two and pacifier-free

Another month has past and more harsh weather has hit us. We had a windy day in early November. That was followed by a few snow storms, the worst happened yesterday. We think Burnsville got hit with about 19 inches. It started on Friday night and ended on Saturday night. We snowblowed and shoveled, and then after the snowblower broke, we shoveled some more. Our neighbors, the Walhbergs helped us out alot with the four-wheeler turned slowplow. Very thankful for that! Also, because of the snow storm, the Metrodome collapsed! I think it's happened before, but still crazy to think about.

Ella's second birthday is on Weds. Two already?!? It's unreal how the time has flown by. She is suck a big girl now. Her birthday party was set for Saturday. Because of the storm, we didn't have many party-goers (which was fine). Grandma, Grandpa and Bev joined us for a little party. We had cake, opened presents and shared stories. Ella got some great gifts! clothes, shoes, doll furniture/toys and more toys, to name a few. She played so hard she crashed in Dawn's arms once the party was over. Last weekend we had Ella's pictures at Target. Ella did great even though the time with the photographer was limited.

We have been slowly by surely potty-training Ella. We haven't hit the stool to hard, but when we can we try to encforce it. There will come a day soon when we make a priority. More importantly and tirelesy draining, we went pacifier-free a week ago. We think that we took too long to pull the plug, but each kid is different and we went at our own pace. Nonetheless, she hasn't taken it very well. She has taken longer to go down for naps and for bedtime (since that was the only time she relied on it). Tonight was the best yet. It only took her about 20 min to fall asleep. What a relief! Now that the pacifier is packed away (until the next one :), Ella has been talking alot more! Full sentences mixed with some jabber fill our past time.

For Thanksgiving we joined the Sheehan extended-family at Hugh and Joni's. Lots of food and football was had by all. Everyone was able to join us. For Black Friday, we did a bit of holiday shopping later in the day (no early mornings this year). We put up our tree and other home decorations later that Friday. Ella loved putting decorations on the tree. She found a branch that was positioned right so she could just lay the ornaments on it. When it was said and done, there were probably 12 ornaments piled together. It was cute! On the Sunday of that weekend, the Schillers and Dave and Granny were in town for a beauty pagent. We joined them at Mom and Dad's to watch the Vikings game. It was also great to see them.

With the holidays drawing near, we have had quite a few holiday parties we have attended (with work folks and others). We still have a few more to participate in before the season is over. In fact, this weekend we are heading to Fargo for the extended-family Springer Christmas. We haven't been there in a few years so it will be good to see everyone again. We will be in town for Christmas day and then head to North Dakota for 5 days. For these parties we have done our fair-share of baking and cooking. We did some cookie baking and decorating with Ella a few weeks ago. Ella had a blast and was a big help using the rolling pin and the cookie cutter. And I'm sure we will do a bit more!

Dawn has been on a Twilight kick recently. Between books and movies, she is in it to win it. I did take a moment to watch a few frames of the third movie. It was entertaining, I will leave it at that. Dawn also has her sewing projects and other books she is reading for her book club. I have been spending time with Hugh Jr. pondering to take over the world. Really, though, we usually have him over for drinks and snacks every weekend to talk about the times and whats up in technology. Hopefully we can lock-in some stellar clients soon.

Even thought we haven't come together for the last few games, we have been spending every Vikings/Sunday football game with Liz (Dawn's co-worker) and her boyfriend Mike. For each game there is always a great spread of munchies and dips. It has been fun to spend that time together!

Song: OneRepublic - Good Life

More after next weekend!

no mommy, no!

Those are Ella's famous words now. And the conversations she shares have been entertaining us over the past few months. Again, like the last post, I will try to remember all the excursions we went on!

Chris and Keli visited us in early August and took us to a Twins game at Target field. We ate great food and had even better seats. Cousin Josh and Shena treated the biggest fans in the family, Grandpa Bob and Grandma Joan, to a Twins game the next weekend. It was great to have them in the cities. We had a great steak dinner and caught up over drinks. A great time!

Also in August, we met Brian, Darcy and Madeline in Fargo to visit Grand Forks for UND Homecoming. Because hotels were booked, we stayed at a hotel in Fargo. We headed to Grand Forks around 11 that morning. We visited campus and stopped at a few stores to stock up on Sioux gear. Then we headed to the Alerus Center for tailgating and for the football game. It was great to be back in the Forks! We drove back to Fargo around 6 and the girls swam in the hotel pool and played in the hotel rooms. Hopefully we can make that a yearly event.

The past two months we have experienced many ups and downs. We are excited about the babies that are expected in our families. And we hope for more!! We have also been stricken with death. Two coworkers past away suddenly. That was definitely hard.

Halloween has come and past. Ella was a little witch for her daycare party. It was great to see all the other kids and parents. We had a few more tricker-treaters in the neighborhood than last year. The weather has been pretty good, aside from a few windy days here ad there. She continues color pictures with crayons and loves it. She is starting to put Gage in his place when he deserves it. And whenever she can, she is either watching Wonder Pets or Sesame Street.

All for now. Tons of pictures and stories soon.

if you pluck it

Our readers have spoken and here we are. A month and a half, holy crap, I will try to remember it all.

The biggest news recently was Dawn's promotion at Northern. She remains in the same department, but is now a project manager in the call center at NTE. It is so great that she is finally getting recognized for the hard work and effort she has put in. In other job news, after a very strong interview process of Cargill, Grandpa Hugh is still job seeking. We really hope he gets one soon. We continue to be amazed with his strength and positiveness during this long stretch. Rose got a full-time teaching job for the fall. We are very excited for her. And my cousin, Kyle "XY" Metzger made the decision to become a priest. He left his teaching job, is living with his folks in Fargo and will depart to Maryland in September for seminary school.

Ella has gotten so much bigger in recent weeks. And her hair is soooo long. She is talking a bit more, and we are working everyday to broaden her horizon's. She absolutely loves reading books on the chair next to you. She had a stretch of time where she hated the bath. Overtime, she has learned to like it again. As before, she is still a total shoe girl. Taking off and putting on every shoe in site. And she prefers to be outside. The weather has been alright recently. Very warm, but a lot of rain on the weekends, which makes it hard to play outside. She had her 18 month appointment and she is off the charts for height. Along with reading, dancing is her favorite pastime.

