Thursday, February 26, 2009
Update
Well, it has been a hectic month. Here is an update on the lives of the Petersen 4:
Nikki: I went back to work full time at the end of January. I am spending Monday, Tuesday, half day Thursday, and all of Friday between Pea Ridge lower elementary, upper elementary and Junior High. I am really enjoying the new group of clients, and the fantastic office that is located on the campus, but in it's own building. I even have my own bathroom in my office (which, sometimes isn't a plus when stinky little 6 year olds come in and do their business). I am readjusting to life as a full time therapist, full time mommy, full time wife, and full time home maker. The latter part is definitely suffering, but I am thankful to my sweet husband for picking up the slack.
Nick: Nick has been super busy with carpet cleaning. Unfortunately, we have been having some malfunctions with his machine. 3 trips to the shop, $500.00, 2 belts, a new pump, and a super tune up and the machine is running fantastic. Due to the issues, we had to reschedule many of his jobs at the beginning of the week (sorry Valerie), but were still able to squeeze in THIRTEEN jobs in 4 days!!!! Woohoo!!! (I'm saying woohoo...Nick is saying..."Holy cow, when can I rest?!") He submitted his application to the U of A for the fall, so we will see what will happen with that. He has been so intrigued with my stories from work that he thinks he would like to go into the mental health field as well and get his MSW.
Brody: Brody is currently working on sleep training right now. Which means that instead of him staying up as late as he would like, watching Bill O'Reilly and Glenn Beck with Dad at night, and sleeping wherever he would like, he now gets a 7:30 bedtime. New bed time rules also: #1: We stay in our bed. #2: We keep our eyes closed. #3: We get a sticker on our bed time chart if we sleep all night in our big boy bed. Sticker= Treat. Brody is also working on potty training...slowly but surely. We are applying for him to attend mom's day out at the Bentonville Church of Christ 1 day a week. He is really looking forward to school!
Peyton: On Monday, I took Peyton to get her ears pierced. She looks so cute, and did so well. The ear piercer lady (I don't know what else to call her) said that she was the best baby she has ever pierced. Peyton is crawling like crazy! She has brought us into a whole new world that we never experienced with Brody. Brody was always good about keeping things out of his mouth and not getting into things he wasn't supposed to. With Peyton, it's the opposite. She keeps me running! She is babbling a lot, saying dadadadada, and babababababa....still no mamamamama...but we are working on it. She is also sleep training which means crying it out in her crib til she falls alseep. Last night was 2 hours, tonight it was an hour and 25 minutes. Hopefully tomorrow it will be dramatically less crying. I hate to hear my babies crying, but this will be the best thing for us all if they can get on a good schedule.
Finally, the entire Petersen family will be heading out on Saturday, March 7 for 10 beautiful days in Hawaii! Thanks Dad, June, Grandma and Grandpa for making that possible! We are so excited to be able to stay at our family beach house (www.gillinbeachhouse.com) and spend time with our extended family that we don't get to see very often! We are especially looking forward to my grandmother and great aunt's 80th birthday!!
Nikki: I went back to work full time at the end of January. I am spending Monday, Tuesday, half day Thursday, and all of Friday between Pea Ridge lower elementary, upper elementary and Junior High. I am really enjoying the new group of clients, and the fantastic office that is located on the campus, but in it's own building. I even have my own bathroom in my office (which, sometimes isn't a plus when stinky little 6 year olds come in and do their business). I am readjusting to life as a full time therapist, full time mommy, full time wife, and full time home maker. The latter part is definitely suffering, but I am thankful to my sweet husband for picking up the slack.
Nick: Nick has been super busy with carpet cleaning. Unfortunately, we have been having some malfunctions with his machine. 3 trips to the shop, $500.00, 2 belts, a new pump, and a super tune up and the machine is running fantastic. Due to the issues, we had to reschedule many of his jobs at the beginning of the week (sorry Valerie), but were still able to squeeze in THIRTEEN jobs in 4 days!!!! Woohoo!!! (I'm saying woohoo...Nick is saying..."Holy cow, when can I rest?!") He submitted his application to the U of A for the fall, so we will see what will happen with that. He has been so intrigued with my stories from work that he thinks he would like to go into the mental health field as well and get his MSW.
Brody: Brody is currently working on sleep training right now. Which means that instead of him staying up as late as he would like, watching Bill O'Reilly and Glenn Beck with Dad at night, and sleeping wherever he would like, he now gets a 7:30 bedtime. New bed time rules also: #1: We stay in our bed. #2: We keep our eyes closed. #3: We get a sticker on our bed time chart if we sleep all night in our big boy bed. Sticker= Treat. Brody is also working on potty training...slowly but surely. We are applying for him to attend mom's day out at the Bentonville Church of Christ 1 day a week. He is really looking forward to school!
