from now on, we're taking staycations

so i'll try not to complain too much. after all, we ARE on vacation & we are at home sweet home. but this time, getting to home sweet home has been trying to say the least.

our goal was to leave our house by 730pm thursday evening. with 1 whiny girlchild & 1 screaming boychild we managed to pull out of the driveway at 743. not bad. but we had to stop in elk river at the verizon store so mattie could get his brand new phone fixed (his fault, he f'd it all up!). it took forever. we were finally on the highway at 905. ugh.

mattie took the 1st driving shift so i could sleep. but i couldn't sleep. i was terrified he would fall asleep. he drove for about 4 hours & then i took over. after being awake for over 24 hours (dont ask....just assume it was beast & you'd be correct) i couldn't go anymore. so just over the indiana border we switched drivers. finally, some sleep right?

WRONG. just as mattie started driving, the lake effect snow began. fabulous. he was mad & i was nervous. so i stayed awake some more! he managed to get through it & then we traded again. still no sleep for me!

shortly after my driving time began, we ran into more snow. yeah, more snow. i just tried to stay calm (i grew up in this crap after all!) & we made it through. i drove us right into PENNSYLVANIA!!!!

not too far past the border i asked mattie to drive again. he took over & finished up. and yes, i finally got about 2 hours of sleep.

but the fun didn't stop when we pulled in the driveway at mom & dad's!!! about a 1/2 hour after we got out of the car, mom & i were taking bryson to the clinic. big thanks to my berwick bff who works there for doing all the paperwork so we could just walk right in! we though beast had an ear infection, but he doesn't. we got him some antibiotics anyway for the crap in his chest. so with the bubble gum meds plus his nebulizer he is finally starting to feel better!

too bad raegan woke up with pinkeye today...........

no joke, no more vacations. staycations it is!

the raegan shmaegan's check-up

ok, so every post is really for me. but this post is especially for me (well for rae). if i don't write it right now, i'll forget every last bit of it! so to my faithful readers (all 5 of you!), bear with me on this one!!

on friday (11/7), i took rae (and beast) to see dr p. rae needed her 4 year well child check. and of course, we were running late as usual & driving through the 1st snow of the season. we finally got to the clinic (50 miles away b/c i just love the docs there so much), dealt with the bitchy check-in girl, & settled down with some toys at station 4. nurse chelsea called us back & we did the standard height & weight measurements. holy crappola has rae grown! she's 35.5 lbs & 40.5" tall. that would be the 50th & 75th percentiles! much, much better than the 10th & 15th we've gotten used to! no wonder her darn pants are too short but falling off her skinny little waist! she had an eye exam (20/20) & a hearing test (heard every single tone). chelsea checked her blood pressure too (94/52 or something like that). we discussed shots, but raegan didn't want them so she didn't get them! they can wait another year.

after all that, dr p came in to see us. he was fabulous as usual (and reminded me once again why we switched from bitchy dr l to him!!). he asked raegan to count, name shapes, & draw a picture of me. she did really well. he did the standard eyes, ears, & all that jazz. he told me that she should be going to kindergarten in the fall b/c she's so smart! (picture mommy beaming with pride here) problem is, she's going to miss the cutoff & i'm not one for fighting the school or shoving her into a situation i'm not 100% sure she can handle. (i've heard that people often regret sending kids early but never regret holding them back) he tried to talk me into flu shots as usual....and i declined as usual!!

when he was finished w/ rae, dr p kindly asked if i wanted him to check out beast. he knows damn well i wouldn't pass that up!! here's the problem with my little beastie boy.....he has a condition (undiagnosed to this point but i believe it's reactive airway disease) that causes him to wheeze, cough, & just not be able to shake off the common cold. he's been fighting something for 3 weeks & being the fabulous mom i am, i didn't take him in!! dr p decided that since it's VERY early in cold/flu season & beast already has something nasty, we should be giving beast steroids through his nebulizer EVERY DAY. what?!?! every day? is he that sick??? apparently we need to be more proactive. so roids it is (although i have yet to start this routine...i'm a fabulous mom, remember?) & albuterol 3-4x a day when he's sick. ugh. poor kid.

after that great news, dr p said goodbye. (he knows he'll be seeing us soon b/c beast will inevitably be supersick within a few weeks)

the kids & i left the clinic, ran to walmart (where i spent way more than i was intending!!), & stopped for lunch at applebee's. our 1st lunch out ever without daddy to help! but it went really well. we even stayed for some dessert!

with full bellies, we hopped in the car. the kiddos fell asleep in minutes & i somehow managed to stay awake for the 45 minute drive home!