Shortly after the last post, the River Hills Garage sales took place. Although we probably went to 20 or 30 sales (only a fraction of how many there actually are), we really didn't find any great deals. We did learn that our neighbors (Scott & Kara) across the street are big salers. Every year they have a garage sale. They almost treat it like a vacation. So we spent a few nights in a row over at their bonfire trading stories and meeting a bunch of neighbors. One of the couples is Dan and Robin Pintozzi. I will chat about them later.

After playing Rock Band at Mike and Erin Inveen's, we couldn't resist. We broke down and bought Guitar Hero for the Wii. Actually, it's Band Hero, since it comes with two guitars, a microphone and a (gasp!) drumset! Since then, we have spent most Friday and Saturday nights jammin. We have had a number of friends over to be our roadies. Not Billboard hits yet. Give it time. Wasn't there a great actor that once said, if you pluck it, they will come.

Gage had an eventful visit to the vet in the later part of June. He had to get his shots that were overdue. After an hour of getting back, his face swelled up like a basketball and he could barely keep his eyes open. We had to rush him back to the vet for more shots to take care of his allergic reaction. A pretty traumatic event. Because he will be staying in a doggy daycare during our trip to North Dakota, he has to get a few more shots this weekend. Let's hope for the best.

We connected with some old North Dakota friends who now live in Shakopee. Mark and Rachel have a 1 yr old son named Noah. We were fortunate enough to watch him two times before the fourth. He is a cutie and Ella loved having a play partner. Although, because she is the queen at daycare, she may have to work on sharing a bit more :)

The Fourth of July was a fun filled weekend at the cabin. Pat & Glenn Metzger joined our fam at the cabin. Hugh Jr. unveiled his custom made, floating beer pong table which was a hit at the sand bar...it was a hit. More importantly, Ella LOVED the sand bar. She loved swimming and playing in the water. For the first time in as long as I can remember, the Springer or Bye family did not travel to Wisconsin to buy fireworks. The neighbors made up for it and Gage was scared all weekend. After getting to the cabin on Friday night, we took off on the fifth to head home.

This last weekend we visited the Como zoo. It wasn't too busy because we went so early. The best part was visiting the Conservatory afterwords. Ella loved the flowers and the coy fish pond. We did get a chance to see the seal show for the first time. It was pretty entertaining.

We are looking forward to two big weekends in the next month. In a week and a half, we are heading to North Dakota for a Satermo Reunion. We hope to see tons of family and maybe even escape on Grandpa John's house boat. Then in August, the VerDouws are vacationing here. We will go to Target field for the first time to see a Twins game and then head up to the cabin for a weekend away. Can't wait!!

As I mentioned earlier, we have become good friends with the Pintozzi's. They happen to live a few blocks away from us. Dan's father, Bob, was the dean of boys at Trinity School back in the day. He was a hardass back then, but have grown to admire him. Bob & Claire (his wife) live with their daughter, her husband and children. Both the Pintozzi parents and the Maslows are in the People of Praise. Their oldest son, Alex, was in a horrible car accident in the early morning hours of the 4th of July. Unfortunately, at the age of 16, he did not survive. Alex was a very energetic and fun kid. I had him as a camper at Servant Camp when he was younger. We stay very close to his story through CaringBridge. He was a donor and saved many lives because of his thoughtfulness. It was a very moving time for everyone involved.

song: Coldplay - Fix You

memory: With a few wool rugs in the house and all the hard wood floors, a part time job that Dawn has taken on is keeping the floors clean. Growing up, my mom worked as a house cleaner. Back then, although they may be mediocre homes now, she cleaned mansions. When I was off from school or was "sick" I would go with her to these houses. While she worked like a dog, I would watch Sportscenter in their theatre rooms. So now when we clean any hard wood service and use Murphy's Oil, it brings me right back. Those were the days! Sure wish I could be sick all the time and crash in other people's theatre rooms now a days!

Plan to write soon. Hope to upload some videos to YouTube for the next post so you can see Ella shake it!

traveling about

The weather recently has been off and on. Some really warm, sunny days, and quite a few rainy days. All in all, we have been able to enjoy the backyard with some grilling, gardening and playing. I't looking like Dawn's green thumb has quickly come back. We hope to put in a full blown garden before the summer is out. One of many projects we want to accomplish!

The first big thing we did since the last post was visit Centennial Lakes. I frequented there back in high school and Bob Cunningham took our engagement photos there, but hadn't been back since. Since the weather was nice, we headed that was on Saturday. It's a very pleasant place and a great place to walk. Ella really enjoyed herself, as she always does when she is outside! At CL and every place, Ella is talking more than ever. Saying uh-oh, thank you, ready, okay, etc...it seems like a new word every day...so precious!

A week and a half ego we visited Grand Forks for the first time since moving down to the Twin Cities. It was pretty surreal to see old restaurants, apartment buildings and of course campus that we used to frequent. We lucked out and saw one of our old Thompson friends, Bert, at the Columbia Mall. She used to work with Dawn at Riddles and still works at UND. The reason for our visit was Tim and Kaley's wedding. It was pretty cool to see lots of old college friends, including Erik and his fiance Leisha, Mike Kinney, Will, Scott, Eric Leach, and Brady. It was a short Lutheran service at Sheran Lutheran followed by a reception of the Ramada. We ended up "partying" until about 10pm until calling it a night.

Before leaving GF for home, we visited campus for a short stint. We let Ella cruise around campus by the fountain and the celebrated sign. Dawn's dream came true when Gamble's doors were open (where Dawn took most of her classes when at UND). So we took Ella around and gave her a tour of the classrooms where we once wasted time. We didn't get a chance to escape away to our favorite watering hole, Parrot's Cay. Maybe on the next trip!

