More Projects

Preschool is going great for the boys. Clifford is continuing learning his ABC's. He actually has a "homework" assignment. The class is working on learning their phone numbers (they even made "cell phones"). So Pete and I are going to start practicing with Clifford. Hopefully he'll get the hang of it. During the last few weeks both boys' classes have been learning about the season of winter, winter animals (polar bears, penguins, etc) and careers. Last week the boys took there favorite stuff animal and became "veterinarians" for the day. On another day, Clifford's class loved being "letter" detectives, and had fun discussing their "clues" over "coffee" and donuts. Here's some pics of their recent projects.

A Great Weekend

Last Thursday our good friend Jolie and her three kids (Joanna, Jaclyn and Jayden) came to visit and stay with us until Sunday. When we lived in Ellensburg we were each other's backyard neighbor. Our kids have played with each other since they were babies. Joanna had a preschool field trip to the Seattle's Children Museum on Friday. So Jolie took her and Clifford on the field trip while I took her two youngest and Kristjan. Clifford had lots of fun with Jolie and Joanna. I decided to be brave and ran errands and grocery shopped with three kids 3 and under. That was exhausting! Lets just say I was ready to drop by the time we got home!! We all had fun visiting and keeping the kids busy with swimming and tons of playing.

Clifford's Birthday Party

Today was the day-Clifford's Birthday Party. Including the boys, I had 11 kids in the house running around, being loud, having tons of fun. I made sure to get up early this morning so I'd have plenty of time to decorate the cake and the house as well as make sure I looked decent for the party. Pete made homemade pizza for the party, even with homemade crust! It was delicious. Per Clifford's request, the theme for his party this year was Star Wars. With the pizza, I served up some Yoda Soda's (those were a hit even with the parents!). In between all the fun I had all the kids go play in the boys' room. It looks like a tornado hit it! But I expected a huge mess with all those kids and don't mind. The kids played a Star Wars game and attacked the Darth Vader pinata that I stuffed full of candy and stickers (sorry parents!). With any kids party, opening gifts is always the exciting part. I instructed each of the kids to grab the gift they brought for Clifford and to sit on the floor next to him. Then one by one I had them give their gift. This worked out good. It was controlled chaos. I think it only took about 5 minutes to open up all the gifts! And I'm not sure how I did it, but I managed to write down who gave what so that Clifford and I could work on "thank you" cards tomorrow. I scheduled the party for two hours, but it ended up being done a half hour early. It was a great party, and Pete and I enjoyed socializing with all the parents who stayed. Now on to planning the next birthday party!!!!

Happy Birthday Clifford!!

Clifford George Nielsen II is 5 years old today!! Time is really going by super fast. Clifford is a wonderful blessing! I feel like it was just yesterday that I was in the hospital holding my first newborn. It's been amazing watching him grow and develop his own personality. I say it all the time, but this boy is ALL BOY. He loves running around and playing in the dirt. His life is Star Wars, Legos and Army Men. His alter-ego is Luke Skywalker. He prefers white cake/ice cream over chocolate. It's hard to get him to eat his meals, but if you serve pasta, he'll ask for thirds. He's a candy-holic. I joke that Clifford is definitely a "Nielsen". He's hard headed just like his daddy and papa (haha). He makes friends easily. He is super smart. Clifford is loved by everyone!!! He loves all his cousins, but his best friend is his cousin Howard. If I remember correctly, as babies, Clifford wasn't too fond of Howard. But now, when they're together, they're inseparable. Since he was a baby, he loves his hammer and following his papa around on the farm. He has just entered the world of camping/hiking, and his daddy couldn't be more excited! Clifford thinks his mommy is annoying, but runs to her first when his feelings are hurt or when he wants to cuddle. He constantly picks on his brother Kristjan, but is extremely defensive if anyone else picks on him. I could go on and on. I love my little boy. I'm so happy he is part of our family. Happy Birthday Clifford!!!!!

A Beautiful Day!