(better post next time i promise!)
(notice my love of parentheses???)

pumpkins & POW

so we're almost always behind. last night was no exception. i had the bright idea to carve pumpkins the night before halloween. now, keep in mind that i did not already have pumpkins & we live in a town of less than 2800. yes, i typed that correctly. 2800. got it? i asked mattie to grab some pumpkins & pumpkin carving knives at the hardware store after rae's dance class. he called to say that store was all out. great. see why living in a town of less then 2800 can really suck?! so off they went to the grocery store (and don't even get me started on the grocery store. it's so great i drive 15 miles for a different one. always.) they managed to find 4 pumpkins but no knives. i was ok with that. then i actually saw the pumpkins. they were the size of softballs! how the hell were we supposed to carve those??? we tried anyway. trusty steak knives in hand (he even tried the gas station for pumpkin knives. no luck. shocker, i know.)

off we went.....mattie had much better luck than i did. he had the tops off his, rae's, & beast's pumpkins before i had mine. i even had to ask for help! we got them cleaned out with absolutely no help from the kids. rae thought pumpkin guts were gross & bryson just kept saying "eewwwwww" like a total girl.

raegan drew the face on hers & mattie cut it out (no, he doesn't suck at carving. that's what she drew!)

(supervising)

bryson also went to work drawing on his, but he didn't draw a face. he just scribbled. so i did his.

mattie & i also did ours.

in the end, it was actually really fun & we had a little family of pumpkins just like us. next year, though, i will definitely be better prepared!!!!

on to halloween. make that holy halloween batman!!! well, holy halloween batgirl!!!

POW! WHAM! ZAP!

we had a veeery long day. we started out early b/c i had my post-op with the oral surgeon. everything is healing well. then we grabbed some breakfast & headed for haircuts. mattie, rae, & beast all got their hair done by their favorite stylist, barb, at the spa. we came home, ate, & took naps (well, everyone but me). then mattie got up & got ready for work. while he was doing that, i got the kids dressed in their costumes so he could see them before he left. we just laughed. the kids were SO cute (we know we're biased, but seriously, they were cute!) then mattie was off to work & the kids & i were off in search of candy. we hit a few houses & then headed to new life (thanks cara!!). the kids had a great time playing games, getting candy, & petting all the farm animals.

we had missed dinner, so we hit up mcd's on the way home. yes, i realize it's not healthy. but superheroes have to eat too!!

the cake, the circus, the teeth, & the "click"

alrighty----a little catching up to do. great. this should be fun....and take about an hour! geez i wish i was getting better at this!

so, where were we? yep. rae's birthday was on a wednesday, so we had cake & ice cream friday night. we just had my sister's family (+1, hehe) & cara and her girls over. nice & small and super fun. we dug into the dancing fairy barbie cake (or whatever kind of pink & purple yumminess it was called) & opened presents. the kids were w-i-r-e-d!!

on sunday we headed to the target center for the circus. now, it wasn't the best circus....not by a loooong shot. but since rae & beast hadn't been to one before they thought it was great!! we learned a few things......

we could be related to the human cannonball

half-dressed girls amaze boys of all ages (i don't really know what they are looking at!)

blue snowcones leave you with a longlasting blue mouth

a few days later, tuesday to be exact, mattie & i headed to north branch so i could have my wisdom teeth removed. now, i was terrified for my pre-op consult, but this day i was fine. a little bit nervous, but fine. i had literally just sat down in the waiting room when they called me back to the little room. still fine. we talked for a few minutes while the doctor & her asst got me all set up, they put my iv in, & off we went. i had chosen mild sedation instead of general anesthesia so i could tell them that i was ok. i didn't like the idea of being put out completely. but when i chose sedation, i thought i'd be really out of it. not so. they barely gave me any. the only way i could tell i had it was that the texture on the walls waved at me for a few minutes & my heartrate stopped going up every time they even looked at a machine. that was it! i was shocked! i was very, very aware. and i actually liked it. the doc, asst, & i laughed & talked the whole time!! the only time i made any other noise was when she took out my bottom teeth. and they were HUGE. (wish i'd had the camera with me!!)