The following week we mainly got accustomed to being back in the cities and at work. However, once we came home, we were already looking forward to getting back out of the cities for Memorial Weekend in Merrifield. BUT, before I forget, we were fortunate enough see Josh and Shena. They were in town for a Twins baseball game and to see Knickelback in concert. We picked them up from the Mall of America after they took a short trip on the light rail. We had some 'za for dinner and had a few drinks. They both are excited for their new house to be completed where they have a good amount of land for Shena's horses and a big barn for all of Josh's toys.

Because we had already traveled alot last weekend, we waited until Saturday morning to drive to the cabin. Plus, memorial weekend traffic is never easy. Hugh and Joni had already been up at the cabin for a week, but they had come back down to the cities for a funeral and a wedding (not the same person). But, when we arrvied on Saturday about 10, Rose and Chas, Jr. and XY were there to welcome us. It was a beautiful sunny day and we spent all of it outside down by the lake. We stopped by the Bye's cabin that afternoon to see Steph, Kyle and Keli, Derek and the girls, and the parents and grandparents. John and Cyndi had traveled to Iowa to see her mother. On their way back, they stopped in the Brainerd area for the evening. It just so happened that Steve and Connie we in the area visiting Connie's sister (who also lives in Merrifield). The four joined us for dinner at the cabin. We enjoyed a few beers, told stories and enjoyed eachother's company. We were all very happy that they stopped by (although Ella was very shy with everyone)!

We had a fire that night where enjoyable drinks were had. Sunday the weather was a bit gloomy. So we spent most of the day relaxing and even had a fire midday. Monday was also very awesome in terms of weather. We ended up taking off about 4pm after spending more time on the lake. Ella still isn't quite used to the boat yet, but I imagine she will get there soon! Granted, she did drive the boat a bit a loved every minute of it.

We, thankfully, don't have any plans for the coming weekends. We do have a big Satermo family reunion to look forward to at the end of July. I would like to get back to ND before then.

song: One Eskimo - Kandi

memory: As Ella is getting bigger, it brings back memories of all the little things we did as kids to keep ourselves entertained while in Merrifield. One of the memorable festivities was going on rock walks. We would walks for miles to find the coolest looking rocks. And let me tell you, you would be suprised to see what we would find. Mother informed me this weekend that the rocks ended up contributing to the landscaping once we got back to the cabin. She has yet to thank us that. Unfortunately, the road since has been tared. So rock walks may be a thing of the past. But a memory nonetheless.

All for now...

they're famous

After a little vacation from the old blog, we are back. And man, there has been alot going on.

First and for most, Ella Claire. She is running everywhere now. She loves to be chased by Mommy or Daddy and loves to read Mommy stories before bedtime. She also spends lots of time having tea parties and stirring the sugar in her coffee! She also brings Gage his toys whever she has the chance. Unfortunately, the weather has been pretty chilly and rainy recently. If it wasn't, she would be outside every second!

We have been pretty busy in the last couple of weeks. We had dinner with Mike and Erin Inveen and their place in Eagan a few weeks ago. Dinner was delicious and playing Band Hero at the end of the night. The following Friday we had dinner at Tom and Nancy Caneffs. Grilled Salmon and great convo, a fun night!

In the coming weeks, we are looking forward to going back to Grand Forks for the first time since we moved for Tim and Kaley Ireland's wedding, a possible Twin's game with Josh and Shena, and our first trip to the cabin this Summer. We are also planning a Twin's game with the VerDouws in August. A killer weekend in the making!

We are all about Carpooling now that we are both at Northern Tool. And, we are hoping to start a few house projects this Summer now too! Tiling the entryway and kitchen, putting in a new dishwasher and microwave, and more yardwork!

Song: Jack Johnson - You and Your Heart

Lastly, Ella and Madeline are now famous with a feature in the UND Alumni magazine. Check it out on page 38 of the mag:

it's a beautiful day in the neighborhood

This weather can't get any better. It seems that every night we are outside enjoying the backyard with Ella and Gage, doing yard work and day dreaming about projects we want to do! The only we aren't looking forward to is mowing and raking!

Ella is telling more stories and saying more words. "Ouch" and "Hi" are frequenters and an occasional "Gage". Nodding yes usually follows any question you ask her. Although she does rely on the crawling quite a bit, she is walking more and more. She likes to try and wear Mom's jewelry. And if she has her hands full, she will hold things in her mouth or under her chin.

I don't want to dwell on it, but I did accept a new position at Northern Tool and will be starting their in their marketing department as an Ecommerce Web Designer. It will be swell to work at the same place as Dawnzer and with that stellar people she works with. But with that said, a full time gig for my Dad, Brother Hugh and Rose are still in need!

song: Justin Bieber ft. Ludacris - Baby (Don't hate You Bieber, You Brought Her)

memory: Planting new plants in the backyard and attempting to grow grass in bear spots reminded me of the many Summers in Merrifield at the cabin. My father, being the perfectionist that he is, was always worried about planting new shrubs and making sure fresh, green blades of grasss were visible on every square inch of the lot. What this meant? Always filling a 5 gallon bucket of blue Miracle Grow water. It seems every time I turned around I was filling another damn bucket. But hey, it was a cool, blue color. Oh those Summer days. I realize now how much my rents worked at the cabin when they should have been playing!

Since I am in the mood for more music talk, I have to mention these song lyrics. The song, Bed Rock, its quite a sick lyrical song, but this line is so fly (yep, I said it):

I love your sushi rolls, hotter then wasabi
I race for your love, shake-n-bake, ricky bobby

Lastly, I mentioned in a previous post about how Jamie Cullum was on the Concordia campus to shoot a music video. Its been released and its a pretty cool vid, especially how it features the CU sports facility. Anywho, check it out:

livin' is easy

The housewarming party has come and gone. And what fun it was. Leading up to the party, the cleaning and fixing up commenced. Surprisingly, we updated and finished everything we planned on. The master bath was finished, the kitchen hardware updated, and every inch of the main floor painted. We lucked out with awesome weather on Saturday. More on that later.

Ella got a cold in the early parts of last week. That made it hard for her to sleep at night and made the tantrums come more often. She seems to be over it by now. Because the weather has been so great, she has spent a lot of time outside at daycare, and loved every minute of it.

