bruce were able to make it back from Kansas City...so the 3 of us were able to party and get all caught up. Fun times!!! While we were out, Kade and Alexandria got to have a sleep over at Grandma and Grandpa Hendricks house. They got to go to a birthday party for Kenneth and play with Jaxson and Holden too! Jaxson and Holden stayed the weekend at Grandpa and Grandma's house too....so, Mom and Mike had their hands full!!!! From what I hear fun was had by all!!!

Sunday evening was Trick or Treating in Ankeny. I took Alexandria around to our neighbors so she could show off her bumble bee costume. She didn't quite know what to think of the whole experience. I think I had more fun than she did! Now that she is pretty much a full-time walker it was so cute watching her waddle around in her costume! Daddy stayed back home to hand out candy to all the little ghost and goblins. Kade went around the neighborhood with Brayton and came home with a huge stash of candy. I sent it ALL home with him to his moms...I don't need the temptation!
Here is one of the funniest jokes Heath heard while handing out candy, "Why did Tigger stick his head in the toilet?" Wait for it...."He was looking for Pooh!"

Dead Osama & Jennifer Beals from Flashdance.

Prince Brice & Princess Sarah.

T with Sarah & Sara.

The Mains, Oberles, & Towns.

Bug & Bee.

Love.

Sweet Bee.

Let's go fill this.

Good-Bye

2011-10-26T20:57:00.001-05:00

This weekend was one of mixed emotions. I had to say good-bye to one of my dearest friends, Amber Harvey. I have worked with her for the past five years and we've become very good friends. I feel partly responsible as to why she is leaving...she met the love of her life in Las Vegas on our girl trip. Yes..it is no joke! I wouldn't of believed it if I hadn't been there and seen it with my own eyes...so, I'm completely supportive of her leaving. Friday night was her and Bobbi's (my PT tech that has been with me for 5 yrs too) going away party after work at Olde Main and then it was off to see my hubby play a gig down at the House of Bricks. I'm very thankful that Amber Paige and Shell came down to keep me company and help support Hillside Charge. Grandma Renae and Papa Jon came down to babysit Alexandria for us! Thanks guys! I think a fun time was had by all!
Saturday evening was Amber Harvey's bachelorette party in Ames, which was fun until I had to say my "good-bye". We both cried like babies in the middle of Whisky River, but we didn't care. They were tears of joy for her and of sadness that I won't get to hear her at work everyday...she is the life of our clinic. We had a little scary moment on our way to downtown Ames that evening. We got caught in the middle of the police shooting that occurred due to 2 women driving a stolen vehicle. Cops were flying by us and we had to pull over right by where it was all going down and the police had their guns drawn. We witnessed the police hand-cuffing the driver and also saw the passenger lying on the ground from her gunshot wound. I guess you never know what's going to happen...and we weren't even in Des Moines!
Sunday Kade said "good-bye" to his Bears football team. He ended his Bears career on a good note with a fumble recovery and a win! Sis and I stayed home, which was a good thing as the game had a lightening delay and was really cold. Daddy didn't get home until 9:30 that evening. Kade has moved on to wrestling now and is really enjoying it.
So, farewell friends and football...hello to wrestling, Alexandria walking, and Halloween!!!

Amber & Momma T

Bobbi & Momma T

Looks like a party to me.

Tanya, Amber & Shell ready to rock.

Found me a keeper!!!!

Game Day.

Proud but sad Dad with my champ!!!

Bug calling out directions.

Winning!!!!

Good-bye speech from Coach Bowmen.

Just Pictures

2011-10-18T19:05:00.001-05:00

We have been boring, so there hasn't been much to blog about. The only thing really going on here has been Kade's football games. So, enjoy all the pics! We actually have plans for the next 3 weekends, so there will be stuff worth blogging about!

Picture by Kade's Photog.

Let us in.

Ready to take the field.

Beautiful sunny day for some football!!!

I know he's around here somewhere with that camera.

My latest prodigy.

Take off!!!

Our little Bumble Bee.

She's so sweet.

Sis was helping mommy put the groceries away.

That is a leaf sis not a puppy doo.

I knew it, I could feel the camera on me.

As Rosco P. Coltrane would say"were in hot pursuit".

Kade with his mother. (Andrea)

Al in her new outfit from Grandma Renae.

We are steps away from being a full time walker.

Just outside our backyard.

Finally...Family, Football, and Fall Fun!!!

2011-09-27T21:50:00.000-05:00

Am I behind or what??? This is going to be a little bit of everything blog to get caught up. Kade has started his football season with a 1-1 record. He has been playing primarily defensive line and has been doing a great job! He has made some big improvements this year and is more aggressive. Kade got his name announced for an awesome tackle that he had against the Chiefs too! We (Alexandria and I) were able to make it to his game this weekend since the weather was so great. Kade was very excited to see her there and she was very excited to see him after the game...she didn't want to come back to me and clung to his jersey...pretty cute! Grandma Renae and Papa Jon were able to go to the game with us too, which was fun. The week before the Bears played the Dolphins in the rain.

Kade ready to go!!!!

Pre snap read.

Bug looking to lay a block.

Sis is Kade's biggest fan!!!

These 3 spent more time goofing around then watching the game. Thanks for entertaining Al guys!!!

Nice sunny day.

Saturday we went and got Kade and headed to the Center Grove Orchard in Cambridge for some fall fun...it was a perfect day! Alexandria is still too young to take part in a lot of the activities, but did enjoy seeing the animals and riding the hay rack to get our pumpkins. Oh, she was a big fan of the caramel covered apples as well! Kade enjoyed jumping on the huge bounce pillow and going down the giant slide. When we got home, Papa Mike and Nana Pam stopped by for a visit which we enjoyed!

Goats don't fly they walk on planks.

Mommy loves her some cow.

Taking a ride to get our Pumpkins.

Don't ask me?

Jump!!!

Sis couldn't wait for Pumpkin pie.

Chocolate Cinnamon Carmel Apple. Sis wanted the whole thing. And no I'm not mad, just focused.

A little side note: On our way to the Orchard on Saturday we came across State Trooper Mark Toney's funeral procession. He was killed in an accident earlier in the week near Indianola and was a very well known and respected man in the law enforcement family. They closed Hwy 69 south bound going into Ankeny so the State Patrol, other officers, family and his casket, which was being carried in a case by horses, could procede down to the burial site. It was a very sad, but neat site. Many people had pulled over along side of the road to take pics, let their children watch and even a farmer took a break from harvesting to stand outside of his tractor on the step to salute the Trooper. Two fire trucks were parked at an intersection and had a huge flag hanging from it for everyone to walk under...truly an amazing site.