anyway, it was fine. i hardly took the pain pills. they're sitting upstairs collecting dust. and i haven't had any problems. i go back this friday for a quick check-up....and so they can see the kids. that's all they really care about anyway!!! so, no excitement with the teeth---unless you count mattie's $135 speeding ticket on the way to the pharmacy that is!!

ok, i've done the cake, the circus, & the teeth. onto the "click." guesses????

i'm talking about this cutie

now, it's no secret i've questioned his development. his doctor assured me i have nothing to worry about. and i know after the past 2 weeks that i really shouldn't have worried.

my little boy will NOT stop talking!! that's the click. he would repeat & say a few words, but the darn kid just won't stop now! oh, he still repeats. and repeats alot. in fact, just today our fabulous daycare provider told me "he repeated EVERYTHING i said today!" so every time she opened her mouth, every kid heard what she said twice. once from her. once from my little beast. he talks non-stop. (well, until we get to friends' houses that is. then he's quiet as a mouse)

my favorite is his little yes. well, yeSH. i giggle every time. beast was on the phone w/ my mom this past weekend & she told him she likes the way he says yes. he just said yesh right back. too cute.

now i'm just waiting on the shitfuck to come flying out of his mouth like it did rae's!!!

quick one

i will update on the rest of rae's bday festivities, the circus, & the teeth in the next few days. i'm just feeling a little tired right now! as for the mouth--feeling much better than i thought it would & i'm taking fewer pain meds than i thought i would be. i'll give you the gory details in a few days!

happy birthday raegan grace

where does the time go? it seems like just weeks ago i was crying at my sister's house, trying to figure out how to tell matt our family would be growing----MUCH sooner than we had planned. yet, yesterday, 10/15/08, we celebrated miss raegan's 4th birthday. how did that happen?! maybe i should start from the beginning.....i don't have this documented anywhere else, so i might as well do it here. that way rae will know how it all went down!!

mattie & i met one drunken night on parris island. we had a great time & really connected. we had both just broken off engagements & were looking for a good time. so we had one. i flew back to pa the next morning thinking i'd never hear from him again. a few hours after landing & much to surprise, the phone rang. it was matt. that was august 24, 2002. we've talked on the phone every day since. we got married 10 months later, july 5, 2003; moved to mn in january 2004; got pregnant w/ raegan about 2 weeks later. we did everything fast! but that was never our intent. the wedding was supposed to be in january 2004. but the war started, & we didn't know what would happen. so we moved up the wedding. we discussed a family & decided we'd wait 5-10 years. we just wanted to spend some time together since our entire relationship, including our 1st month of marriage, had been via the phone. we'd spent a grand total of maybe 3 weeks together, face to face. we thought we'd travel, save some money, just enjoy being us.

then, on valentine's day 2004 i took the dreaded test. sure enough, those 2 pink lines were there----staring me down. i cried & cried. i was excited but scared. and i was terrified of telling matt. here we were, just moved to minnesota, living in my sister's basement, no jobs yet. what the hell were we going to do??? i sucked it up & told him right away. he was so supportive. he told me it would all be ok. we went out to dinner & it hit me. i couldn't have my usual mudslide at applebee's. damn. but we'd figure it out.

and we did. i got my job at assurant. mattie got a job at lowe's, then walmart, then w/ wackenhut (where he still is for now). we moved into an apartment just down the street from my sister. traveling was out, but that was ok. we were excited for our baby.

we landed on rae's name in about 2 seconds. we both just loved it. a boy name, on the other hand, was not so easy. we never really did come up with one. we had a back-up/hope we don't need it name. but we found out she was a she & were thrilled. well, i wasn't so thrilled at first. but i got there!!

i was due 10/16 but at my ultrasound the doc said i looked good to go on 10/15--it's the strangest thing. he just misspoke, but it turned out he was right. at my last visit with him, he told me he was heading to washington dc for a conference but that he was POSITIVE i wouldn't go into labor & i'd see him monday to schedule an induction. too bad he didn't know my husband sometimes doesn't use his whole brain!

