Natural Camper

We continued our Memorial Day weekend down to Lake Okoboji, Iowa for a couple night camping trip with the Kontak family. Harper wasn't very patient with the car ride portion of the trip, but I think it's safe to say he loves camping. All the new sights and sounds easily grabbed his attention. And surprisingly, Harper went to sleep for naps and bedtime much easier than I anticipated. He didn't once make a sound and just listened quietly to the frogs ribbiting, birds chirping and rain pitter-pattering as his eyelids slowly closed and he fell asleep. He slept better in our tent than some nights at home!

Aunt Kristen & Harper

Mexican Dutch Oven Dinner

Climbing up the slide

Tunnels!

Swinging

Our Campsite

Thankfully, Kristen, Aaron and my parents arrived early enough to snag a campsite that wasn't under water. By Sunday morning though, we had lots of mud. Harper did have one outfit that got disgustingly dirty, but we managed to hang onto him most of the time while at our campsite to keep him from being covered from head to toe. 

We unfortunately didn't get to enjoy the lake with the weather being so wet, but we spent some time at a boat museum and Arnold's Park where Harper rode a Merry-Go-Round for the first time.

Harper with Aunt Kristen & Uncle Aaron

Harper with Uncle Ryan. Harper was more interested in the garbage truck.

We can't wait to make more family camping memories!

Time with Trev

We started our Memorial weekend with some much needed time with my brother Trevor in Rochester. We first headed to the Plummer House, one of Trevor's favorite Rochester spots. They have some really nice gardens right on the bluff with a big open green space perfect for kicking around a ball (despite signs prohibiting "active" games). 

Checking out the abnormally turquoise pool and fountain

Kicking the ball to Uncle Trev

"Here you go, Uncle Trev."

Our little walker

Next, we headed to Newt's, known for their award winning burgers, for some yummy lunch. You can't leave Newt's without being completely stuffed. Even so, we had the energy to check out an awesome park just outside of downtown with some really big climbing and sliding toys at the playground. We also broke out the frisbee. Trev is an awesome at throwing and catching a frisbee and puts me to shame. Let's just say a couple of times I threw the frisbee backwards. Yikes.

Lastly, we ended our visit with Trev at Culver's for some refreshing custard. It was such a beautiful, warm, sunny day. We look forward to our next trip to Rochester for more fun with Trev.

Harper's One Year Photos

We had our good friend Erin take Harper's one-year photos at the beginning of May, and I can't express how THRILLED I am with how they turned out. The day was supposed to be sunny and moderately warm, but it ended up being cold, windy, and overcast. Nevertheless, Erin managed to capture some amazing photos of our little guy and our family that I will treasure forever and ever.

Click here to take a look!

Erin, thank you so so much!

Windom Park, Hidden Treasures, and other Adventures

Today was a fun day. After Harper's morning nap, we headed to Northeast Minneapolis to meet our friends Katie and Jozef at Windom Park. Windom Park has a special place in my heart as I used to take the two boys I nannied there every day I watched them when the weather was nice. We enjoyed a little picnic and some time on the playground. Harper especially loved the swings and slide along with feeling the sand between his fingers. Also, don't you think it's funny how kids always want what each other has? Jozef was always trying to get his hands on Harper's sippy cup and visa versa. Silly boys. Cute, but silly.

Next, Katie took us over to Hidden Treasures, a thrift store in the area. Katie found a nice top and super cute dress that happened to be BCBG. I found a top and skirt, which I later learned was a designer skirt and was probably at least $500 regular price, some non-breakable plates for when we eat outside, and a baking pan that has an indent on the top, so after you bake the cake you can fill the indent with lemon curd, chocolate pudding, etc. Katie let me borrow a similar cake pan she found there at an earlier date, and I was super excited they had another one. It's a really nice thrift store that doesn't pack their shelves so full you can't find something. They also have a lot of good quality and brand clothes. Even though it doesn't make the clothes worth more being brand name or designer, it's nice to find well-made, good quality clothes for only $2-3. We had such a fun time thrifting, I think we may just go back again next week!