Monday Night Football was Redskins vs. Cowboys, so Uncle John came to hang out and watch the game with Heath. Alexandria was definitely showing off for him...don't know if she was just that excited or if the whole chocolate chip cookie she ate had anything to do with her unusual behavior?! She still isn't walking, but has taken some steps. She remains a very cautious one with the walking but has no fear when it comes to climbing on things. Her vocabulary is getting bigger all the time...I seem to know what she is saying even though you can't understand her. Her daycare lady has informed us that she is the most "talkative" 1 yr. old she has ever had in her 35 years! For what I hear from my mother....I was the same way. I can just see it now...on her report cards...."is a great student, but talks too much." (Just like mommy) :)

Now that you are all caught up...enjoy all the pics! Happy Fall!!!

Start them young is my motto.

Our future DCC!!! ( Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader)

Sis had to give Uncle John a celebratory high five.

New Jammies.

Sis, Bug, Diamond and Elephant.

Chillin with puppy.

1 year pics & Scrimmage

2011-09-14T21:31:00.001-05:00

This weekend was much more laid back than our last. Saturday morning we headed up to New Providence to get Alexandria's 1 yr. pics taken. I had it all planned...pics at 10, so she can nap on the way up since she usually does take a morning nap around 9 and then get some great indoor and outdoor pics since the weather was just beautiful! Well, that's not the way it went. She didn't nap on the way up and we didn't get any outdoor pics because she was tired and had had enough! I'll be surprised if they got very many good shots because she didn't even want me to leave her side to get a pic. Every time we set her down she crawled right back over to us. I guess we will see!? Since we were in the area, we stopped by to see Grandpa and Grandma Winter, but Grandpa was at work. We hung out there for a little bit and listened to the big Iowa/ISU game and to let sissy eat since that is ALL she does these days. Then we stopped in to see Great Grandpa Dougan who is always very happy to see his lil' package. Grandma Renae was there too, so she got to entertain them both. We listened to the game on the radio the whole way home and were pulling into town just as it was going into overtime, so we headed down to the Joneses to watch the rest, which turned out great!!! What an exciting game!!
Sunday Kade had his scrimmage and weigh-in at Valley Stadium. He was the starting cornerback and is also back-up tailback and plays some fullback too. He got to play a lot and did a good job! Sis and I stayed home, but we got to watch the game tape tonight!

Getting dolled up for the big shoot.

This super model actually has to eat.

Not sure if someone was naughty?

Bug taking the pitch.

Sis loves Kade giving her rides on Diamond.

Diamond went nuts and trampled Kade.

Scary Labor Day Weekend!

2011-09-09T22:08:00.000-05:00

We had a huge family scare this past weekend. On Sunday afternoon Heath and Kade were outside working on a project together. We have a creek in our back yard that has some concrete in it and it's washing away the hill, so Heath brought home a jackhammer from work to break it up so it will flow better and prevent the washout. It was an electrical jack hammer, so he had Kade holding the cord out of the water while he hammered away. Sis and I watched for a little bit and then came inside. They were outside for at least an hour. I was just getting out of the shower when I heard this screaming. I didn't know who it was at first and then realized it was in our house. I quickly got halfway dressed and came out of the bedroom to see Kade standing at the bottom of the stairs screaming in a panic "Dad just got electrocuted!" Luckily, sis was taking a nap, so I started panicking while trying to get dressed. I ran down the stairs and immediately told Kade to go unplug the cord to the jackhammer which was plugged into the kitchen outlet. I then told him to call 911 and then go get Jeff, our next door neighbor. I had about 50,000 things running through my head at the same time...am I going to find my husband dead? Am I going to have to do CPR? What if he doesn't have a regular heart rhythm...I don't have an AED? What if I can't pull him out of the creek? I ran out of the house...while still trying to get my shirt on...and heard Heath moaning. I was glad to hear him moaning, but knew he was not OK. He thought he was yelling for help, but he definitely was not yelling. As I got over to the creek I saw him sitting on the cement block with his head down, covered in muddy water and unable to talk. I helped pull him out of the creek and immediately starting asking him if he was OK and to sit still. Kade came running in the backyard with 911 on the phone. He did such an amazing job! He was so clear and precise with the dispatcher. He was able to tell her what happened, our address and where we were located in the yard. I then took over the call and shortly the rescue workers arrived along with some of the neighbors. Heath was able to tell me what happened. He said he was almost done and the jackhammer stopped working, so he spun it around and saw that a button popped out so he went to push it back in and that's when it grabbed him. He couldn't let go and fell backwards in the creek. He was being electrocuted from that time until Kade came and got me and I was able to tell him to go unplug the cord. I'm guessing it was probably 2 minutes or so although it felt like 20! Heath remembers just laying in the creek unable to move, speak, or do anything. He just lyed there listening to the hum of the electricity running through the water and his body. He could feel himself starting to black out...he thought he was going to die. He could tell when Kade pulled the cord because he remembers gasping for a huge breath of air. Heath would be dead today if Kade wouldn't have been out there. I never would've know what was going on. Heath was taken by ambulance to Methodist. We spent 5 hours in the ER. He had a CT scan, EKG, and 2 rounds of blood work done. Everything came back OK! He was very stiff and sore for a couple days, but otherwise physically fine. He's just been working through the mental aspect of almost dying. We all realize how lucky he was and that God was definitely looking out for him. It wasn't his time and I know he is meant for something big yet in his lifetime. We appreciate all the thoughtful calls, emails, texts, visits, prayers, and phone calls. It means a lot to us! Bless you all!!
The Mains

Viva Las Vegas!!!!