At some point last week, the state board of higher ed decided to officially change the Fighting Sioux name of UND sports. tear. Since moving in and especially since this news broke, neighbors have been stopping by to comment on the Sioux flag in the front. Its time to run out and snatch up the last of the Sioux gear before its gone!

Also, last Wednesday, I called in to leave my favorite musical moment on the Dave Ryan in the Morning Show hotline of KDWB. By singing a few measures of the Full House theme song, I got a call back Friday morning about 6:30. I sang the bit again on the air and won a 32GB iPod Touch. Pretty friggin' sweet if you ask me! Now its just a matter of recovering my iTunes account and start using the bad boy for what its made for!

Back to the party...I think we invited about 30 adults in total. We probably ended up seeing closer to 40 adults since more neighbors and friends showed up. We had fantastic weather and had guests spending time in the kitchen, porch, patio and the kids enjoyed the backyard. Hugh Jr. and Brady ended up closing down the party (thanks to the neighbors who borrowed us their firepit). Fun was had by all.

Song: Full House Theme Song (I sang the last 10 seconds on air)

Memory: No memory comes to mind right now. But I will say that I found more family genealogy after a few rigorous Google searches. I have surpassed 1,500 profiles added to the Springer/Satermo/Sheehan/Kuehn/Fladeland/etc. family tree. With all the people I still need to add, I am expecting to reach 4,000 when everything is said and done.

And last, a video of Madeline and Ella acting silly in the bath tub:

flip flops and board shorts

Alright, its not that warm, but this week is so awesome. It's forecasted to be in the 70's all week. And Ella can't get enough of it. She is always hanging out by the sliding door, bossing us to go outside.

After running into our neighbor Amanda on a few of our walks, she stopped by on Sunday night. She is expecting and it will be nice to have close neighbors to catch up with! It was especially night to hear after the terrible news we learned of another friend.

Before I forget, I have to quickly mention that Jamie Cullum shot a music video at Concordia a few weeks back. Nothing magnificent, but I was able to see the 'ol chap, which was neat.

For the first time since moving in (and chances are, for a long time in this house), we are able to shower in our master bathroom! And by painting the bathroom, we have paint every square inch of the main floor with new paint (both ceilings and wall). Even though its only been 6 months, its seems that every week we find another cheap fix or work around which sucks to find. Its more expensive for us to fix. But over time, we will tackle it all! If only we had more time!! Once its all said and done, we will add pictures of the remodels.

song: see below...

memory: Being that his name came to mind, I have to recall all the pets in my life thus far. 1. Tootser, technically my cousin Chrissy's dog (since my uncle Mike owned a pet store, but she resided and Grandma Evy & Grandpa Hugh's house; 2. The sole reason why I write these memories, and I can't remember this darn dog's name. Well, she was a nipper, so she didn't last long; 3. Mitzy, the Springer Spaniel we had for a number of years (as seen in a previous post) loved the cabin (she was sold to a farmer in rural MN who later told us she was blind and deaf); 4. Ulysses was a pet chipmunk I had for a few weeks while bringing him back to full health (he escaped into the Carlsbad house after gaining strength on Novartis cancer medication); 5. Eugene was a pet iguana I bought off of the Underground (UND's Craigslist)...he was alright. I sold him back on the Underground after 6 months (he never rested on my shoulder like I was hoping); 6. Macy, ahhh the beloved miniature pincher, was precious. She ended up migrating to my parents house who later sold her to a lady who worked at PetsMart; 7. and then there is Gage. He is still around.

No pictures or a song this time, but a video of NTB's last song they sang at First Ave. We were standing next to the guy who shot this video. Hugh Jr. was a few feet away from the band when they sang this acoustic version:

is it over yet

We are been overwhelmed with house projects for the last couple of weeks, but it seems they are slowly coming to an end. The main floor bath was painted (ceiling and walls), our bedroom was painted (ceiling and walls) and a new ceiling fan put in, and the master bathroom is nearing completion. We hope to have it all wrapped up by the time our housewarming party arrives on the 10th, since we have the VerDouws and Mr. Anderson staying with us.

Ella has been filling our days with laughter and tantrums recently! It seems that overnight she learned the artful craft of getting on the ground and crying until she gets what she wants. I have a feeling she learned it from Gage!! She is also waving goodbye every chance she can get and loves to talk on the phone (only when no one is on the other line, of course!).

The weather has been awesome the last few days. Playing outside and neighborhood walks have been filling up our spare time. It has been great to see old friends and catch-up with new neighbors in the area.

Last Friday we took the plunge and bought tickets to see NeedToBreathe at First Ave on Saturday night. It was the first time at First Ave for both Dawn and I. Luckily, after putting in some overtime at work, Hugh Jr. joined us there. Grandpa Hugh and Grandma Joni watched Ella at home. The show was amazing and I would see that band again in a heartbeat. A good memory there! Graham Colton opened for NTB, hence the tune below!

song: Graham Colton - First Week

memory: The killer tunage we heard this weekend brought me back to the sweet tunes that I always heard on the waves growing up. My Dad was a big Paul Simon fan, big Alan Jackson fan (and still is), among others. Its those classic tunes, and even the current ones, that carry use through tough times or remember the better times. Ahh, how they move us. Which gets me to thinking that I hope Ella and all fourteen of her brothers and sisters enjoy music and much as their parents do, and hope they pick up an instrument now and then and serenade us in the nursing home.

Which brings me to my next point...the infamous bucket list. I have waited to mention this so I didn't sound like a band-wagon-rider after the movie or the other shows that came out. But I want to put down on paper things I want to do before I die. And these list items aren't in order of when or how soon they should be done, but rather when they come to me! 1. I want to visit (and illegally skydive off of, if I am feeling dangerous) Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil someday.

In addition, if I can roughly quote my sister-in-law, starting April 5th, 25 is gonna be my year. Watch our world.

one week

Yes, it has been over a week since I posted, but so much has happened!