Today is a sunny beautiful day! So what better way to spend the day than to go outside and ride bikes!!! The boys got new bikes for Christmas and since the weather has been rainy (imagine that), they've only been able to ride them once. When we got home today from preschool we went straight to our "backyard" and hopped on our bikes. Kristjan still has training wheels one. Maybe this summer Pete will help him learn to ride without them. Clifford is doing really well on two wheels but this bike is a little too tall for him and he has trouble getting on the bike by himself w/o someone holding the bike for him.

New School Projects!

School is Back in Session!!!

I think last Monday was the day every parent was excited to see come-back to school for the kiddos!! Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the Christmas break and not having to wake up at 5:30am and drive the kids back and worth to preschool. But it was great to get back to a normal schedule. The first week back went great. The boys have already been coming home with more cute art projects. Also this week we found out that registration is only a few weeks away-another year of preschool for Kristjan and KINDERGARTEN for CLIFFORD!!! OH MY GOSH! Clifford will be turning 5 soon AND starting kindergarten in September!!! Time is flying bye. At the new Lynnwood High School, the school district (which we're in the Edmonds School District) held a "fair", where every elementary, middle and junior high school had booths with info. Clifford will be attending Martha Lake Elementary. We met with the kindergarten teacher, and also with (i'm assuming) the principle. All were very nice. I received the registration packet, which I've already filled completely. But I can't turn it in until the 25th at 10am. Knowing me I'll be there 10 minutes early, first in line, ready to sign my baby boy up! I'm also excited because in the packet was the school supply list. Pete laughed at me when he saw the excitement in my face over this. With me being the planner, I'm sure I'll have everything he needs for school before this current school year is up! As for Kristjan, we decided we will continue preschool at First Lutheran. I love it and so does he. I'll still have to make the drive for another year but it'll only be for three days. I think I can manage that. What I can't manage is Clifford already requesting to ride the school bus to school! He declared at dinner a few nights ago that "I need to ride the school bus because mom talks too much to me in the car and I need some alone time". Gosh, my boys are growing up way too fast!

Goodbye 2009, Hello 2010

We're so excited for the new year. 2009 was a roller coaster of a year, with lots of great adventures but also too many horrible adventures as well. Here's a list, in no particular order, of the good and bad of 2009.

The Good:

we moved to a bigger, less expensive apartment. it's not as nice as the old place, but we were finally able to get our finances in order since graduating from college.

both boys started preschool, much to my delight. they both love it and are learning lots!

we had an excellent time going out backpacking as a family. pete and clifford went out 5 times while kristjan and i joined them for 3 out of the 5. Plus we got in a snowshoeing day hike!

earlier in february, i got back in contact with my dad and sisters. that was very exciting! i feel like it was meant to be; that if this had happened anytime sooner in my life that it would have just been a mess. i've grown up a lot and have dealt with any issues or feelings i may of had about this topic, and it's worked out great.

pete went on a work trip to san diego during the summer. he loves his job! his boss and co-workers are impressed with him as well. i'm proud of my babe!

other than student loans, we went in to the new year with out any debt!!!! right before christmas we were able to finish up paying off les schwab and a medical bill we had floating around. yahoo!!!!

The Bad:

kristjan had WAY TOO MANY visits to the hospital! at the beginning of the year, he got his first set of stitches smack dab in the middle of his forehead! summer time, he taste tested some paint thinner! luckily, the blood test at the hospital came back negative! also in the summer, he smacked his mouth on the sidewalk and the nerve in one of his front teeth died! THEN right before christmas, he hit his head and passed out! luckily, again, he turned out fine!