2011-09-01T21:05:00.000-05:00

This last weekend I took a girls trip to Las Vegas and it was a blast! I had a great time, but was so ready to come back home to my family. I have not left my family for that long, so it was a little difficult, but it was good for me! Heath was Mr. Mom while I was gone and did a fantastic job! I felt guilty for leaving, so I made sure there were meals prepared, house was clean, laundry done, and a small "to-do's" list for while I was gone. We left last Thursday and got in late, so we didn't do much that night. Friday we spent the whole day at the pool relaxing and taking in the hot sun. It got up to 112 degrees while we were there! That evening we ate at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville and took in some of the sites. Saturday I spent the day walking around with a couple of the girls. I didn't realize Vegas has so much to see and such good shopping! The hotels were unreal! We checked out the newest hotel, the Cosmopolitan, which has been there just since Dec. It was awesome! Later on we met up with the rest of the girls and got ready to head out for the night. Saturday evening was probably the most fun night! We ate at the Sugar Factory, which is right across from the Bilagio. It was great and we could watch the water show while we ate! The Sugar Factory has a restaurant on one half and a candy shop on the other half. We got all excited because one of the managers approached us and said that Kelly Rowland (previous singer with Beyonce' in Destiny's Child) would be there in 10-15 min. and would be sitting right behind us. Well, she never came and later we found out that she got the food to-go. She was scheduled to perform upstairs in the Chateau Club, which we had free passes to. We checked it out, but it was just way to packed, so we just hung out in the restaurant for the rest of the evening. We did get to see Kelly Rowland, she walked right behind us when she was on her way to her performance, so that was cool! We weren't quick enough to get a pic, plus she had tons of bodyguards around her. Sunday we did some more walking around and did a little gambling. I limited myself to $20 and lost it all. :( That evening I went and saw Mystere with a couple of the girls, which was fantastic! It was full of acrobatics, which I just love! We spent our last evening at Toby Keith's "I Love This Bar". It was a fun place! Monday was our travel day back home...we were all very tired. It's crazy how you lose all track of time while you are out there...it is truly the city that NEVER sleeps! Heath and Alexandria surprised me at the airport!! I was so excited to see them! Tuesday I spent the day at home to play with Alexandria and just have some mommy-daughter time. I missed her like crazy! I've decided I don't want to go anywhere for awhile, but I do want to go back to Vegas for sure! I think that place could become addictive! Next time Heath is coming too!!!

Our Pool

Our Hotel

Pretty fountain sculpture in Caesar's Palace

Front of Caesar's Palace

Eifel Tower Restaurant

Playboy Club...didn't go there, but had to get a pic!

Beautiful blown glass on the ceiling of the Bilagio

Liberty Bell in the Bilagio Gardens

Artwork made out of fresh flowers

Cool looking tree in the Bilagio Gardens

This crystal beading was all over the ceilings in the new Cosmopolitan hotel

Big shoe in Cosmopolitan!

LeighAnn, Me, Momma Nancy, Christina, and Amber

No Vegas trip is complete without Elvis!!!!

This guy was amazing! Stood completely still like a statue and then would move like a robot and make cool sounds!

Nothing like a cheesecake sundae at 3:00 a.m.!!!!

The Mirage volcano show

At Toby Keith's Bar

Can You Smell The FOOTBALL?

2011-08-28T12:11:00.001-05:00

It is time for Football season to start and we couldn't be happier at the Main house. Kade started his last season of Youh Football on Monday night. He started a couple months back going to skills and agility camp to work on his speed and moves. They use a lot of training methods the NFL uses, so you can guess how much we heard about our own future NFL player. It was very cool to go pick Kade up from football practice on wed. night, only to have a coach approach me and tell me how much Kade has improved over the summer and how excited he is for the season. Ya proud dad would be something you could call me!!!

Sat. was picture day, so with Tanya out of town for the weekend in Vegas, Mom came down to help make picture day possible and to watch sis for my bands gig on Friday night. Thanks mom, love ya!!!! Here a couple pics from picture day. Stay tuned for the season and for Kade's schedule. Lets Go BEARS!!!

Kaden A. Main-#24 (WR,TE,FB)

Kade's Biggest fan!!!!!

DA- BEARS!!!!!

Alexandria is the Big 1!!!!

2011-08-22T22:40:00.001-05:00

Our baby girl turned 1 last Thursday! I can't believe that she has been with us a whole year already!! I can barely remember my life without her...and when she's not around....I don't know what to do sometimes. She is turning into such a fun loving little girl. She is a sensitive little thing and we believe she is going to be a girly girl...which is totally ok. It's just hard to believe because I wasn't like that when I was little, but she is definitely her own little person, which is the way we want it! We threw her a party with all of our family in our garage. Daddy worked very hard to clean it all out and we decorated it all up. Her birthday party theme was "flower power". I had it in my head that I was going to make her first cake because I wanted it to be special. My sister always makes her boys' birthday cakes and they turn out so good, so I thought I could do it to. Steph got the cake pan for me, I got specific instructions from her and followed everything to the T. I took 1/2 a day off of work to come home on Friday and decorate it all up. I got the frosting all made, my colors that I wanted and I worked for 1.5 hours on it and the frosting all started running down the side of it, the colors started blending together and it looked awful! I was SO frustrated...so, instead of crying...I threw it in the trash, laughed and called Hy-Vee! Hy-Vee to the rescue!!! They even made her a little cake for free, so I was totally off the hook. It was like my stress was immediately gone! I've decided that I need to take a cake decorating class before her 2nd birthday! We had a beautiful day for her party! She did pretty good with all the company, but was totally wiped out when everyone left.
Sunday afternoon was Jaxson's 5th birthday party. His cake was Batman and it turned out great...and it wasn't from Hy-Vee!
Today I took the day off from work to recover from our crazy weekend and to take Alexandria to her 1 yr. appointment. She is now 19 lbs. 4 oz. (20%ile) and 30.5 inches long (89 %ile). She continues to be our little string bean!

Kade made a sign for his sister.

Bright 'n early- Birthday girl and 7th grader.

Bug ready to take on the 7th grade!!!

Breezy made the other half of the sign. Lets Party!!!!

Guess who.

Sis loved her Shara Tiara.

Whooooo!!!!

Al's favorite gift!!!

Alexandria sure knows how to get the party going.

Whoa, fire!!!

How'd you do that mommy?

Al started out eating so dainty..........

Awe forget the hands, they just get in the way!!!

The end!!!!

Sis loves her wagon.

Taking Diamond for a ride.

Thanks Uncle Brandon & Aunt Jess, I love my pony!!!

4 generations.

We gave Jaxson a Transformer for his birthday.

Once again Papa Choo Choo had all the fun!!!

Oh Diamond, I love you!!!

Maroon 5 - Train

2011-08-22T22:14:00.000-05:00

Friday night, Heath and I headed out to the State Fair to go see Train and Maroon 5. It was such a beautiful night out too! It was a great show! I just wish Maroon 5 would've headlined instead of Train, but it was a lot of fun! We even witnessed a marriage proposal in the middle of Train's song "Marry Me". It was pretty neat! We also got to witness the crime scene of the police officer that got hit while directing traffic at the fair. We were instructed to go out the back exit vs. one of the main entrances/exits and didn't know why. Well, when we got up to the scene, the DCI was there, paint outlines on the concrete and the street all taped off with about 20-30 police officers standing around with some questioning witnesses. We then learned after watching the news that he was hit by a drunk driver and is in critical condition. We hope and pray that he makes a full recovery. Back on a positive note....Adam Levine looked amazing in all white!!!