• Ella: Walking (4-5 steps at a time), telling long stories, coloring, waving goodbye, doing the hokie pokie, enjoying the backyard


• Gage: Putting his shock collar to good use, not making friends with our neighbor dogs, getting sick from snow mold


• Dawn: Scrapbooking, sewing, painting, reading, dreaming of her new garden


• Bill: Bathroom renovation, painting, Craigslisting, not looking forward to being a quarter-of-a-century old (i.e. being 24 for rest of my life).

We are really gearing up to see friends and family at our Spring/House-Warming party in April. We are loving the recent 60 degree weather. And we are keeping busy in the meantime.

Song: BarlowGirl - I Need You to Love Me

Next week I will write more and include pictures of our master bedroom update! Current house update...Bathroom update before and after:

right foot in

Where do I begin??? I'll break it down quickly, Ella is walking...kind of, Gage has a shock collar, Dawn and I are about the same, and the Olympics are over.

Since the last post, Ella has started to take her first steps. She hasn't taken off by herself yet, but loves to walk from one person to another or from the coffee table to us. But, as we all guessed, when company comes over, she is shy and won't take those steps. She also learned the hokie pokie at day care and loves doing it at random. She continues to be a good eater and has her own little schedule of going to bed at 7pm and waking up at 6am. She has also joined the chorus at church. She loves to sing with the canter when we are in mass. Love it! A little bed head shot here for ya.

Last Saturday we participated with some of Dawn's coworkers at the MOA for a fundraising walk for juvenile diabetes. Ella was a hambone for all the folks there and it was a nice walk.

Gage and I still go on occasional walks. But, he broke the camels back last weekend when he didn't come inside for when we needed to go to church. And had he been a good boy, we would have been fine with that. But, instead, he barked the whole time. So I marched myself into the closest Petsmart and invested a little.

The weather has been flippin' awesome recently. The 40's and the 50's...does this mean no more snow? We can only hope!

Song: Bonnie Raitt - Angel from Montgomery

Memory: Speaking of Gage and since I got a picture sent to me from my Dad, I have to take a moment to remember Mitzy. She was a good dog. And it was fitting that she was a Springer. My Uncle Mike owned a pet store in Moorhead. I don't recall the reason why he had this dog, but my Dad, being the dog lover that he is, took her in. Nonetheless, she loved the cabin and to roll around in fish. From what I remember, she was with us for at least 10 years. In the end, she ended up being blind and deaf, both of which we didn't know. We learned of these fun facts when we sold her to a farmer in MN who call us weeks later. She was a great dog. RIP mitzy. This picture is Mitzy and my cousin Mike in our Richfield house. Ahhhh, the memories.

the bowl of all bowls

It has continued to be project city in our house. And may just be the warmer weather (the 30's for the week), but Summer can't come soon enough. I think the biggest thing that is eating at us is that we didn't get much time outside last fall once we moved in, so we are looking forward to the warm weather to spend tons of time in the back yard. Nonetheless, we press on with scrap booking, sewing, reading, geniologizing (haha), and minor house projects. It sure is tough to not be able to tackle all the upgrades we want to do to this house right away!

Ella has been having some pretty uncongealed bm's recently (some daycare talk for ya). We can't put our finger on it, but we think its either more teeth (impossible, right? She already has so many!) or another ear infection. Either way, is has been a long run (no pun intended). Hopefully things clear up soon.

A colleague of mine is leaving for another position in Wisconsin, so I spent happy hour with him and a few others in St. Paul on Wednesday. Speaking of new gigs, brother Hugh Jr. started a new position for a consulting company. He has spent the last few weeks in New York working with his client. Hopefully we will have good news to report on Grandpa Hugh's job situation soon.

song: DJ Earwarm - 2009 State of Pop

memory: This fantastic memory has come full circle for me. Back in the day, Wednesday that is, in our Richfield house, we had kitchen bowl that did anything and everything. It worked great for mixing cookie dough, sorting out lego pieces, holding big portions of Lucky Charms, and puking into. The last purpose is what coined it its name, the puke bowl. No lie in saying that this thing did everything! Whenever you found yourself nauseated on the couch, that bowl accompanied your side.
Since moving out and moving up in the world, I have been tempted to steal that infamous bowl from my parents house. I found it hard to think that Ella would grow up without such a fantastic tool to help her grow. Well, those tendencies were put to rest today when we visited our local Dollar Store! We found a flippin' puke bowl! And its not just a puke bowl, but it even has a skid resistant bottom. So there you go, a puke bowl of our own.

five rings

Blue, yellow, black, green and red. Those colors and the infamous dah, dah....da dah dah, dah dah. You get the point. The Winter Olympics are here and it is sure empowering to see these incredible athletes.

It seems that snow has been falling every day here. Which means more shoveling, more ice-thawing and cold walks with Gage. We did end up breaking down and buying a snow rake on Saturday. It took a long trip to Forest Lake to get it from Northern Tool, but well worth it. We also lucked out at Northern Tool's sample sale on Thursday night. Some great outdoor summer equipment which will come in handy during yard work in a few months.

Friday we went old school and celebrated Valentine's Day at Perkins. It was a happy medium between a fancy restaurant for us and a fast food place for Ella. As always, for a cheap price, it was delicious. Uncle Hugh also stopped by on Friday night after a business trip to NYC for his new job.

Saturday after a bit of shopping, we hit up Gma and Gpa Springer's for a dinner of ribs with Chas, Rose and Bev. As always, it was fantastic, and Ella was a ham-bone. More reading and scrapbooking was done on Saturday by Dawn and I. Here is a quick sneak peek of her scrapbooked pages - she only has three projects going at once! (Note from Dawn!: I started with Ella's First Year book, then moved on to Our Wedding Memories, then came the Honeymoon book. Between scrapbooking and some pending sewing projects, I'm very busy once Ella goes to bed! More to come on this later. Stay tuned to see how they turn out!)

Ella has turned a new leaf in our house. She is bigger, badder, and more daring. Its funny, when we woke up on Sunday morning, we both said that she looked like such a big girl now. And it was more evident when Theresa at daycare said the same thing on Monday morning. I know, I know, I already visited the dealership and her car will be delivered on time for her 16th. Its just around the corner. Seriously though, she is telling us more stories, heading to her bedroom when its time for bed and rocking her dolls to sleep. So precious!

