2022 End of Year Interviews
1 year ago
1.31.2011
Midnight Snacker
My family is notorious for getting up for a midnight snack. Harper may have inherited that gene. The past 4 out of 7 nights she has been waking up anywhere b/w 4 and 6 whining and we couldn't figure out why. This morning around 5 she finally signed 'eat.' Which totally made sense! So I ran downstairs and got her a cereal bar, fed it to her in the rocking chair, and put her back to bed. Problem solved. I guess I'll make sure that she eats a good supper and bedtime snack from now on.
1.24.2011
Bye Bye
Bye Bye TV.
Bye Bye couch.
Bye Bye lamp.
Bye Bye crib.
Bye Bye stroller.
Bye Bye high chair.
Bye Bye blankie.
Bye Bye chair.
Bye Bye door.
Bye Bye heater.
Bye Bye stairs.
Yes, we wave 'bye bye' to everything in sight before going up to bed!
We also have to read lots and lots of book before bed now.
Neither of these routines bother me; I will embrace her sweetness while it lasts!
1.21.2011
Productive Week
We had a very busy week - hence the lack of blogs.
Adam: Adam has been doing a great job of being 'Mr. Mom' this week. While I was in class or working, he took Harper sledding and played in the snow, read her a million books, bathed her, cooked her breakfast, etc. He does such a great job with her. Harper is a lucky girl. Adam was also busy painting the basement and hitting the gym again.
Brooke: I had my first full week of class and clinicals. I also had my first test of the new semester. I got an 87% - I'm happy with that! Our class size dropped from 35 students to 18 students from last semester. I have class M-W from 9-12:10 and I have clinicals on Th and F from 6:30 to 2:30 in Humboldt, which means I'm out the door by 5:45 :( I think I'm really going to enjoy this semester. I also worked 17 hours this week, so needless to say I am ready for the weekend!
Harper: Harper is back to her 'book' phase. She is absolutely OBSESSED with books right now! Her babies are a thing of the past, at least for now anyways. Her two favorites are Hop on Pop and ABC's, both by Dr. Seuss. She also loves her three voice recorded books from her Grandparents. We finally put them up so she wouldn't wear out the batteries and/or damage the book. Harper wants to ready books ALL day, specifically in the rocking chairs. It is adorable though :) She also figured out to take off her pants. So.....it's a constant battle of keeping them on her. We usually just let her run around with out them on as long as she's warm. I have a feeling that the shirt will be coming off next!
Alli: Yes, I'm updating you on the dog because she is in BIG trouble! Normally Alli spends all her time in the garage during the winter. But because of the extremely cold weather in the past month, we've been letting her stay downstairs for the time being. Well, pretty much because the basement is under construction - once it is finished - she WILL NOT be allowed downstairs. Anyways......she sleeps in her crate during the night, but is free to roam around during the day when we are home. 99% of the time she is laying at the stair landing. Well, she wasn't really around today which was weird. When Adam went downstairs to check on her her found that she chewed up the electrical cord to the shop vac. Not just chewed it up into a few pieces - it's in about 200 tiny shreds! I don't know how she managed to chew through the rubber and little copper wires. It couldn't have felt good if she ate any of the wires. She's lucky it wasn't plugged in. But that's not all - last week she went into the laundry room and chewed up one of Harper's mattress pads and high chair cover. So ....she's on the s#!# list! She will only go downstairs during the night so sleep in her crate and then she's off to the cold garage. I have no sympathy for her, and surprisingly neither does Adam.
That pretty much sums up our week. Hope everyone has a great weekend! Stay warm!
Adam: Adam has been doing a great job of being 'Mr. Mom' this week. While I was in class or working, he took Harper sledding and played in the snow, read her a million books, bathed her, cooked her breakfast, etc. He does such a great job with her. Harper is a lucky girl. Adam was also busy painting the basement and hitting the gym again.