Maroon 5 Live !!!

Taking a bow.

Train.

Trainettes.

Kade Goes to Camp!!!

2011-08-22T22:01:00.000-05:00

Kade went to Riverside Bible Camp again this year. He was a little more excited about it this year since he was no longer a rookie. He even rode a horse this year...a female horse, Princess! We did give him a little grief about that! :) He is already talking about wanting to go back next year.

Kade with his cabin mates.

The whole camp singing and dancing.

Sis and I getting ready for the show!!!

Busy, Busy, Busy!!!

2011-08-08T21:43:00.001-05:00

We had a very busy, but fun weekend! Saturday we headed back to Hubbard for some family time. We made a quick stop by the Hubbard Care Center to see Grandma Renae hard at work. Then it was off to Grandpa and Grandma Winter's house for a visit and to open up her first birthday presents. We spent the majority of the afternoon at the Hubbard Park for a Buckley family reunion. It was a very nice day, which was great for all the kids to play. Alexandria was pretty tired and clingy the whole time. She has definitely hit the clingy stage, which makes enjoying family time a little more challenging. After the park, we stopped quick to see Great Grandpa Dougan since we were WAY past nap time and it didn't matter anymore. Great Grandpa was thrilled that we stopped by. Sunday was spent getting Kade ready and sent off to Bible camp at Riverside. This year he was a lot less anxious about going as he is no longer a rookie. I think he'll have a great time this year as there are no floods in the forecast, the weather is supposed to be great, there will be familiar faces, he's set up for a horseback ride, and he isn't constantly wondering if his sister is being born. Enjoy all the pics!!!

Trying to make Grandma's day!!!

Kade is quite the tourist.

Papa Choo Choo is a little bug eyed.

Sis got an early gift from G&G Winter.

Al got her own camping chair.

These two don't love each other, do they?

Cousins.

This looks safe and fun.

Sis found bug's goggles......

and a new hair-do.

Kade don't forget these for camp....

and don't forget me!!!!

We did a lot of horsing around this weekend.......

and someone was doing a lot of standing around.

Bling Bling!

2011-08-01T21:51:00.000-05:00

We had some nice family time this weekend. Saturday morning Heath went golfing with a friend while Sis and I went for a nice walk and stopped at a park to enjoy the swings. She loved them! After her nap, we spent the rest of the day running around West Des Moines. One of our stops was Jordan Creek to get Alexandria's ear pierced. Yes, we did it! I held her while daddy ran the video camera. I was waiting for this loud pop sound, because that's all I remember from when I had mine done when I was young. The only thing we heard was her hysterical cry. I felt horrible! Thankfully, she only cried for maybe a couple minutes and then she was completely fine. She has slept fine and has not bothered them once. They look so pretty and make her look like such a little girl now...no longer our baby. :( After we enjoyed a delicious supper at Granite City we headed to Toys 'R Us for some birthday shopping.
Today we have played a lot! Sis is now getting into chase, especially with daddy. She also likes to "jump" into pillows and on our bed. She is also "talking" a lot more and seems to understand more than we know! She loves reading books and now has a favorite, "Little Quacks ABC's". I usually read it about 3 times a day, but don't mind at all. She is now climbing the whole flight of stairs and is very interested in daddy's drum set...we may have another future drummer on our hands.

Ma & Da took me out to Granite City to make up for the torture.

Cheese Maaa!!!!

You're driving me crazy !!!!!!

Which sticks should I use?

Dad is it ok just to use my hands like John Bonham
(Led Zeppelin)?

Oh ya, much better.

Quack Quack!!!!

Playing games with Mama.

This is the way the stork brings babies now-a-days (safety first).

On The Go!

2011-07-24T21:31:00.000-05:00

It felt like we were hardly home this past weekend. Saturday morning we left home pretty early to get down to the Farmer's Market. We had to drop my van off first to get some work done and while we were doing that it started pouring rain, which ruined our Farmer's Market plans. We were going to meet my mom and the Cathcart's downtown too! Bummer! Instead we went carpet shopping to pass the time until the van was done. We are in major need of new living room carpet...so, off to Lowe's it was. When we were done there, it was still raining, so we hung out at the Cathcart's and played for awhile. We had a quick lunch, got the van, and then headed home so sis could nap. Once she got up, we all got ready and headed back to West Des Moines for Taste of Hope. It's an annual party put on by our church, which is just amazing! We went to church service first, which you could either do indoors or outdoors, then we ate some yummy grilled hot dogs and hamburgers before taking part in all the free festivities. Indoors they had an arts and crafts room set up and outdoors they had tons of inflatables, face painting, petting zoo, funnel cakes, mini golf, etc. It was great! We took sis into the petting zoo so she could "feed" some goats and see some chickens and even a pig! We didn't stick around for the fireworks, but I heard they were awesome! Even though there are around 8,000 members of Hope, we always feel right at home.
Sunday we ventured over to Grimes to visit Grandma Emerson. We haven't seen her in quite awhile, I know it was before Alexandria was crawling because I knew I hadn't been concerned about her getting into anything. She has A LOT of nick knack items, which are so enticing to a mobile baby! Grandma Emerson is doing very well and was happy to see us. The rest of our day was spent doing yard work...oh how our yard needs SO much help! That's a whole other topic of conversation.
As busy as we were this weekend, we didn't get many pics because I forgot the camera in the van when we went to church and since we had to park across the street, I wasn't going back for it. I need to remember to leave it in the diaper bag at all times...cuz we can't forget that!

Can't have enough of these!!!

Priceless!!!

Like I said.

Sis is 11 months!

2011-07-20T22:19:00.000-05:00

Our little sweetie is 11 months old already!! I got to stay home with her on Monday, which was so nice! She just gets more fun all the time. I can't believe we're planning for her 1st birthday party already...I don't know where the time has gone. I wish it would slow down! She just gets more loveable all the time! She is also getting her own little personality with a twist of an attitude in there! Here is a little update on our Sis!

Current Talents: trying to snap her fingers, clicking her tongue, signing for "all done", waving bye-bye, saying "uh-oh", "mum", "da".

Favorite Toys: her pink and white puppy, anything with music, her pink ball, and anything she isn't supposed to get in to

Favorite Foods: yogurt, crackers, banana, hot dog

Favorite Activities To Do With Daddy: "wrestle" on floor, play peek-a-boo, bounce on bed, cuddle

Favorite Activities To Do With Mommy: read books, tickle time, be with me in kitchen, bath time

Favorite Activities To Do With Kade: listen to music, dance, clap and follow him everywhere

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM.

I love me some food!!!