Song: Damien Rice - The Blower's Daughter

Laters

long delay

Woof, it has been a while. Life has been moving along quite swimmingly. We are watching Super Bowl 44 right now, and no, the Vikes didn't make it. Hopefully Favre returns, and that is all I will say about that.

Ella's sickness did turn into something somewhat severe. She was diagnosed with RSV on Monday the 25th. Amoxicillin has helped with that and her ear infections. I would say she is almost 100% now.

Since the last post, the biggest adventure we have gone on is visiting Under Water Adventures at the Mall of America. I haven't been there since shortly after they opened. And I tell you what, it seemed a lot shorter this time! Ella did enjoy it though. Lots of dancing and smiling was had by beaner (crappy picture here from my phone). My guess is we will be purchasing a family pass when she gets older (and her brothers and sisters come to be).

Dave and Granny came back from their annual visit to PV on Friday the 29th. They stayed at Hugh and Joni's before driving back to DL on Saturday. We spent a few hours visiting with everyone and reminiscing about heaven on earth. The last time we flew was to PV, and this picture from John of the farm in New Town, brought me back to my flying days. Sure hope to get back to PV before too long!

Just yesterday we did out our own little weekend warrior project. Since we moved in (and, more than likely, some time before that), the cold water had been dripping out of the bath tub spout. We guessed it was close to 2 gallons a day of wasted water. After a few trips to Menards & Home Depot, a hall closet and basement full of water, and blood, sweat and tears, we got her fixed. But once that was done, the work was not. Caulking was needed and a closet drawer reconstruction was needed. Slowly but surely, we are fixing all the previously ignored issues that this house has.

After church today we had brunch with Grandpa Hugh, Grandma Joni and Auntie Bev. Ella showed off her standing and brief walking skills. Also, she has a weird knack of organizing things and putting away her toys (she gets that from her mother). That was also a showcase this morning.

It seems that Dawn and I are taking to side projects at night. Dawn has her sewing and scrapbooking projects and I am hoping to read more work-related books. More on that in later posts.

Song: The Who - Teenage Wasteland

Not gonna lie, I am hung up between the game and the commercials. Can't get my head around a memory right now. It'll be a good one next time. Hope to post again soon.

pops

Does the sickness ever stop? The last two days have been spent caring for Ella. Fevers, coughs and clingyness have been on top of the list recently. After not much eating or napping, Ella turned a corner this afternoon after having Corns Pops for a snack. Through the sickness, the dancing has continued and she is even starting to say her own name! We hope its over for all of our sickness for a bit.

Tuesday, Weds and Thursday were fairly uneventful for us. Dawn had a flex day on Friday, but spent most of the afternoon caring for Ella. The hype around town this week has been the Vikings. They are in the division championship game tomorrow against the Saints. I can't say that I have been an "every-game watcher" throughout the season, but I have jumped on the bandwagon. If anything, it would be cool to live in a state where we have National Championship professional sports team.

As I mentioned in previous posts, the weather has been much warmer than normal. 30 degree temps with occasional light snow showers have been in the forecast the last few weeks. Today, we had rain believe it or not. Lets hope the chilling temperatures in the coming week won't make skating rinks out of the interstates.

Unemployment still lingers in the Springer household. Grandpa Hugh and Uncle Hugh are both on the search. Hugh Jr. is in the process of starting up his own consulting side project. It will be exciting to see what comes of the project. In his "time off", he has also been busy with writing songs for the community. One of the most recent tunes is called Fill Us Up...check it out. I hope he can continue this push and his voice and talent will reach many.

On another note, Gage isn't getting any better (I will spare you the details). Grandpa Hugh has been reading up on Cesar Millan's website (The Dog Whisperer). Gage likes to jump on guests and be on top of people when sitting on the couch. Apparently, it's a dominance thing. My first instinct was to go buy a training collar and train him that way. And, in true Springer fashion, I want to get the best of the best. Thanks to my bro-in-law who let me test his collar out, turns out it surpasses our current Gage budget. So, based on Cesar's input, by walking a dog, it teaches the dog who is in charge because they're are on a leash. I guess a fenced back yard doesn't do it in terms of wasting energy. So, since Monday night, Gage and I have been going on 20 minute walks around the neighborhood. If anything, he is more tired at night!! We will see over time if his tendencies go away, or he at least listen to my commands. If not, I may have to turn to the collar option.

Song: Bobby McFerrin - By the Sea

Memory: Now that Ella has been battling a cold and has been super clingy, I have to say that while you never want your child sick, it is nice to have the closeness of your baby next to you. Once this girl started to move, she has been anything but snuggly! Since she has gained this independence, I've tried to remember (this is Dawn now, btw) what it was like one year ago, when she was only 6 weeks old and totally dependent on us for even the basic things. What our days were like, what our nights were like! I was one week from going back to work (never do this, by the way...try more weeks off, like maybe TWELVE!), and miserable about the idea of it. About this time, we got into the habit of putting on classical music at night in her room, and sticking to a night time routine, although a newborn sticking to it is just lucky! The routine ultimately never 'stuck' until about 8 or 9 weeks, and sleepness nights were had by all...but, you never remember how tired you were...even in the exhausted sleep-deprived haze, you still only retain the little sneezes, smiles and even her little farts :).

All for now

#TeamConan

I am fallin' behind in these posts, darnit! It seems like the last couple of weeks have been a whirl wind. Between slowly unpacking more boxes, seeing neighbors and family, and just getting through each work day, the nights are getting shorter and the mornings coming sooner.

At about 11pm every night, Ella seems misplace her pacifier and wakes up bummed out. Other than that, she is back to her normal sleep schedule. Dawn and Ella appear to be over their colds. I am on the back end of mine as well. More talking, screaming and tiny steps are taking up our time. She is fully attached to her Mr. Bear and her pacifier. And she loves the kitchen cabinets. She took a bad spill off the couch tonight, but other than that, dent free for the wee one! You will see in this picture that she is following in her father footsteps with her love of Gems.