Back in South Minneapolis, Harper finished his nap after falling asleep on the way home. Upon waking up, I quickly drew a bubble bath as he was pretty filthy after walking and crawling through the dandelions and sand at the park. Harper had a lesson in what floats? as he or I would push his rubber ducky below the surface, watch it pop back up to the surface, and giggle in excitement. Such simple happiness. After dinner, we went for a walk to the creek and back, then ended the night with more playing and laughing...so much laughing tonight! Josh came home a little early to catch some giggles and play time himself before Harper had to head to bed.

These are the days I want to last forever. Simple fun. Smiles galore. Lotsa love.

13 Months

Our older than one-year-old boy is seriously on the go and is learning new things every day. Since Harper turned one, he has become a much more confident walker and is getting close to giving up crawling all together. He knows sounds for lots of animals including fish, elephant, lion, frog, bunny, monkey, cow, and duck. Along with ball, book, mama, and dada, he also knows hi, yeah, and bye. He loves to push things around the house and rearrange the furniture. He goes to bed around 8pm and wakes up around 6am. He has 7 teeth, three on top and four on the bottom. He does not like to brush his teeth. He still isn't a fan of bike rides, but we're working on getting him used to them. He'll eat pretty much anything and especially loves yogurt for breakfast. Oh, and he doesn't like to have his diaper changed and is getting less cooperative in general...I guess that will continue as he gets closer to being a toddler. Even so, we love him more than anything and can't get enough of his smiles and silly faces.

Pattern not included.

I've broken away from the comfort of a pattern and finished a couple small projects on my sewing to-do list. Granted these aren't complicated projects, but my own none-the-less. Harper's growth chart was a lot of fun to make. I used scraps of already owned fabric for the numbers and the brown rectangles and purchased some charcoal corduroy for the background, yellow grosgrain ribbon for the measuring tape and orange pearl cotton thread for the hand sewing. I plan to use various recycled buttons laying around to mark his height each year. I'm not sure if I'll actually hang it up at this point as he will most certainly just pull it off the wall.

The other quickie I put together was a lumbar pillow for our blue chair we bought back in January. The fabric is by Dwell Studio, which I purchased at Calico Corners. I had my eye on this fabric for awhile but never ordered it since I'm cheap and don't want to pay full price or shipping online. I just happened to walk in Calico Corners while they were having a sale, and it's always free shipping! The pillow cover is made from two rectangles sewn right sides together with an invisible zipper along one long edge. The pillow form is a down one from Crate and Barrel. I have another pillow started (although from a pattern and more complicated so it might be a couple weeks) for the sofa, then I'm planning on making a couple more. I don't have fabric for those yet. The last few things I need for the living room before it's complete are a new rug, floor lamp, a couple ottomans/end tables, and a few accent pieces. It's coming together slowly but surely.

Tomorrow I head to my sister's for a sewing weekend with our mom and some friends. I'm bringing along a quilting project I've had for...well, let's just say it's been a couple years. It won't get done, but I'm hoping it will motivate me to finish it before another year goes by!

Sunny days & Rainy days

This past Saturday was one of those really great days you don't want to end. My parents drove up for the day, and since it was sunny and warm, we headed over to Lake Calhoun for a walk and lunch at the Tin Fish. The line was pretty long (it was the nicest day in weeks!), but Grandpa K had fun taking Harper around to the dock and shoreline to check out the water, ducks, boats, rocks, you name it. Lunch at the Tin Fish always makes for a nice day too.

We had to beeline it back from the lake so my mom and I could change into our dresses and hats and head over to church for a Ladies' Afternoon Tea. Doesn't my mom look fabulous?! Everything from cucumber sandwiches to lavender scones to chocolate dipped strawberries to lemon tarts...pretty much anything that reminds you of afternoon tea was there. They had a photographer there to take posed photos, so once I get my copy via email, I'll post it for you to see us together. We had a great time visiting with other ladies, enjoying treats and tea, and admiring everyone's hats. I'm so glad my mom was there so I could treat her for Mother's Day.

Back at home, we spent more time outdoors while Josh grilled up some burgers and asparagus for dinner. Harper was loving watching and chasing after the bubbles. This is when Josh snapped that super sweet photo of Harper and my dad.

Harper's still practicing his walking and continues to get more balanced and confident day by day. He usually gets too excited and lunges for those last couple steps like in this picture:

Mother's day started off with church, then I spent some extra special time cuddling with my baby. It was a rainy day, so our plans for a bike ride were canceled. Boo. Josh made lunch, dinner (our friends Erik and Lara joined us and brought wine!), and a homemade cheesecake for dessert. Then, he did ALL the dishes. It's amazing to be a mommy to such a wonderful little boy. I love him so much!