Class of 96

2011-07-20T21:52:00.000-05:00

This past weekend was my 15 year H.S. class reunion back in Radcliffe during Summerfest. I was so excited for it too as I helped plan it and spent most of the week prior getting ready for it such as: making phone calls, packing up the van, buying supplies for our float, etc. I also knew that 2 of my good H.S. friends were planning on being there that I haven't seen in 10+ years, so that made it even extra special! Friday evening we met at Shane's and a few of us put together the float. Rachel made some nice signs to hang on the front and back of the rack, we blew up balloons and put streamers down the sides. We were kind of nervous during the decorating because it started to rain and as far as we knew there wasn't any rain in the forecast...whatever! So, we found a place to store it overnight until the parade the next day. We had our candy, squirt guns, and silly string all ready to go!

Saturday morning came and very few people showed up to be in the parade. We had a total of 7 classmates on the float plus 2 in the truck that was pulling us. Oh well, we were going to make the best of it and planned to soak any classmates along the parade route that should have been on the float! While waiting in line for the parade to start it started pouring rain. All we could do was sit there and laugh. We did round up a couple of umbrellas to huddle under until the parade got going...because it still went on...rain and all! I was concerned because I knew my family was along the parade route waiting for us to go by. So much for soaking everyone to cool them off...the rain did that for us! Our float got ruined, we were wet, no one really showed up, and no one really cared that we had squirt guns since they were already soaked.

After the parade, we all met back at Shane's place, grilled, got caught up, and watched the kids soak one of our classmates with water balloons. It was so stinkin' hot out that halfway through the afternoon I started feeling not so well. We headed back to Renae's house to check on the kiddos and get out of the sun. I really started feeling icky. We went back to my mom's house and by the time we got there I really didn't feel well. I thought it was just the heat, but I believe I had a stomach bug because I couldn't really eat anything from Sat. afternoon until Sun. evening. By this time I was thinking that I wasn't going to be able to go the street dance, which was also part of our reunion. I was so looking forward to it and I opted out and stayed at my mom's due to my stomachache. Boy, so much for celebrating my 15-year reunion....I was so bummed. Heath went in my place, so I was well represented! Grandma, Wendy, Patty, Uncle Kenny, Aunt Marilyn, Brandon and Jess all came over so I did get to visit with them which was nice.

Sunday was the Dougan family reunion. We didn't stay long there because it was Alexandria's nap time and I still wasn't feeling well. Kade had a good time spending the weekend with Grandma Renae and taking part in the festivities. He played Minute To Win It and came in 2nd place. He also got to drive a golf cart around town, which he thought was pretty cool!

Class of 1996.

Sorry to bother you, I just wanted a picture for the blog.

Trying to stay dry at the parade.

Shane keeping the kids occupied during the reunion lunch.

Kade sniping some cans.

Sis taking Grandma Renae's wagon for a ride.

Happy 4th!!!!

2011-07-06T21:38:00.000-05:00

Our holiday weekend started with Heath and I having a "date day" on Saturday. Taylor, our neighbor girl, babysat Alexandria while we had a day and evening out. We did some shopping...mainly for house updates and even popped into Trader Joe's to check it out. I couldn't leave without getting a couple bottles of the "2 buck Chuck" wine to help stock my wine fridge! After shopping, we headed out for sushi to our normal place, Taki. It was nice to sit in quiet and not have to worry about entertaining a little one. We were planning on going to a movie after supper, but we both thought that we would fall asleep so opted to hit up Tonic for one of our favorites...a chocolate martini. It was so nice out, so we sat on their patio and enjoyed conversing while we sipped on our tasty cocktail. I'm sad to report that we were home by 8:30pm. We are officially lame!
Sunday we spent time outside doing garden and yard work. I probably spent a good 3 hours hoeing the garden to get rid of all the weeds...ugh, I had blisters on my hands and was so sore the next day! Wish I could hire a garden boy! LOL! Heath got to get a round of golf in with a buddy at Jester Park. Later that afternoon we went up to Slater to some friends house and had a bar-b-que. We couldn't stick around for the fireworks since Sis is pretty programmed with her bedtime of 8pm.
The 4th of July was pretty laid back for us...we just stuck around home. It was fun to enjoy a day with Alexandria and take in all of her cuteness! She sure did show her patriotism off!

Sis is ready for her first 4th. So people......

lets put your hands together and get the party started....

now everyone fall down, party's over.

Sis showing mommy how to unfold laundry.

Al loved my bench ladder, she loves to help.

She gets intense when it come to reading books.

Watching me mow the yard. She doesn't like the weed whacker.

Tanya got a picnic blanket & butterfly from the Cathcarts for her birthday.

Birthday Girl

2011-06-27T21:30:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday to my beautiful and loving wife. Tonight we took her out to Red Lobster for supper which was her pick. She got some surprise visitors when we got there. Rachel, Izzy and their two boys along with Amber and Brooke from work came out to help us celebrate. We all enjoyed a hefty supper and sang Happy Birthday to the birthday girl before heading home for gifts. We decided to try and spoil mommy because she spoils us all the time with her cooking, tidy house and of course her love. Thanks honey you mean the world to us and we want you to be able to spend more time with us and less with the house. So we got her a house keeper to help her out. We also got her a cake decorating tackle box with 50 pieces of cake decorating stuff. Alexandria will have the first custom cake by T. Last but not least we got her a one and only Hillside Charge t-shirt to wear to the shows. Happy Birthday Mommy!!!!!

Sis helping open gifts.

No that is not the maid we found.

One beautiful band wife!!!!

Lets go fishing. fishing for cakes that is.

Pool Fun!!!

2011-06-26T22:13:00.000-05:00

On Friday I went to a wedding reception for a girl that I work with. Her and her husband got married out in Colorado the same weekend my bro got married and then came back home to have their reception. It was a nice time and she looked wonderful. It was pretty cool because during the father-daughter dance they were dancing to Butterfly Kisses and then they had some "technical" difficulties where the music switched to Thriller. Bobbi and her dad then did the choreography to it...it was awesome! Nobody knew that they were going to do that. They did it again and went into a line dance and then ended with Butterfly Kisses. It was really fun to watch!
Saturday Mom, Grandma and Wendy stopped by for a quick visit before they headed out shopping. That evening we went to visit Steve and Heidi Henning and their new baby girl, Joelle. We took them supper and dessert, which I think they really appreciated. I felt like that was one of the best gifts we could give them. Joelle is just a sweet little punkin. She is sooo little! Alexandria looked humongous next to her. Joelle was about the same size as Alexandria was when she was born, but I don't remember Alexandria being that tiny. Oh, how I hate that I have already forgotten and it was only 10.5 months ago! Ugh...I just want to bottle every memory up and hold on tight to it. Everyone said that they change so fast and grow up right before your eyes and it is so true.
Sunday we had a glimpse of the sun for awhile in between rain showers, so we took full advantage of it and got Alexandria's pool out. Boy did she have fun in that! She was screeching so loud at one point our neighbor had to come out and see what was going on. Kade even got in the pool for a little while with her! I think she is going to be a little fish!