In terms of world news, last week was taken up by the earth quake in Haiti and the Late Night fiasco with Jay Leno and Conan on NBC. Its been pretty incredible how social media has made its impact on these. Red Cross setup a system where you can text a 5 digit number and you will automatically donate $10 for the cause. Its been said that there could be up to 50,000 casualties in the aftermath in Haiti. And Twitter has taken the Conan/Leno situation by storm with the #TeamConan tag.

We had Friday night dinner at the Fossen's our neighbor and a member of the People of Praise. Chuck Fossen is plays electric guitar at community meetings of the P.O.P. so he knows my bro and my dad well. He was celebrating his 50th birthday. Seeing the Fossen family and other family friends was nice. Josh and Shena came to the cities on Saturday afternoon to go to the Vikings game on Sunday. We had dinner with them at the Woodfire Grill in Eagan and they came over to see on place afterwards. We watched the Sioux/Gopher with them and enjoyed a few beverages. Sunday we spent running errands, cleaning house, and watching the Vikes game.

Song: Train - Hey, Soul Sister

Memory: Ah the memory of the office chair, the soul reason that Dawn fell in love with me when I was courting her. OK, kidding, it's obvious she loves me for my dashing good looks and flowing, long locks, but that is besides the point. Either way, when Dawn and I were spending more time together, I decided it would be nice of me to buy her a house warming gift when she moved into a different apartment. So, I got her an office chair. This wasn't any office chair, pretty much top of the line. After the chair was constructed, the rest was history. A small step in what became the beginning of the Springer family. Being that I took a peak at my basketball card collection, I will speak to that in my next memory.

This coming weekend is the first in a long time where we don't have plans or out of town visitors...hopefully its nice and relaxing. We are starting to think about our house warming party in April.

cougs

We are on the mend with our sickness now. We had a few rough nights with Ella due to her coughing and her just not being comfortable. But the dust is starting to settle.

Last Thursday and Friday weren’t much of anything for us. A few cleaning projects around the house for when the company stopped by, but it was mainly relaxing.

We spent a good amount of time over the weekend with Grandpa John and Cindy. They were in town for the United Hardware show at the Minneapolis Convention Center. They arrived in town on Friday night and stayed at the Hilton in Downtown Minneapolis. We meet them at the convention center on Saturday morn around 10. John was primarily there to review new products and purchase display systems for those products. It was pretty wild to see the variety of products offered there…anything from toys to sprinkler systems, Dewalt tools to landscaping necessities. In the end, he capitalized on a few cool display systems (from what I could tell). There were two wild things that happened which I never would have expect. Numero Uno: The story goes that United Hardware sends out these books to the store owners. The book lists every product that is on display at this show. Some greedy store owners think it’s smart to throw post-it sticky notes and highlight the crap out of this book. Then they rig up some crazy cart system top push this book around while they make their purchase. In the end, it doesn’t look right. Numero Dos: When you register yourself as a store owner, they give you a page or two of stickers (if they were smart, they would have made the stickers scratch and sniff to smell like gasoline and steel). When you go to buy something from a vendor, all you have to do is give them a sticker and your name. So, technically, one could walk in there with one sticker, and buy $200k in tools, and that’s all it would take…a sticker! Crazy.

After walking the show for a number of hours, we went back to their hotel to have a beer and let Ella crawl around for a bit. Then, we headed to dinner downtown. We ended up checking out Keys Cafe in the Foshay building. Being that I do have a soft spot for the tattered and torn, I do indeed have a small spot in my heart for the Foshay Building. The poor Foshay building, once the tallest building in downtown Minni, is now the oldest and smallest. Moving on, we had a killer meal at the Keys and then called it a night.

Sunday morning we read the paper and watched football. John and Cindy came over to check out the house and spend more time with us. We had ‘za and then headed back downtown later in the afternoon.

Since the weekend, Dawn and I have been busy with our own little projects. Thank you cards and sewing is taking up Dawn’s time, and freelance work is taking up Bill’s time.

We have a possibility of more visitors this weekend. Josh and Shena have playoff tickets for the Vikes on Sunday. If they make the trek, we will be watching Kayle and Kayden while they watch the game. I imagine a beer or two will have to be taken in as well. We spent a lot of time with Shena and Kayden last Fall (2008) after he was born. Long story short (another story I will write about someday), because he was born with gastroschisis, he spent quite a while at Children’s hospitals down here before he could go back home to North Dakota. After a few weeks away from work, Josh had to return to the fields so we spent time with Shena and the little one to keep them company. It will be nice to see them down here for things that aren’t medically related.

Song: Jessica Andrews - Who I am

Memory: This one touches on all the times that were spent when living in Richfield. Living on Bloomington Ave meant not only living on a bus route and under the jet streams of the 12th busiest airport in the US, but it also meant living directly across the street from Centennial Elementary. Some may call that convenient, but I found it to be more of a thorn in my side. I could never stay home from school, my teachers seemed to know my parents better than I did, and I could never cuss or make obscene jesters about my school day when I got home (who are we kidding, as you read in previous posts, that wasn’t my style). Instead, I took the higher road and nabbed Cougar Award after Cougar Award. For you prevs out there, they gave these awards to students who cared, not for older women who cared. So thank you Mom & Dad for establishing my child hood in such a fantastic place and thank you Nolan L Bjorge or honoring me with so many Cougar Awards. Richfield, Bloomington Ave, 7314…you also have a special place in my heart.

Gotta go watch American Idol. Looking forward to seeing Ellen on Idol. Keep rockin' it Conan.

ludens

Sick times have fallen upon the Springer household. It his Ella Monday night when what we think was an eye infection. Tuesday morn her eyes looked worse. I ended up staying home from work for her. It seemed like she only got worse as the night went on. Dawn may have caughten some of the bug too. She stayed home with beaner today and she didn

We are pretty jazzed about John and Cindy visiting the cities this weekend. Granted their main purposes of coming to MSP is for the United Hardware hardware show in Minneapolis. Before they arrive we going to a dinner party at our neighbors house. And, if we can squeeze it in, the annual holiday Springer/Bye Bowling Extravaganza is on Sunday night...we shall she.