Bittersweet Mother's Day

I'm left here alone as Harper's taking a nap and Josh is making a run to the grocery store. I made myself a pot of black tea in a delicate tea set my mom gifted me from the Czech Republic and brought out some leftover treats from the afternoon tea we attended yesterday. I started thinking about Mother's Day and how wonderful of a day it can be when you have a sweet baby in the room next door and when you're mom is able to pop over for a visit. I'm also thinking of how difficult and sad Mother's Day can be when a baby is lost to or when a child dies or when a mother is gone. Just like Christmas, birthdays, and almost every holiday, Mother's Day can be bittersweet. Tears are welling in my eyes.

I remember my first baby whom I was never given the chance to meet. I cry for friends and women I know who have also lost a baby and have experienced similar devastating losses.

I cry for my sister who has been advised not to have her own children because of her unique heart condition and for their long and difficult process of adoption. I also cry for those who long to be a mom and never had the chance.

I cry for my cousins, Sabrina and Jordin, whose loving mom died too early. I'm sad for my mom as she deeply misses her mom and all the memories they could have shared in the time past.

I cry for my friend Kari and her baby who were killed in a car accident and for their mourning families, but rejoice that Kari and baby are together in heaven.

I cry for the many moms divided from their children by distance, war, natural disaster, and evil.

There are many ways in which Mother's Day reminds us of want and loss, and yet I ultimately choose to rejoice in the blessing God has given me and cherish every moment I'm given with my baby boy. I will not take it for granted as I recognize what a gift it is to be a mom.

One day, when we are all joined together with Christ in heaven, I imagine a Mother's Day where every woman and child is invited to attend the biggest tea party ever. Only then will all pain and sorrow disappear, and we will all be able to endlessly celebrate love and moms with those around us and those lost and missed.

Shot of the day

I have so much more to share with you about today, but I just had to quickly post this wonderful photo Josh took of Harper and my dad.

Now that's love. Frozen in time forever.

What I love about having a one-year-old...

I love watching Harper soak up every new experience, sight, sound, smell, and taste. We met up with our friends Katie and her son Jozef at the Como Zoo, and unlike the last time Josh and I took Harper to the zoo, I could really tell he was processing what he was experiencing. He was sometimes quiet and pensive, other times focused with little "comments" here and there. It was obvious Harper saw the polar bears, monkeys, fish, and reindeer, but the chain link fence was also a highlight. Oh, and about new tastes: Harper recently had strawberries for the first time, and sometimes he really likes them, and other times it appears strawberries are tart like warheads. So funny.

I love watching Harper's gross motor skills develop as he discovers new ways of moving around. Today he seemed pretty set on getting around on all fours when not trying to walk. Maybe it's a new found love of feeling his feet press against the ground, or maybe just an awkward in between stage of crawling and walking. Or maybe yet something he learned from those monkeys he saw today! Whatever it is, it's fun to watch him waddle back and forth. He's also getting much more confident with walking and even stands up while supporting himself on a ball, then picks up the ball, then takes a few steps while still holding onto the ball (that's half his size). He's also taking much more initiative to walk on his own instead of Josh or me encouraging him.

I love seeing Harper discover how to actually use his toys and figure out what purpose something has. He got an ark full of animals for his birthday from my parents, and he now knows that all the animals belong in the ark, and he works on putting them in the openings and taking the ark "lid" off and on again. He does his best to stack buckets and cups. He drives tractors and trucks around on the floor. He works on puzzles. Everything doesn't always go in his mouth anymore...unless it's a leaf or other organic object. We're still working on that as we spend more and more time outdoors.

I love how flexible babies' legs are. I love that Harper is now tall enough that I can cradle my arm under his bum and his legs wrap around me. I especially love when he has fallen asleep in the car and his body is limp against mine as I transfer him into his crib. There's something wonderful about having his legs tucked around me, his arms pulled in close to his sides, and his tired head resting on my shoulder. It's a good reminder that even though Harper is growing up and becoming a young toddler, he still needs and loves his mommy and daddy.