Sissy at the Main Beach.

AL loves the bubbles.

Alexandria had her own personal life guard.

Grass.

Not only is he a life guard, Bug doubles as our garden protector.

Happy Father's Day!!!

2011-06-20T22:36:00.001-05:00

Saturday was errand day for Alexandria and I while daddy went and worked for a couple hours. Later that afternoon Grandma Renae and Papa Jon stopped by to show us Grandma's new car, which is very nice. They stayed for awhile to visit and play with Alexandria. Papa Jon even scored a couple of kisses from her, which I think melted his heart! Daddy, Alexandria and I went out for a quick bite to eat before daddy had to leave to go play at Cornstock. Cornstock is an all day event where there are 10-12 bands that play throughout the day. It took place on a farm between Jewel and Randall with about 200 people. Hillside Charge played pretty late, so sissy and I just hung at home.
Sunday we let daddy sleep in since he got home pretty late from Cornstock. Once he got up, he went up to Ames to get Kade so he could help us celebrate Father's Day. Since it was pretty warm out, we decided to go to Jordan Creek and walk around just to get out of the house. We did some minor shopping for sis' birthday party and then went to visit the Cathcarts. Daddy decided that he wanted to eat at El Rodeo before heading home, so that's what we did.
I hope all the dads out there had a great day! I know my husband loves his kids with all his heart and truly enjoys being a father! I'm thankful to still have my dad and step-dad around...my heart goes out to my husband who doesn't get any more Father's Days with his. Perry was definitely thought of today. Happy Father's Day!

On Father's Day I woke up like this till..........

my babies cleaned me up with their love.

Mom put on another photo shoot.

Sis is becoming a very funny spirit.

Alexandria is mesmerized by Papa Jon.

Getting some love from Grandma.

Ol' brown eyes!!!!

????!!!!!

HsC @ Cornstock.

Summer Fun!

2011-06-14T22:13:00.000-05:00

This weekend was filled with some summer fun! On Saturday, Heath and Kade went up to Mason City to visit the Kamm family while Alexandria and I went to Hubbard for good ol' Hubbard Days. Heath's best buddy plays and coaches in an adult men's football league and had a game on Saturday evening. From what I hear, it was a fun time and Kade even got to be a part of the chain gang. Alexandria and I watched the Hubbard Days parade and then headed uptown to check out the activities. I decided to leave for a little while so she could take a nap, but that didn't happen. We went back into town in time for the bathtub races, which were hilarious! Then it was the annual water fights, which is always fun to watch too. I guess my brother's team remain the champs...4 years running. By the time all the water activities were done, sis was ready to go...she never did really sleep, not until we were on the road home. It was fun walking around and talking with friends that I haven't seen for awhile. I also acquired a nice sunburn...oops...and here I thought I was doing good by trying to stay in the shade most of the day.

Update on sissy: she had her ear tubes put in last Tues. and everything went well. I couldn't believe how quick the whole process was. She can definitely hear better and my oh my has her appetite improved! Her appetite was my biggest complaint before getting tubes and I attributed her not wanting to eat to not feeling well and being on antibiotics for the past 5 months. Well, I think the tubes have made a huge difference already! Now we just pray that they stay in and do what there supposed to do!

Hi!!!!!!

Bug running the chains, he did have to run a couple times.

Ralphy Balboa. How would you like to tangle with this?

Hubbard Pool float.

Papa Choo Choo.

Wake up Sissy there's a parade going on.

The Crew.

Didn't realize we got a new puppy.

Sis thinks she is big stuff.

Kade, Danny & Dylan.

Last but not least, Miss Loie a.k.a Lois

Mr. and Mrs. Brandon Winter!!!

2011-06-05T22:04:00.005-05:00

This whole week has been focused on getting ready to celebrate my little bros wedding. I headed back home on Thursday hoping to be of some help with all the preparation, but came to find out that they had pretty much everything done by Thursday afternoon. I still headed up because I was very excited to see what had been all done to get ready for this big day. Oh my...what a beautiful site! I couldn't believe all the work they have put into getting that place in shape. My dad made 2 awesome signs, one is at the entrance to the driveway and the other is hanging in the barn, which was made out of a piece of wood 100 years old and came from one of the original hog buildings on the farm. My brother (with help of family and friends) had to clean out the barn, build a bar, rig up security lights, extra outlets, do landscaping, etc. I guess if you haven't figured it out yet...the reception was at the farm...in the barn! Yes, a true down home country bash! The bartender for the evening is the owner of the only bar in town, so he shut his bar down for the entire day and brought his own crew to the farm. The whole set up had to get approved by the state in order for him to do that. Steph and I checked it all out and then sat and chatted with Brandon and Jess for awhile that evening.
Friday during the day Mom, Steph, Brad, Jaxson, Holden and I all went over to Eldora to visit Grandma, Wendy, and Patty. We had a nice lunch at Pizza Ranch and then headed back home to rest and get ready for rehearsal. I was very happy when Heath and Alexandria arrived...it had been a couple days since I'd seen them. We all headed to Kamrar for rehearsal, which was really short and sweet. Then it was off to Pickles for supper. By this time our kiddos were past their bedtimes, so we ate fast and had to jet out.