Brooke: I had my first full week of class and clinicals. I also had my first test of the new semester. I got an 87% - I'm happy with that! Our class size dropped from 35 students to 18 students from last semester. I have class M-W from 9-12:10 and I have clinicals on Th and F from 6:30 to 2:30 in Humboldt, which means I'm out the door by 5:45 :( I think I'm really going to enjoy this semester. I also worked 17 hours this week, so needless to say I am ready for the weekend!
Harper: Harper is back to her 'book' phase. She is absolutely OBSESSED with books right now! Her babies are a thing of the past, at least for now anyways. Her two favorites are Hop on Pop and ABC's, both by Dr. Seuss. She also loves her three voice recorded books from her Grandparents. We finally put them up so she wouldn't wear out the batteries and/or damage the book. Harper wants to ready books ALL day, specifically in the rocking chairs. It is adorable though :) She also figured out to take off her pants. So.....it's a constant battle of keeping them on her. We usually just let her run around with out them on as long as she's warm. I have a feeling that the shirt will be coming off next!
Alli: Yes, I'm updating you on the dog because she is in BIG trouble! Normally Alli spends all her time in the garage during the winter. But because of the extremely cold weather in the past month, we've been letting her stay downstairs for the time being. Well, pretty much because the basement is under construction - once it is finished - she WILL NOT be allowed downstairs. Anyways......she sleeps in her crate during the night, but is free to roam around during the day when we are home. 99% of the time she is laying at the stair landing. Well, she wasn't really around today which was weird. When Adam went downstairs to check on her her found that she chewed up the electrical cord to the shop vac. Not just chewed it up into a few pieces - it's in about 200 tiny shreds! I don't know how she managed to chew through the rubber and little copper wires. It couldn't have felt good if she ate any of the wires. She's lucky it wasn't plugged in. But that's not all - last week she went into the laundry room and chewed up one of Harper's mattress pads and high chair cover. So ....she's on the s#!# list! She will only go downstairs during the night so sleep in her crate and then she's off to the cold garage. I have no sympathy for her, and surprisingly neither does Adam.
That pretty much sums up our week. Hope everyone has a great weekend! Stay warm!
1.16.2011
House Updates
Here is a little update on our home:
1. Basement Remodel: The tile is down and half of it is grouted. The sheet rock is up, mudded and taped. Adam primed the walls today and will hopefully get the first coat of paint on tomorrow. {notice the 50" flat screen in the bottom left corner? yeah - Adam just HAD to have it for downstairs}
2. Living Room Furniture: Since we lost our basement furniture in the flood, we decided we would move the living room furniture downstairs and buy new for the living room. Our living room furniture was deteriorating quickly and was full of milk and snot stains. Maybe a little TMI, but that's what happens when you have a small child. We decided that if we were going to spend the money for new furniture then we might as well replace the this and get higher quality stuff since we used the living room way more than the basement. So here's what we went with - nothing too exciting. It's neutral and matches our woodwork nicely.
3. TV{s}: We HONESTLY were in the need of a new TV for the living room. The top part of the picture was blurry and had lines running through it. It was just a matter of time before the entire picture went out. So, Adam went to Best Buy and came back with TWO TV's. A 42" for the living room and a 50" for the basement. Whatever I guess, it's a man thing. I do enjoy the larger picture now, and it's an HD. The Geek Squaud also hooked up the Internet to Adam's PS3, so we can get Netflix through the PS3 too - we've already knocked 3 movies out this weekend! Can you figure out what I'm watching?!
Yesterday we spent a good hour or so at Menard's pricing items to update our bathroom upstairs. I guess that is our next project to conquer. I also want to paint the living room a different color - and redecorate it - it's hideous (see 2nd picture!). It's never ending when you become a home owner! Hopefully I'll be posting pictures soon of our painted basement!