mattie had driven to the post office 10/13 to pick up a HUGE box of baby stuff from his mom & sister. he locked himself out the car. THE car--we only had the one. so i had to walk my nearly 40 weeks pregnant butt all the way to the post office in 40 degree, rainy weather. i could barely squeeze my feet into sneakers & my belly into a coat. i was M-A-D. apparently my little jaunt to the post office was all it took. the next night i felt really sick. i slept the entire evening, finally eating a pb&j sandwich. at 8pm, mattie took our the trash & my water broke. he came back up to the apartment. i told him to stay calm, but we needed to go to the hospital right away.

we made it to the hospital (literally 1 mile away) & were greeted by the rudest nurse ever. she asked if we had called & i said no. i completely forgot. she said "well, with your next 10 could you please call first? i have no nurse here for you." ugh. what a way to start my labor.

i called my mom & my sister. mattie called his. a few hours later, i was begging for an epidural. had the worst anesthesiologist ever. took him 4 times of poking me to get in it. a few hours later the doctor (not my doctor remember!) turned it off b/c i couldn't feel a thing. i begged for a c-section. he told me no & kept right on watching fear factor. who knew that was on at 3am??

finally, after 9 hours, 3 of them pushing, little miss raegan grace joined our family at 4:59 am.

8lb 3.1ozs, 19 3/4 inches

---back to the present---

so yesterday, she had cupcakes at daycare. then she opened cards from MiMi & PaPa and great MiMi & presents from MiMi & PaPa and mommy, daddy, and bryson. and we ate more cupcakes! she got 2 snowball makers & a fort maker from MiMi & PaPa. they're also sending a sled. she got a craft box from us. tomorrow, i am taking her shoe shopping. we'll also be collecting leaves for a preschool project. then tomorrow evening, we're having cake & ice cream since matt will be able to celebrate then. so she's having quite the birthday this year! good thing she was born on payday!!

i don't know where the time went. and i'm not really sure how we got here. but i'm glad we did. i can't imagine my life without my little mini-me.

happy birthday raegan grace.

happy birthday.

silver jews & weekends

so last wednesday i had the pleasure of hanging out with some of my favorite new bffs....we went to see the silver jews play at a hole in the wall in the cities. it was so much fun. now, that opening band...well, let's just say they'd had a little too much of something before they took the stage. they were S-C-A-R-Y. but i'll never forget pyramids, baconbaconbaconbacon, makinmakinmakin, lovehlovehloveh, it's bad guitar, or it's party time. no jokes. they were crazy. but we stuck it out for the silver jews. and they were awesome. they put on a great show (despite all the weirdass drunks & the dude they had kicked out). all in all it was an awesome night with some awesome ladies. and thanks cara for keeping me awake on the drive home! never again, though, will i stay out til 2am on a school night!!!

a couple days later i dragged a bunch of stuff down to my sister's for a garage sale. i didn't make a ton of money, but i got to spend some time with my sister. and since we don't do that as much as we should anymore, it was really nice.

of course it was back to work yesterday. BLAH. but that's how it goes!! a little work then a lot of fun!

life must be boring...

so life must've been a bit on the boring side the past week. i really don't have much to say.....

oh, right. beast, yet again, did something crazy. i came downstairs monday morning for work (remmeber this is 2 flights of stairs down from the bedrooms). i turned on my work computer & went into the bathroom. i realized i heard breathing that wasn't mine! i crept into the family room only to find that beastie boy was asleep in 1 of the recliners! i don't know when he left his bed & went downstairs. i never heard him. mattie never heard him. hell, the dogs didn't even hear him. i just covered him up & left him alone. thank god our doors were all locked & he couldn't get out. seriously, i'm starting to wonder when cps will knocking.....

nothing new for rae really. another day at preschool. she was so happy. another night at dance. she did awesome. she's just her usual, incredibly sassy self.

that's all i can think of.....
i'm off to wrestle 4 kids to bed! (don't get excited---i didn't gain 2 more overnight. the niece & nephew are sleeping over.)

catching up....