Saturday was the big day! They had beautiful weather for it and were able to get a bunch of pics outside. The wedding was also short and sweet. Jaxson was pretty entertaining as the ring bearer...he was trying to get Holden to laugh the whole time by playing with the ring pillow. Holden was clapping and saying "yay" during the whole service also keeping everyone entertained. Heath, Alexandria, and I took off right away after the wedding since we were one of the host/hostesses for the reception. Heath ended up taking care of Alexandria while I helped get all the candles lit, tables uncovered, and lights plugged in. Steph helped me with the hostess duties while Heath kept Alexandria entertained. It was fun seeing tons of family, friends, and old neighbors that I haven't seen in such a long time. It was also very entertaining to see people's expressions and hear their reactions to seeing the barn. Many people have memories in that place and it sure did get the folks reminiscing. I know Grandpa Winter was looking down and very proud of all the work and pride Brandon continues to put into the homestead. The wedding party arrived on a horse drawn wagon with the Bride and Groom on the horses! After the wedding party all entered the reception, they offered free rides in the wagon for the kids, which they all loved! It was neat to see a bunch of people just walking around the farm...checking everything out. Brandon and Jess have like 3 tree swings placed around the farm and I saw people sitting in all 3 swings through out the evening. People were even walking up the lane, which was lined with lit Ball (Jess' maiden name) glasses. There were a couple campers set up out there, which housed a lot of family through out the weekend. It was truly a beautiful evening and a very cool reception. I have to admit I didn't know how they were going to pull it all off, but they sure did! It was wonderful!! Many people thought Brandon should just keep the barn like that and rent it out for events...I have a feeling that won't be happening. Although, I did have a cousin say that she wants her reception out there when she gets married and I think Brandon OK'd it! I guess we will see.
Today we went back out to the farm to watch them open up their gifts. Brandon also had a gift for Jaxson for being in the wedding...a go-cart. He was really thrilled about it, but I think it will be a couple years before he is driving it by himself. We didn't make it through all the gifts, little Miss Alexandria had had enough, so we took off and she was asleep before town.

It was a very beautiful and fun time! Congrats Brandon and Jess!!!

Toast to the Newlyweds.

Coming in in style!!!!

Grand entrance under the 100 yr. old board.

G&G Winter were also celebrating their 10th anniversary. Congrats!!!

Sissy at rehearsal.

Relaxing before the wedding.

Sis couldn't stop touching my flower.

I am one lucky dude-Beautiful & Beautiful!!!!

Getting ready to dance.

Alexandria couldn't stay for the dollar dance but she got to check out Bud's hat.

Mother-Son dance.

Can't tell but Bud is lifting both of the girls up.

I want to be a cowboy, baby.

Bud and Grandma Mossman.

Al loved the saddle.

Bud got Jaxson a go-cart.

Memorial Day Weekend

2011-06-05T20:49:00.001-05:00

Our Memorial Day weekend was pretty low key. I wasn't feeling well and later came to find out that I have pneumonia. I was shocked to learn that, but after coughing for 3 weeks I thought I better get it checked out. I am getting better...but, have a feeling that this annoying cough is going to hang around for a couple more weeks. Anyways, Saturday wasn't the best of weather so we stuck around home. Sunday, after getting some stuff done around the house we were all ready to get out and enjoy the weather. So, we went to Des Moines to visit Heath's dad's grave and put some pretty flowers on it. Then we went out to eat and enjoyed some movies at home. Well, I guess I should say that I did...1/2 way through my movie Heath left to go hang out at the firepit with Jeff. I guess my romantic comedy was no competition to guy time around the fire. :) Monday ended up not being such a bad day...just a little on the windy side. The boys got the lawn all mowed up and I FINALLY got my van all cleaned out from the winter. Hope everyone had a fun and safe holiday!

Sis has learned to crawl and climb.

Smiles.

Sis got a new ride.

Look no hands.

Photography by Kade.

Flicks

2011-05-30T23:34:00.001-05:00

Here are some videos that make us smile at the Main house.

Kade on his 3rd birthday.

Grandma Renae taught Al how to Patty Cake.

Alexandria is on the move.

Grandma Gig

2011-05-30T20:29:00.000-05:00

This past week Grandma Renae came and stayed with us to watch Alexandria since Miss Judy took a little vacation. It was so nice having her here so Alexandria could stay at home. I think the two of them had fun and got some good bonding in. I felt kinda bad because Alexandria had another ear infection and wasn't quite her chipper little self, but that will soon be changing since we have her scheduled to get tubes on June 7th!!! We can't wait...we just want her to feel better and start eating better!
We ended the week and kicked off Memorial Day weekend with another Hillside Charge gig at Pappy's Meeting House in Ames. More people were at this one, including some already dedicated fans. Some girls showed up with t-shirts that they had made, which were pretty cool and sold! I thought the band sounded really good and are starting to really gel during their live performances. Yes, I am their critic and give them honest feedback since I'm the one that has heard them from day 1.

Good morning.

Good bye photo.

Sissy wearing Bug's Heat Hat.

Pre show love!!!

HILLSIDE CHARGE

Live @ Pappy's Meeting House.

Bachelor & Birthday Party!

2011-05-28T14:25:00.000-05:00

Brandon's bachelor party was this past weekend. The guys met at the farm in the afternoon for some clay pigeon shooting, grilling, and just some good 'ol guy fun! Heath couldn't stick around for the whole extravaganza as he went to our brother-in-law's surprise 40th birthday party in Alden. Heath had a good time and got to see all the work that has been done at the farm in preparation for the Big Day. I can't wait to see everything! I stuck around home all weekend and attended a wedding shower Saturday morning for a girl that I work with. Later that day Alexandria and I headed next door for our neighbor girl's graduation reception...they served some yummy food so I didn't have to cook! Sunday daddy was gone all day to a gig in Des Moines so I got some mommy-Alexandria time.

The Bachelor.

Shells were flying.

Gary & Bud shooting it out.

Brad- Mike- Gary.

The Birthday Boy-Uncle Chris.

Sissy is 9 months old!!!

2011-05-19T23:00:00.000-05:00

Our lil' miss is 9 months old already! I can't believe it!! She is changing so fast and becoming more fun everyday! Her latest accomplishments include clapping, going from lying down to sitting up, and giving kisses. I took her for her 9 month check today and she is still a little string bean. Her stats are: 17 lbs. 7 oz. (26th%ile) and 27 3/4 in. (58%ile). Her ear infection remains as it does not respond to antibiotics anymore. Thank goodness we are going to the ENT next week...and for Tylenol!!!

Alexandria clapping, most likely for Kade.

Gig,Gig,Gig

2011-05-18T21:13:00.001-05:00

Kade had the first gig of the month, which was his spring band concert. They skyped a soldier overseas during the concert so he could see his kid perform, which is way cool! The next gig was the big debut of "Hillside Charge", which is Heath's band. They opened up for 4 other bands last Friday night at Vaudeville Mews in Des Moines. Kade accompanied him to this gig since it was early in the evening and an all ages show. Saturday evening was "Hillside Charge's" first full set, which I got to be there for. They played at the House of Bricks in Des Moines and sounded really good. I was so excited for them and very proud at how far they have come over the past year. They are very talented!

Bug looking fly!!!

Kade played the cymbals and the bongos for this gig.

Hillside Live!!! @ The VL

@ The House of Bricks.

Picture by Kade. 1 of a thousand he took.

Fun Mother's Day Weekend!