Peyton: On Monday, I took Peyton to get her ears pierced. She looks so cute, and did so well. The ear piercer lady (I don't know what else to call her) said that she was the best baby she has ever pierced. Peyton is crawling like crazy! She has brought us into a whole new world that we never experienced with Brody. Brody was always good about keeping things out of his mouth and not getting into things he wasn't supposed to. With Peyton, it's the opposite. She keeps me running! She is babbling a lot, saying dadadadada, and babababababa....still no mamamamama...but we are working on it. She is also sleep training which means crying it out in her crib til she falls alseep. Last night was 2 hours, tonight it was an hour and 25 minutes. Hopefully tomorrow it will be dramatically less crying. I hate to hear my babies crying, but this will be the best thing for us all if they can get on a good schedule.
Finally, the entire Petersen family will be heading out on Saturday, March 7 for 10 beautiful days in Hawaii! Thanks Dad, June, Grandma and Grandpa for making that possible! We are so excited to be able to stay at our family beach house (www.gillinbeachhouse.com) and spend time with our extended family that we don't get to see very often! We are especially looking forward to my grandmother and great aunt's 80th birthday!!
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Thank You...
I checked my mail today, and found in it a card. The card had no return address, and there was no note inside. Just a Walmart giftcard. So, if you were the person who did that selfless act, then I want to thank you! With the economy being the way it is, and the Walmart job cuts that occured yesterday, that card was the last thing I ever expected to receive! It will be well used, and well appreciated. I also fully intend to pay that good deed forward in any way I can. What a humbling experience and testimony builder of how good people truly can be, even in the hardest of times.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Lazy, Crazy, Saturday
Today is my first full day home with the kids since I went back to work full time. Nick had to work for Roark today, and I really wanted to go and do something fun. I was thinking about taking them to the drive through safari in gentry, or going and having a picnic at the park. However, Peyton is sick with another cold (what is her deal???). So, we decided to stay home. We did have to go to Walmart this afternoon to get some more cold medicine, and while we were there, I decided to hit the toy department to see what was on clearance. I scored BIG time! I got this "Outdoor Adventure" set for $7.00!!! It came with a tent, a working camera (no film though), binoculars, a compass, a working watch, a telescope, and a flashlight. Brody LOVES it! We decided to set up camp in our living room and build a fort. After the construction was done, we had a picnic of strawberries, grapes, cheese, carrots and broccolli (Brody BEGGED me to buy broccolli at Walmart so he could "eat trees like dinosaurs".) We wound up spending the day in the fort coloring, working on alphabet flash cards, eating our picnic, and watching "Yo Gabba Gabba". Brody also "took pictures" of everything we did! What a fun Saturday!
Yummy Picnic!
Peyton crawling into camp (yes I know her outfit doesn't match...she blew out her other pants)
He really did like the strawberry, my camera just took the picture at an awkward moment
Mommy LOVES strawberries!
"Fort Petersen"
Brody playing with his camera
Peypey watching "Yo Gabba Gabba"
"Gimme some!"
His tool set that came with the tent
Peyton eating a carrot and Brody taking a picture of her
Yummy Picnic!
Peyton crawling into camp (yes I know her outfit doesn't match...she blew out her other pants)
He really did like the strawberry, my camera just took the picture at an awkward moment
Mommy LOVES strawberries!
"Fort Petersen"
Brody playing with his camera
Peypey watching "Yo Gabba Gabba"
"Gimme some!"
His tool set that came with the tent
Peyton eating a carrot and Brody taking a picture of her
The tent
Wendy's Shower
Thursday night, Sara Visser, Desi Chandler, and I held a baby shower for our dear friend, Wendy Koster. Wendy has 4 little boys and is FINALLY having her little girl! I took some pictures while prepping for the shower, but unfortunately, forgot to take pictures of the shower itself. These are what I was able to take though.
Cutie pie jumping so mommy could get stuff done
"I'm not touching, I'm just smelling, mom!"
I had just caught him sticking his finger in the frosting
Cutie pie jumping so mommy could get stuff done
"I'm not touching, I'm just smelling, mom!"
I had just caught him sticking his finger in the frosting
How cute is this cupcake cake?
Ice Storm
A couple of weeks ago, we had a huge ice storm come through Northwest Arkansas. It left us stranded for 4 1/2 days, and many without electricity. Some of my friends were out of power for over 7 days. We had crews come in from North Carolina, Kansas, and Missouri to help our electric companies restore power throughout NWA. There was a lot of tree damage. My inlaws had a great deal of damage to their fence, roof, and yard. My sister in law also had trees fall on her car, creating the need for a brand new windshield. Brody was scared throughout the storm and kept saying "Trees are falling. It cares (scares) me!" 9 people died, and there were several injured. I am thankful that it is *almost* all melted and the roads are safe again!