disclaimer: i'm trying to catch up. this should be 3 or 4 separate posts. instead, i'm doing 1 big post that may have absolutely zero flow. get over it.

ok, now where do i start?? suppose i should start with this past friday, almost a week ago. the morning started out with a creepy playdate. by creepy playdate i mean a playdate with a fab group of ladies who are known as The Creeps. and i mean fab. we all met recently, yet i know i will be friends with them forever. seriously. we had an amazing time with all the kids. matt & maddy even came to play (see mattlogelin.com for more). it was so much fun.

everyone minus 2 kids

me & miss m

that night, rae & i went to target for her new backpack! and of course, she had to get one i absolutely cannot stand! but that's raegan!! then i met my sister so i could bring her kids back to my house for the night. they are awesome. c read most of the time. e read books to beast even after my crazyassfoxdog tried to bite his head off (anyone interested? he's free).

the kids jumping on the air mattress

saturday was a day to relax after all the fun friday. and i had to get geared up for sunday.

we had the 1st ever liz goodman logelin memorial 5k at lake calhoun. it was AMAZING. so many people showed up to support matt, maddy, & the families. we raised a lot of money to help other widows/widowers. i know that next year's 5k will raise even more. we are really making a difference & i am so blessed to be part of it!!

matt, maddy, & the mn creeps

the 5k participants

some of the creeps hung out for awhile after the 5k & even went to liz's parents' house. that family, along with matt's, is AMAZING. i can't say that enough. they have welcomed the creeps into their lives & we are all thankful (yes, i know i can speak for all of them when i say that).

ok......done with the weekend.

can't think of anything that happened monday, tuesday, or wednesday actually.

on to thursday.....9/25. to most people 9/25 is just another day on the calendar. to me, it's the anniversay of the worst day of my life. 12 years ago my grandma died. she was the most loving, understanding, generous woman i've ever known. she lived 69 years, but her life was much too short. plagued with health issues, she always had a smile. she was fiesty. she was everything i could only dream of being. she will never meet matt. she will never meet rae & beast. and it breaks my heart. mattie will never know my role model although he's heard so much about her. and the kids will never meet their fabulous great-grandmother. i don't mean to take away from their other great-grandparents by any means. they have others they will never meet. all of whom i love dearly. they just lost another this past february. it was awful. but not quite as awful as september 25, 1996 and the days that followed.

aside from dealing with that, i was also dealing with rae's 1st day of preschool. this actually went much better than i expected!! she got to sleep in and spend some time with me before going. she picked out her own clothes, got herself dressed, & donned her backpack. we drove to the early childhood center, waited for her teachers to get there, & off she went. she didn't even say goodbye. just marched right on in like the big girl she is.

all ready to go

all buckled in

and i DIDN'T cry!!!! (applaud here)

when i picked her up she was all smiles. she told me all about her day. she was SO excited.

we came back home for a bit, picked up beast at daycare, & headed for dance class. the 1st of many busy thursdays to come, but we survived....so far at least!!

1 down, a million milestones to go......

let them be little

have you heard that billy dean song let them be little? it came out a little over 2 years ago....just before bryson was born. i cried every time i heard it. i mean every single f'ing time. still do.

well i do everything that song says....let them cry, let them giggle, let them sleep in the middle. i do it, i do it, i do it. (and i'm crying already. damn.) so why can't they just stay little? bryson just turned 2 & had his first big trip to mimi & papa's house. i had a hard time with that. raegan just started back to dance class. not so hard this year, but i still cry at every single f'ing show. every show. no joke. i cried last year when one of the older girls was graduating out of the program! i don't even know her!

but now, i'm about to face my toughest challenge yet.

PRESCHOOL.

sure, it's just 1 day each week for a measly 2 hours. but it just seems so HUGE. i've never had to do school shopping, get a school haircut, or even buy a backpack as a mom. i'm not ready. raegan is more than ready. she's very excited. and i know she'll be great. she won't be scared. she'll walk right in like the big girl she is & make new friends without a problem. and me, well.....i'll let go of her hand, walk out to the car, cry my f'ing eyes out. i'll come home, try to work, get absolutely nothing done. before i know it, 2 hours will have passed & i'll go pick her up. and then everything will be fine. and we'll do it again, every thursday until it's over in the spring. and next year we'll do it all over again.....but it'll be 2-3 days each week. and she'll be another year older. and i'll be going through the tears all over again.

but that's getting ahead of the game. one step at a time.

so for the next 2 weeks before preschool starts, i will do my best to let her be little while trying to prepare myself to let her grow.




billy dean, let them be little

I can remember when you fit in the palm of my hand.
You felt so good in it; no bigger than a minute.
How it amazes me you're changin' with every blink.
Faster than a flower blooms, they grow up all too soon.