Before publishing this post, I had written a pretty extensive post about loved ones that had past on. My post wasn't to make everyone tear up. The sole purpose was to state my dislike in on-going arguments amongst families. Most of the time the arguments stem from disagreements or divorces, but I know they do more permanent damage than anyone had originally initially intended. Moreover, sometimes they drag on until they can't be resolved because someone passes on. My point: resolve differences if at all possible, so that ancient stories and photos aren't they only thing you can rely on when remembering friends and family

song: John Mayer - Who Says

memory: Back when pain reliever and cough drops could be brought to school with a simple note from a parent, I was a frequent pill popper. More often than not the doc prescribed Ludens, cause they always seem to cure the common cold. Unfortunately, it usually took a whole box throughout the course of a day to hold off the coughs, but it was worth it. It just required Joni to visit our local Walgreens at The Hub in Richfield more often than not.

Call it lame, but I saw this poster at Jimmy John's and I agreed with what it had to say. Its not deep, its truth to the core.

I believe that...

• just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to doesn't mean they don't love you with all they have.


• maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had and what you've learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated.


• it isn't always enough to be forgiven by other. Sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.


• no matter how bad your heart is broken that the world doesn't stop for your grief.


• our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become.


• just because two people argue, it doesn't mean they don't love each other. And just because they don't argue, it doesn't mean they do.


• you shouldn't be eager to find out a secret.It could change your life forever.


• it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be.


• you should always leave loved ones with loving well wishes. It may be the last time you see them.


• you can keep going long after you can't.


• we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel.


• we don't have to change friends, if we understand that friends change.


• no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you once in a while and you must forgive them for that.


• true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance. Same goes for true love.


• you either control your attitude or it controls you.


• regardless of how hot and steamy a relationship is at first, that passion fades and there had better be something else to take its place.


• heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.


• money is a lousy way of keeping score.


• my best friend and I can do anything or nothing and have the best time.


• sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you're down, will be the ones who help you get back up.


• two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different.


• your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you.


• even when you think you have no more to give, when a friend cries out to you, you will find the strength to help.


• credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.


• the people you care about most in life are taken from you too soon.

GA-GA

twenty-point-six

We just got settled back in Burnsville after making our annual Christmas trip to Bismarck and New Town. And man, what a fun, busy trip it was.

12-30: We left for Bismarck on Wednesday morning since I was on Christmas break and Dawn took a few vacation days. Ella had a awesome ride there, with a nap in the morning, lunch in Fargo around noon, and another nap in the afternoon until we pulled into the Biz. Because we arrived before the end of the workday, we stop and saw auntie Darc at work. The cousin's played and we called it an early night. 12-31: Thursday we got up and spent time with Madeline and Darcy and watched cartoons. We took off for New Town about 1:00ish. When we got to New Town, we cruised right to the Barone's abode. Charm and Lonny met us there for dinner. The presents were opened and beverages were had before we called it a night at about 12:30am. 1-1: When we got up, we enjoyed our coffee, eggs, sausage on Friday morn. It was not pleasant outside (we figured about 40-below with the windchill). We visited with Joan and Bob Robert over the lunch. Darcy, Brian, and Madeline got to town about the same time and Josh, Kayle, and Kayden also joined us at Grandma and Grandpa's house. For dinner we spent time with John and Cindy (The Verd's and the Rone's were also in attendance). Grilled steak was served. Kara, her mom Sheri, and her precious little girl Jordyn stopped over after a while with a bottle of wine. All the kiddos played and the girls (i.e. Darcy, Dawn, Keli, and Kara) gabbed about high school stories. 1-2: We packed up our things from the Barone's and made our way about town. We had coffee and donuts with grandma Rita in the mornin. All the fam had lunch with Charm (Nefla soup and Pigs in a Blanket...just what the doctor ordered). We exchanged more presents and the kiddos played again. Before skippin town, we stopped and saw Auntie Deb so see could see beaner. The reason for the title of this post is the mpg's we got on our drive from New Town to Bismarck. Drifting and blowing snow made it a long drive home, but it was nice to finally land back in Bismarck. We had some drinks and watched Borat once the kids went to bed. 1-3: We hit the road at 9:30 this morning since it had snowed in Bismarck last night and we didn't know what the roads would be like. Ella had more of a touch and go trip on the way home, but we arrived this afternoon at about 4. Because of our short time to away, our visits to family in No Dak are always short and quick. But they are so fun and we look forward to the day when we can do them more often!

Even though they have come and gone, I have to mention how ridiculous the Christmas season tv commercials are. The fact that fragrance, candy, and liquor commercials are more present than ever is sickening. More on that note, the fact that they don't bother to update their commercials and just rely on spots from previous years is annoying. J Dor, Dior; Korbel Champaigne, and M&M's...just to name a few. Get with it marketing co's, you have to come up with something better than that. The picture here is Ella actually enjoying the long car ride to North Dakota. It has nothing to do with the content here, but I had to include it!

song: Mairi Campbell and Dave Francis - Auld Lang Syne

memory: As kids we were fortunate enough to have a kick-ass conversion van that the fam used to travel in on Holidays such as Christmas. My parents were crazy enough leave on Christmas Eve in the early evening to drive to the Fargo/Moorhead area by Christmas Day. As luck would have it, the weather was never good and that Econoline didn't fair well in the gusty wind. So as us kids played games in the back, mom ate licorice in the front, and dad drove the van like the titanic since the steering wasn't exactly tight. Luckily, we didn't have any accidents on the trip. The trip from New Town to Bismarck reminded me of those times.

It is a new year, a fresh start, blah, blah, blah. I could list a number of resolutions that I have, but chances are they won't happen. Through this holiday season, I have realized the importance of family more and more. I have more to say on that later. But I do have to say that 2009 was a very eventful and busy year. We are truly blessed to have friends and family that are willing to love and support us in anyway possible. Thank you all for the fantastic year...bring on 2010.