These are some pictures from my front yard the morning after the storm began. It kept icing for another 18 hours after these pictures were taken.
The grass looked really cool!
My Bushes
Don't stand under these!
These are some pictures from my front yard the morning after the storm began. It kept icing for another 18 hours after these pictures were taken.
We were so worried our tree would fall! :o)
The grass looked really cool!
My Bushes
Don't stand under these!
The neighborhood...it didn't look bad, but the roads were pure ice under the dusting of snow
Safety First!
Brody has really gotten into wearing his helmet everywhere he goes. He wears it when he rides his scooter or bike, when he goes to the store, riding in the car, or just hanging around the house. At least he knows how to stay safe from things falling on his head! 
Oreos and Pasta anyone?
A couple of weeks ago (yes, it has been too long since I have blogged), Nick was having a really bad day. I went to the store to get something for dinner. I bought salad, tortellini, marinara, and garlic bread. We have been eating really healthy, but that day was most definitely a "treat" kind of day. I scurried down to the bakery to see if there was anything yummy. Nothing caught my eye. So, then I went down to the ice cream. Again, ice cream just wasn't going to cut it. So, I decided to head down the cookie/cracker aisle. That's where I saw them: Chocolate creme double stuffed oreos! PERFECT! I picked up a gallon of fat free milk (because we OBVIOUSLY didn't need any extra calories) and headed on my way. Nick was thrilled with my purchase! After our delicious pasta dinner, it was time for dessert. Brody indulged. I indulged. Nick overindulged. Then, as I was cleaning the kitchen, Peyton was screaming and I heard Nick trying to calm her down. After a few minutes she became silent and I went to see what he had done to calm her down. This is what I found:
Daddy knows what girls like!
Brody really enjoyed his Pasta:
And we really enjoyed our oreos:
No, we did not eat ALL those oreos. Brody was taking them out of the package and piling them up on the kitchen table. :o) But, we did eat A LOT!
Daddy knows what girls like!Brody really enjoyed his Pasta:
And we really enjoyed our oreos:
No, we did not eat ALL those oreos. Brody was taking them out of the package and piling them up on the kitchen table. :o) But, we did eat A LOT!
Let's see what we can get done...
Peyton is sleeping and Brody is watching "Toot and Puddle"...let's see if I can get some blogging done!
Monday, February 2, 2009
2/2/2009
Opening Song: "A Happy Family"
Opening Prayer: Brody "Heavenly Father, Thank you for this day. Amen."
Lesson: Tonight, we looked at a picture of a temple, and talked about how our family got sealed for eternity, when Brody was 3 months old, in the St. Louis Temple. We talked about how beautiful and sacred temples are. We also looked at a picture of Christ and talked about how much we loved Jesus Christ.
Brody commented on the picture of "The Second Coming" we have hanging abover our fireplace. He spoke to the picture and said "Hi Jesus Christ. You coming to us house? When you coming home? And you in the clouds?" I love that Brody is beginning to have a relationship with Christ. He is so pure and innocent. I love his desire to say prayers and read the scriptures. He is going to be such a righteous young man.
Daddy's favorite memory from tonight is: when Brody was singing. His voice is so beautiful. Peypey and I had a nice carrot snack as well.
Mommy's favorite memory: When we sang "Happy Family" Brody pointed out that the song sounded a lot like the Barney song. I have a feeling that he is going to very musically inclined. He picks up tunes all the time and can tell you the song the tune goes with. Peyton kept looking at me and smiling while she was eating. I can tell that she and I are going to be very very close.
No pictures tonight because the camera batteries died. :o(
Opening Prayer: Brody "Heavenly Father, Thank you for this day. Amen."
Lesson: Tonight, we looked at a picture of a temple, and talked about how our family got sealed for eternity, when Brody was 3 months old, in the St. Louis Temple. We talked about how beautiful and sacred temples are. We also looked at a picture of Christ and talked about how much we loved Jesus Christ.
Brody commented on the picture of "The Second Coming" we have hanging abover our fireplace. He spoke to the picture and said "Hi Jesus Christ. You coming to us house? When you coming home? And you in the clouds?" I love that Brody is beginning to have a relationship with Christ. He is so pure and innocent. I love his desire to say prayers and read the scriptures. He is going to be such a righteous young man.
Daddy's favorite memory from tonight is: when Brody was singing. His voice is so beautiful. Peypey and I had a nice carrot snack as well.
Mommy's favorite memory: When we sang "Happy Family" Brody pointed out that the song sounded a lot like the Barney song. I have a feeling that he is going to very musically inclined. He picks up tunes all the time and can tell you the song the tune goes with. Peyton kept looking at me and smiling while she was eating. I can tell that she and I are going to be very very close.
No pictures tonight because the camera batteries died. :o(
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