1. Basement Remodel: The tile is down and half of it is grouted. The sheet rock is up, mudded and taped. Adam primed the walls today and will hopefully get the first coat of paint on tomorrow. {notice the 50" flat screen in the bottom left corner? yeah - Adam just HAD to have it for downstairs}
2. Living Room Furniture: Since we lost our basement furniture in the flood, we decided we would move the living room furniture downstairs and buy new for the living room. Our living room furniture was deteriorating quickly and was full of milk and snot stains. Maybe a little TMI, but that's what happens when you have a small child. We decided that if we were going to spend the money for new furniture then we might as well replace the this and get higher quality stuff since we used the living room way more than the basement. So here's what we went with - nothing too exciting. It's neutral and matches our woodwork nicely.
3. TV{s}: We HONESTLY were in the need of a new TV for the living room. The top part of the picture was blurry and had lines running through it. It was just a matter of time before the entire picture went out. So, Adam went to Best Buy and came back with TWO TV's. A 42" for the living room and a 50" for the basement. Whatever I guess, it's a man thing. I do enjoy the larger picture now, and it's an HD. The Geek Squaud also hooked up the Internet to Adam's PS3, so we can get Netflix through the PS3 too - we've already knocked 3 movies out this weekend! Can you figure out what I'm watching?!
Yesterday we spent a good hour or so at Menard's pricing items to update our bathroom upstairs. I guess that is our next project to conquer. I also want to paint the living room a different color - and redecorate it - it's hideous (see 2nd picture!). It's never ending when you become a home owner! Hopefully I'll be posting pictures soon of our painted basement!
1.13.2011
FREE Handwashing Timer
I got an email about a FREE Hand washing Timer. Click on the link to fill out a form for up to 3 timers. These would be great for a classroom or a home with small children. Offer good while supplies last.
PS - One of these days I will post where I find all of my 'deals.' So you can subscribe to the emails as well.
PS - One of these days I will post where I find all of my 'deals.' So you can subscribe to the emails as well.
1.12.2011
Cancun!
Wow! We had an A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. time on our getaway to Cancun, Mexico! It was a MUCH needed vacation and we enjoyed every minute. {well, maybe not every minute - hang overs are no fun!}
We stayed at the Golden Parnassus - nothing fancy. The website does the resort no justice, so I was a little skeptical at first. However, after reading the reviews I knew we'd have a great time. The staff was amazing, the food was awesome, the drinks were delicious and the weather was GORGEOUS!
We spent most of our time laying on the beach all.day.long! The point of vacation is to relax...no tours or trips for us. We simply enjoyed laying on the white sandy beach and soaking up the sun. We enjoyed each other's conversation, reading, sipping margaritas and pina colada's, listening/watching the waves roll in, searching for sea shells, napping, playing in the Caribbean, etc.
We stayed at the Golden Parnassus - nothing fancy. The website does the resort no justice, so I was a little skeptical at first. However, after reading the reviews I knew we'd have a great time. The staff was amazing, the food was awesome, the drinks were delicious and the weather was GORGEOUS!
We spent most of our time laying on the beach all.day.long! The point of vacation is to relax...no tours or trips for us. We simply enjoyed laying on the white sandy beach and soaking up the sun. We enjoyed each other's conversation, reading, sipping margaritas and pina colada's, listening/watching the waves roll in, searching for sea shells, napping, playing in the Caribbean, etc.
The resort had five different restaurants - a little bit of something for everyone. Seafood, pasta, sushi, steaks, Mexican, buffet, burgers, and even 'fancy' stuff like stuffed quail and different duck dishes. We especially enjoyed the snack bar on the beach. Everyday we made sure to get a plate of nachos and french fries, loaded with cheese, guacamole, and pico de gallo. I gained 2 lbs last week.