so the worst thing to have happened to us in 2009 was having to deal with stupid people and them calling cps on us for having peanut butter in our house!!!! stupid, stupid, stupid. we take every proper precaution with our son kristjan and his nut allergy. BUT we refuse to keep him in a bubble! do we not allow him to go to school, to the grocery store, birthday parties or even the park in fear of him coming in contact with nuts?! no! you allow him to live his life (and us as well) and be prepared. and we're not doing clifford any good by keeping him away from nuts/peanut butter. their allergist said that we risk having clifford develop a nut allergy as well by keeping it out of his diet! we just take the necessary precautions. they would never admit it, but we have a few ideas why they're being stupid and made those allegations, particularly his mom. for one, i flat out told her no! she does not like to be told no. this is my life and my child. pete and i will raise our children the way we want to, not how she thinks we should. BEING A GRANDPARENT IS A PRIVILEGE, NOT A RIGHT. so unless my child is bleeding and dying, keep your damn mouth shut. another reason we feel there's issues is because we've slowly strayed away from the LDS church, and are happy with our decision. we still love the belief of the church in regards to family. but we refuse to be "hardcore" in the church (like some members of his family). we believe in god and jesus and will raise our kids that way. and family comes first for us. we'd much rather spend time together doing something as a family than sitting in a building for 3 longs hours bored to death. from the sound of the things that was said at our last family reunion, his mom has a big issue with this. whatever!


BUT it's a new year! We're looking forward to the many exciting adventures that awaits us! Happy New Year!

Bye Bye Max

Max is a great dog. We couldn't have asked for a more obedient, loving dog. Since getting Max, however, the boys have been having some issues. Both boys have been tested and are allergic to dogs. But they don't always have an allergy issue with all dogs that they've come in contact with. They've been fine, for example, around Chica, Pete's parents chihuahua, yet they both can't be around Pugs, Uncle Carl's pug dog. We were hoping there wouldn't be an issue with Max. But there was. Ever since getting him (we had him for less than a week), everyday the boys' eyes were red, they'd be coughing or sniffling, and it just never seemed to improve. And we didn't want to keep our boys drugged up on benedryl everyday, so on Sunday morning it was decided that we would need to find our Max a new home. And we did! I'm really sad about it, but I know he's with an excellent family. We met with them and talked for a bit. Even later Sunday evening Max's new "mom" emailed me to say he was adjusting just fine and if I ever wanted to see pics of him in the future, that she would be more than happy to send me some. I guess we're just not meant to have a dog. Or we have to at least wait until we have a fenced yard and then we can have an outside dog. Bye Bye Max!

Our New Dog Max!

Meet Max, our new family dog. He's a miniature pincher, 4 years old, potty trained, and obedient. He came home to us last night. So far we are really impressed with him. Pete spoiled him last night by putting him in bed with us. I think Pete cuddled with him more than he did with me! It was nice waking up in the morning with warm feet from Max sleeping on top of them all night!

A Day of Snowshoeing

At Pete's work, their new engineer Lee used to work for MSR. Lee has a buddy who still works for that company and mentioned to Pete about how his buddy can get brand new gear for dirt cheap! So Pete put in an order through this guy for some snowshoes for all of us and told him the max we were willing to spend. It turns out he was able to find some for all of us for way under our maximum limit. One of our christmas gifts to the boys was brand new kid snowshoes. This last Saturday we headed up Snoqualmie Pass for a day of fun in the snow. Clifford was a pro walking in his snowshoes almost immediately. Kristjan, however, took a little more time getting used walking like a penguin. The trail was easy and the scenery was beautiful. The boys had fun playing in the snow and sliding down the side of the mountain on their butts on our way back to the van.

Christmas 2009

Best Friends

Earlier this week the Brignone kids came over to visit with the boys. It went really well. All the kids were excited to see each other.

Boys' Christmas Party

On Wednesday and Friday of last week, the boys' preschool class each had their "Birthday Party for Jesus". Each student signed up to bring an item for the party (Clifford took xmas plates and Kristjan took sprinkles). They have a little party and come home with lots of little gifts and crafts. I always look forward to their homemade christmas ornaments. This year, Clifford made a wreath out of his handprints. I love it! At the last 15 minutes of class, parents get to come watch the kids sing some Christmas songs. I had so much fun watching my boys try to sing and do the hand motions to the songs. It was great! Now, they're both off for the next two weeks and don't return back to school until the new year!