So let them be little,'Cause they're only that way for a while.
Give 'em hope, give them praise,Give them love every day.
Let 'em cry, let 'em giggle,Let 'em sleep in the middle,
Oh, but let them be little.

I never felt so much in one little tender touch.
I live for those kisses, your prayers an' your wishes.
An' now you're teachin' me how only a child can see.
Tonight, while we're on our knees, all I ask is:

Please, let them be little,'Cause they're only that way for a while.
Give them hope, give them praise,Give them love every day.
Let 'em cry, let 'em giggle,Let 'em sleep in the middle,
Oh, but let them be little.

The so innocent, precious soul:
You turn around, an' it's time to let them go.

So let them be little,'Cause they're only that way for a while.
Give them hope, give 'em praise,Give them love every day.
Let 'em cry, let 'em giggle,Let them sleep in the middle,
Oh, but let them be little.

Let them be little.

boys will be boys

OK, so tonight we had little boy accidents #2 & 3 of the week! The 1st happened at dinner. Beast decided he was finished eating, tried to get off the bench, & bam! landed on the floor. Some banged up knees but we were spared a bloody mouth!

Less than an hour later we had little boy accident #2 of the evening. Beast had just gotten out of the tub, dried off, & dressed. He was playing on my bed (i know, i know, not safe). All of a sudden he lost his balance & bam! header onto the floor. Luckily he missed the laundry basket & the wall.

So, in 2 days he's fallen down the stairs on the trike, fallen off the bench at dinner, & fallen off my bed. How do you spell accident waiting to happen? b-r-y-s-o-n!! I swear CPS is going to be knocking on my door if I keep blogging about him!

In other news---for those of you interested in participating in and/or donating for the Liz Goodman Logelin Memorial 5k (aka big fucking picnic), please check out Matt's blog for a Paypal link. Proceeds will go to help struggling widows/widowers (this year's funds are going to Jackie--see his blog for a link to hers if interested). Remember, donations are optional but every little bit helps!

kid stuff.....

So I thought I'd just add a few fun things beastie boy has been doing lately. Apparently he's a real Minnesotan like his big sister. She's one because she says uffda & ishy. Now, for the 1st time, beastie boy has decided to show his Minnesota side as well. He's always catching/killing bugs & spiders. So, the other day he brings me a dead spider on his finger & tells me "it's a spider. it's ishy." No joke. So he's a real Minnesotan now. Mattie & I will probably never be real Minnesotans although the occasional uffda, ishy, or yah sure you betcha does fly out of our mouths.

Beastie boy's other fun (I use the term loosely) stuff now includes a near ER visit stunt. If you don't know, we live in a 3 level house. Beaster was on the middle level (dining room) on his tricycle. The back was facing the basement stairs. I'm sitting downstairs on the computer when I hear Matt yell "Bryson!!" Next thing I hear is Beastie falling down the stairs with the trike. Nice. No injuries to report. And, believe it or not, he got right back on the damn thing & rode around some more! I guess that's the life of a 2 year old little boy!

Liz Goodman Logelin Memorial 5k

the following was stolen from matt logelin's blog. thanks to becky for the official write-up! also, if you would like to buy a shirt, click on the robot on the left. it will lead you to the garden of awesome!

Creep Becky here, guest blogging for Matt…

The Creeps/Broads, in conjunction with the Goodman and Logelin families, are excited to announce the first “Walk around the World” in honor of Liz, to be held Sunday, September 21st at 1:00 pm in your designated time zone.