The resort also had 4 different bars, along with a 'rec room' complete with a few pool tables, ping pong, poker tables, etc. Our favorite bar was the Tiki Bar - located b/w the pool and beach. It was the party spot. We also frequently visited the bar right on the beach, complete with swings in place of bar stools. Not a good combination if you ask me. Adam pretty much stuck to margaritas on the rocks. I drank a variety of stuff - bloody mary's, margaritas, pina coladas, champagne, and bahama mamas. {probably why I didn't feel so hot on a few occasions}
We couldn't have asked for better weather. 80 degrees and sunny every day! The breeze from the ocean helped us stay cool while basking in the sun. The water was a bit on the cool side, but much warmer than the pool! We swam in the ocean every day - the water/beach looked like a post card.
Although we had a wonderful time, we missed our little Harper dearly! We could not wait to get home and see her. We made sure to enjoy ourselves though. I wasn't sure how Harper would respond to us when we came home. I figured she'd be really excited or really hesitant. Sadly, she was hesitant. It took her a good hour to come to me. She recognized my voice and would smile at me, as if she was thinking, "hey - you're my mom!" Then she would run and give me a hug, but would run right back to her Grandma. It made me sad. After a few hours everything was back to normal.
We are already dreaming of our next trip back to Mexico. We would love to go back to the Golden Parnassus with a group of friends. So start saving your pennies!
The resort also had 4 different bars, along with a 'rec room' complete with a few pool tables, ping pong, poker tables, etc. Our favorite bar was the Tiki Bar - located b/w the pool and beach. It was the party spot. We also frequently visited the bar right on the beach, complete with swings in place of bar stools. Not a good combination if you ask me. Adam pretty much stuck to margaritas on the rocks. I drank a variety of stuff - bloody mary's, margaritas, pina coladas, champagne, and bahama mamas. {probably why I didn't feel so hot on a few occasions}
We couldn't have asked for better weather. 80 degrees and sunny every day! The breeze from the ocean helped us stay cool while basking in the sun. The water was a bit on the cool side, but much warmer than the pool! We swam in the ocean every day - the water/beach looked like a post card.
Although we had a wonderful time, we missed our little Harper dearly! We could not wait to get home and see her. We made sure to enjoy ourselves though. I wasn't sure how Harper would respond to us when we came home. I figured she'd be really excited or really hesitant. Sadly, she was hesitant. It took her a good hour to come to me. She recognized my voice and would smile at me, as if she was thinking, "hey - you're my mom!" Then she would run and give me a hug, but would run right back to her Grandma. It made me sad. After a few hours everything was back to normal.
We are already dreaming of our next trip back to Mexico. We would love to go back to the Golden Parnassus with a group of friends. So start saving your pennies!
1.11.2011
16 Months
Weight: 24.6 lbs (+1.2 lbs from last month)
Clothing Size: 18 months
Diaper Size: 3
Teeth: Unsure, but I think Harper has all of her teeth, except her back molars ~ and I DEFINITELY think she is cutting these
Eating: Has worked up quite the appetite ~ Harper eats pretty much whatever we eat, except the obvious things like chips, pop, candy, spicy foods, etc. She will try pretty much everything. She wants to eat ALL.THE.TIME! She is getting better with her fork and spoon. NO more early morning bottle!
Sleeping: Depends on the day.....I used to have such a great little sleeper. Like I mentioned above, I think she is working on her one-year molars. There are some nights when she's up every hour or so, just whining. She's never wide awake, but just rolling around or sitting in her crib whimpering. However, she is still a great napper! Usually two 1.5-2 hr naps a day, or one loooong nap :) Bedtime is still 8ish and she will sleep for about 12 hours!
Speech: Harper is always babbling - it has really picked up this month. She can now say 'papa' and 'baby.' She also kind of says 'cookie' when referring to Cookie Monster. She tries say sock - but all we usually get is 'sssssss.'