2011-05-17T23:03:00.000-05:00

Saturday was Jess' wedding shower and bachelorette party. All of her guests met at one of her friends' apartment where we ate some yummy food, watched Jess open up her gifts and then play some fun games. It was such a beautiful day for it too! It was nice to get to meet some more of her family and friends. After the shower...the "young" girls got all dolled up and we headed out to Samaurai's for Hibachi. Our cook was quite entertaining and the food was very good! Next, we hit the town to celebrate one of Jess' last few nights left as a single lady. It was fun and for me it just felt good to be out! It was a late night for me, but totally worth it! I think Steph and I stayed out longer than all the youngens! Sunday morning came way too early as I had to take Alexandria into the Dr.....AGAIN....for ANOTHER ear infection. UGH! I can't wait until we get tubes! She is back on an antibiotic because I refused to put her through another series of rocephen shots. It wasn't my idea of a fun mother's day, but she was already feeling better after her nap. We spent the rest of the day playing hard. I didn't do a darn thing...daddy took care of the laundry and cooking. Thanks, honey! I think that is the best gift! I also got a very pretty hanging plant for outside. I hope all you mommy's had a wonderful Mother's Day!

Fire and Drinks, sounds like a fun night to me!!!!

No comment, this is a family blog.

The girls.

Loving me some mommy!!!

Prom Weekend

2011-05-01T23:22:00.002-05:00

Friday evening Heath took Kade and Alexandria to their first art show in Des Moines to see one of Heath's good friends' art work. From what I hear, Jonny's art work was very impressive and the kids had good time...until it struck 8pm, which was 30 min. past Alexandria's bedtime. They left in a dash to avoid a full melt down! I enjoyed a night out with a couple girls from work...we went out for Mexican...yummy! Saturday was Prom night, so we headed up to Nevada to get some pictures of Devon. Their theme was Hollywood Red Carpet. Devon rolled up in a nice white Chevy with his date. We got to take a couple pics of them before they went inside to the dance. He looked very handsome!

Hanging at Jonny's Art show!!!!!

Mom & Sissy waiting for the precession to start.

Walking the red carpet.

Devon and his date Ciera.

B&B

Ya we have a happy little girl!!!

Happy Easter!!!!

2011-04-25T21:13:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Easter on Saturday since my sister had to work on Sunday. Before we headed to the Cathcarts, Grandpa and Grandma Winter stopped by for a visit and to bring the kids their Easter goodies! We met at the Cathcarts, along with Mom and Mike, and then made our way to Hope for an amazing Easter service. After church we came back to the Cathcarts to grill and hang out. The kids got loaded up with more Easter goodies from Nana Pam and Papa Mike. I'm kinda glad that Alexandria can't eat the candy yet...just means more for momma! We hope that you all had a wonderful Easter with loved ones and celebrated that He Is Risen!!!

Happy Easter from the Mains.

Sisarella in her Easter dress.

Easter baskets yaaaaaay!!!

Sunflower.

Where did everybody go?

HI.

Al loves Grandpa, he has lots of buttons and things to touch. His voice captivates her too.

Cheese!!!

G&G Winter with the Grand kids.

Our Cathcarts.

Kiddos.

G&G Hendricks trying to get everyone to behave for a pic.

Mommy with her mini me.

Let me show you how to work that camera Dad.

Whoa Dude!!!

Icky Weather...BOO!

2011-04-19T21:54:00.000-05:00

All I gotta say is this so called spring weather we are having is no fun...winter just does not want to let go! We didn't have the best weather this weekend either, so we pretty much stayed indoors again. Friday evening we did jaunt over to Altoona for Heath's Aunt Lavenia and Uncle Ed's 50th Wedding Anniversary Celebration. It was nice and they had a good turnout. We had to cut our time short due to lil' Miss Alexandria as it was past her bedtime. It sure is nice that she is so scheduled and predictable, but it also makes doing anything around her nap time and/or bedtime very tricky. Saturday Alexandria and I stuck around home while daddy and Kade ran some errands. That evening we went to Palm Sunday service at church. This Monday I got to stay home with my darling because we didn't have daycare, so I took the day off. We had fun and did some errands around town. She was very good and enjoyed helping mommy shop! She also turned 8 months on Monday, so it was an extra special day!!
Alexandria is back on antibiotics for yet another double ear infection...ugh! I just knew it was back when she started crying when I lied her down and when she wasn't eating as much. We have a follow-up with her Dr. next week and I'm going to discuss the option of getting tubes. I have a feeling that these are not going to go away and I really do not want her on antibiotics all the time nor do I want her to have any permanent ear damage.
Well, that's it in our world. I sure hope everyone has a great week and enjoys Easter this weekend. Blessings.

Hanging with my Sisarella.

Al with her J.D. due rag.

Al loves to play & drool.

We've added a Blue Heron to our collection of animals to visit our house.

Another boring week

2011-04-11T20:27:00.000-05:00

We've been laying low and just hanging out at home. We got to enjoy the beautiful weekend we just had! Alexandria went for another stroller walk and enjoys going outside even if it is just to the neighbors house to see their puppies. She is really starting to like animals. Alexandria continues to get more fun and playful everyday. She is also getting silly and knows it! She likes to play games now, which include peek-a-boo and anything that involves touching her feet. I believe she already has a foot fetish!
We did get to enjoy a somewhat adult evening on Saturday night with the Joneses. They came over for some drinks and to play cards which was fun! I was up way past my bedtime...but, I didn't mind since it was daddy's turn to get up in the morning with Alexandria! :)

Hummmm.

She is sly.

Hip Hip Horray!!

2011-04-07T19:45:00.000-05:00

Now I don't want to jinx ourselves, but Alexandria is finally ear infection free after 3 months! Her left ear still has fluid in it, but it is clear. Dr. Gammon says that the fluid may stay in there for awhile, just disappear, or could get infected again...we will just have to wait and see. I was just happy to not have to go get a prescription filled after leaving the office. She has had 4 antibiotics, ear drops, and 3 Rocephen shots. She was NOT happy to see the nurse come in the room today...it was the first time Alexandria actually reached out for me with this look of horror. It's amazing what they don't forget! She is now a whopping 16 lbs. 12 oz. She is gaining weight better because she is now eating more baby food and her sitting continues to improve as her equilibrium improves. It's amazing what happens once the ears are fixed!!

Fun with the Kids!!!!

2011-04-06T20:38:00.000-05:00

We really don't have anything exciting to report other than we have really been enjoying the weather...so, here are some pics from the last week and a cute video!

Just a swingin'.

My new kangaroo.

My new chew toy.

Love Me Some Sponge Bob.

Bug N Bean & Balloon