Here’s the scoop. As many of you know, Liz’s birthday is September 17th. To honor, remember and celebrate her, there will be a walk/run/crawl/any sort of forward movement the weekend closest to her birthday each year. In the future, it will become the Liz Goodman Logelin Memorial 5k Walk/Run. For the first year, it will be an informal gathering of friends, strangers, robots, creeps and broads. We hope to see this event grow bigger and bigger with each successive year.

At 1:00 pm, we invite you to gather your friends and family wherever you are and walk together. You’re encouraged to wear pink - Liz loved pink - or your new Matt-inspired shirts. Here’s how this becomes a “Walk Around the World: If everyone walks at their respective 1:00 pm, and we get at least one person in every time zone, it creates the effect of 24 hours of walking for Liz. Pretty fucking cool, right?

A Flickr site has been set up for this event. Take pictures walking wherever you are and upload them to the Flickr site so that everyone can see the worldwide participation. Click here for information on submitting your photos. In addition, a Paypal account will be set up (details to follow shortly) and you can make an optional $7 donation that will go to both Matt/Madeline and other young widows/widowers in need.

Should you reside in the MN and care to join the Creeps/Broads/Logelins/Goodmans (including Matt and Madeline), we will be at Lake Calhoun at 1:00 pm beginning in the area with the volleyball courts on the west side of the lake near West 36th Street. Just look for the man-sized Baby Bjorn, as Matt said his first 10k did him in and he’ll be looking to get carried for this gathering!

Questions? Leave them in the comments section and someone will answer them.

Hope to see you on the 21st!

Creep Becky

labor day & stuff....

ok, so here we go.....at least it hasn't been a full month since my last post! progress!

so......the kids went to PA for 2 whole weeks without us. it was so so hard to let them go (even knowing they would be safe & have a great time). but it got easier. in fact, i think mattie & i almost started to like it. nights out with friends & dinners out minus kiddie menus are things we don't get to do very often. so we did that a lot. i mean a whole lot!

but we were very ready to see them. so we drove the 18 hours nearly straight through. we stopped for a 3 hour nap at 4am, then kept on trucking....well, buicking. whatever. i was too damn tired to take my picture with the "smile you're in PA" sign at the welcome center. but damn was i smiling. driving through western PA made us realize how much we miss living there. so, hopefully, the job hunt will be back on in a year or 2.

anyway....back to the trip. we got to berwick friday afternoon & just relaxed. we got HUGE smiles out of the kids when we got there. it was awesome. saturday & sunday we spent in spring grove with my mom's fam (even the ones we don't like to be associated with). it was great catching up with them. it was like no time had passed at all. well, except for my cousins & me getting older and having more kids!

(6 of the 10 great grandkids)

(cousin jamie & me)

we made 1 last stop in southern PA to see my dad's dad. then we headed back to berwick for 2 days of swimming. wednesday & thursday mattie & i went to nyc to hang out with jonan. we checked out his ohsosmall apartment that's worth living in for the location. can you really beat a 1/2 block from times square? we had lunch at joshua tree (fab mojitos), checked out bryant park (project runway anyone?), walked around the city, had dinner at espnzone, saw rent, & hung out at the house of brews for awhile. we were dead tired by 130 when we finally crashed. the next morning we checked out the world trade center. our tour guides were a retired nyc firefighter who responded to the attacks on 9/11 & a mother who lost 1 of her 2 firefighter sons that day. their stories were incredibly sad, yet i wanted to hear more. we saw the firemen's memorial, station house 10, the american express memorial, & the progress they're making on rebuilding. building #7 is already complete. it was all very moving.

(firemen's memorial wall)

(american express memorial)

we headed back to berwick for one last dinner, packed up the car, & got some rest before the looong trip back.

it was the least relaxing vacation ever, but we can't wait to do it all again in 2 1/2 months!

(btw, this post took forever....i suck at this)

clearly, we need work.....

ah, so it's been over a month. no post. clearly we need to work on this! here's a rundown of what happened......friends were here from pa, parents were here from pa, beast turned 2, & the parents stole the kids away for 2 weeks. so, it's just mattie & me for 2 whole weeks before we travel to pa for a week. maybe i'll do a better job...maybe not. guess we'll have to wait & see.

getting started.....

at the urging of some fantastically creepy ladies, here goes the smith family blog.......
i have no idea how the hell to start, so sit back & enjoy the ride.