Favorite Toy: Her babies or Elmo camera
Favorite Activity: hide and seek! She could play this game for hours! She signs 'more' whenever we stop hiding
New Things:
Clothing Size: 18 months
Diaper Size: 3
Teeth: Unsure, but I think Harper has all of her teeth, except her back molars ~ and I DEFINITELY think she is cutting these
Eating: Has worked up quite the appetite ~ Harper eats pretty much whatever we eat, except the obvious things like chips, pop, candy, spicy foods, etc. She will try pretty much everything. She wants to eat ALL.THE.TIME! She is getting better with her fork and spoon. NO more early morning bottle!
Sleeping: Depends on the day.....I used to have such a great little sleeper. Like I mentioned above, I think she is working on her one-year molars. There are some nights when she's up every hour or so, just whining. She's never wide awake, but just rolling around or sitting in her crib whimpering. However, she is still a great napper! Usually two 1.5-2 hr naps a day, or one loooong nap :) Bedtime is still 8ish and she will sleep for about 12 hours!
Speech: Harper is always babbling - it has really picked up this month. She can now say 'papa' and 'baby.' She also kind of says 'cookie' when referring to Cookie Monster. She tries say sock - but all we usually get is 'sssssss.'
Favorite Toy: Her babies or Elmo camera
Favorite Activity: hide and seek! She could play this game for hours! She signs 'more' whenever we stop hiding
New Things:
- follows commands: throwing things in the garbage, putting toys away, finding her cup, etc.
- turns the TV on and off
- holds up one finger when asked how old she is - or when ever she hears the word 'one'
- climbs down the stairs now
- points to her ears and eyes, in addition to her tummy, toes, tongue and hair
1.10.2011
Christmas: Part III
Well, we made it through 3 Christmas' this year! The last one was at my parents' house on Jan 2nd, the day before we left for vacation. { post on that tomorrow} It's always nice getting together with family - good food and lots of fun! Thank you to my parents for all the hard work preparing the meal!
Reading one of her new books with Grandma
Sporting her new vest from Michael and Kaitlyn and baby from Grandma and Papa
Pushing around her new baby stroller. She also got a little bassinet that matches. She was in heaven! She LOVES being a mommy to her babies - she can play for HOURS with her babies! She'll be such a great big sister someday!
Harper is getting very good at opening presents, especially compared to her birthday. She knows exactly what to do! Harper got SPOILED this year! Which comes at no surprise.
Reading one of her new books with Grandma 
Sporting her new vest from Michael and Kaitlyn and baby from Grandma and Papa
Pushing around her new baby stroller. She also got a little bassinet that matches. She was in heaven! She LOVES being a mommy to her babies - she can play for HOURS with her babies! She'll be such a great big sister someday!
Now that the holidays are over, it is time to start focusing on school again :( Not looking forward to going back. Check back later this week for a blog on our trip to Mexico and an update on our basement.
1.01.2011
Happy New Year!
We would like to wish everyone a healthy and happy new year!
May 2012 bring you peace, love, and happiness.
We are anxious to see what 2012 has in store for us. We have a feeling that it is going to be another great year for our little family.
Here is a little re-cap of 2011 - the ups and downs.
January - Brooke went back to school to pursue a nursing career
April - Adam's career changed slightly by becoming the new K-9 officer for Wright Co
June - Clarion got hit by 12-14 inches or rain in a short amount of time - flooding almost all homes and businesses, including ours. We lost everything in our basement.
August - We took Harper to the Blank Park Zoo in DSM
September - We celebrated Harper's first year of life!
October - We went on our first family visit to the pumpkin patch in Fort Dodge
December - We chopped down our first real Christmas tree as a family and the remodeling of our basement has finally started
All in all, 2011 was a great year for our family! Mostly because of an amazing little girl named Harper, who we get the privilege of calling our daughter! Because of her, we KNOW that 2012 is going to be awesome!
We are going to start 2012 on a good note - a little R&R in Mexico for Adam and I! We leave in 2 days!!! Check back next week for pictures from our trip and from the Bachtle Christmas that we will be having tomorrow!
Have a great year!
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