Mommie Shannie.....???

Yah...that is what Sydney been calling me the past two days. Kinda cute, but not sure if I want her calling me "Shannie". That is what Dave calls me a lot, so I am sure that is where it came from.

I brought the kids to their swimming class. It was a success!! They both stayed in the pool, and were definitely enjoying themselves. They are in the same class, because they are at the same level. We brought Jacob to a few classes when he was younger. The instructor seems really good, so hopefully they'll emerge with being more comfortable in the water, and we can move to level 2. :)

First Night Away...

Last week Dave and I were able to get out together 3 times!!! That is a record. We had a blast together, it was so nice to get some quality time together.
Monday night we went to the Best of the Best in Mpls. It is big event hosted by Mpls St.Paul Magazine. We sampled great food and wine. We ran into some friends there. The event was a lot of fun, but a little crowded. We stayed overnight at Graves 601. (thanks to my sister Amy who came and stayed with all the kids) My poor sister. Regan always sleeps great, but she must have know I wasn't there because she was up a lot of the night....Sorry Amy!!!

Friday night we went to the Wine Makers Dinner at Solera. It was wonderful. 9 wines were paired with 5 courses...yum! Each course was made by one of the 4 popular twin cities chefs. We were able to hear directly from some of the wine makers that spoke at the event. We stopped at Spill the Wine on the way home for a quick dessert.

We were so thankful to get some time together and be out having fun!

Cheese Balls Anyone?

The other day I was nursing Regan in her room. Some days that can be a daring thing...because that means that the other two could be doing who knows what elsewhere in the house. (per Dr. John's recommendation; feed Regan with minimal distractions...ha!) So, I try. Anyway, I finished feeding Regan just in time for Jacob to tell me that he had made lunch for everyone. Slight concern ran through my head for what diaster I might find in the kitchen. I was pleasantly surprised.... He had created a Cheeseball "bowl". He even garnished it with some fine crackers! His Nana brought over a ginormous container of cheeseballs over to Sydney's birthday party. Atleast they are being used/eaten. Jake was quite proud that he had made me my lunch. He even selected his favorite green frog bowl for me. So sweet....I didn't have the heart to tell him I wasn't going to eat it.

Omega 3's

I had dinner with some of my girlfriends from college and we got on the topic of the importance of Omega 3 fatty acids. I just threw some info together to email them, so I thought I'd also add it to my blog.

Here is some information about Omega3’s that we were talking about. You definitely want to buy good quality.

Good brands for Kids: Nordic Naturals ($25) and Carlson (I linked their sites)
We give the kids Nordic Naturals and Omegaplex (depends on what they feel like taking)
Dave and I take the Advocare brand called Omegaplex. It costs $12.95 (bottle of 90) I’ll attach their flyer so you can better read why Omega3s are so important. I can’t do the topic justice. (to view this flyer from my blog click on Omegaplex above, then Product Facts and Ingredients)

Some of the benefits for adults:
-Reduces inflammation, depression
-Reduce risk of cancer, arthritis, cardiovascular disease
-Excellent for brain development for prenatal and kids under age 4.
-When taken during pregnancy, it reduces risk of allergies, asthma and eczema

Some foods that have them:
-Green leafy vegetables
-Nuts & Seeds like almonds, walnuts, pine nuts and flax seed
-Flax seed oil, canola and soybean oil
-Cold water fish: mackerel, herring, halibut, and salmon

Doctor Checkups

Yesterday I brought Sydney in for her 3 year checkup, and Regan in for her weight check. Great news on both of them. Sydney is doing great, loved all the "games" she was able to play so they could see if she is doing everything as a healthy 3-yr. should do. She giggled the whole time that Dr. John was listening to and checking her. He was even laughing. And this is all after I practically had to drag her in because she said she was SOOO scared of the doctor. Pretty funny... Sydney is 50% for both weight and height.

And Miss Regan finally has gained some weight. She gained nearly 2 lbs during the four weeks since her last appointment. Phew!! She had us all a little concerned. And I got to thinking, the week before her 6-month check she had a high fever for 2 days while we were in Florida. So maybe she lost some weight then, making it seem like she wasn't growing. It appears she is just small. We'll see how things shape up at her 9-month well check. Regan was 25% for height and 1% for weight. Dr. John thinks her weight will go up, but that she'll probably be on the lower end on the "percentile" scale.

Sydney and Regan love giggling at each other! They do it in the car and pretty much everywhere else when they can look at each other :)

Birthday Candles

We had our family over yesterday to celebrate Sydney's 3rd Birthday. She just adored being celebrated, it was really fun to watch her enjoy her big day. I think her favorite part was when everyone was singing happy birthday to her. And of course, she had fun opening her birthday gifts as well. It was nice to see all of our family, all the kids had a blast.


Sydney asked me everyday for a week if it was time to have her birthday cake, finally the day arrived!

A Clean House

It seems impossible these days....I try, but it is soooo challenging for me to keep my house clean. It can be completely clean, and then a few hours later look like a hurricane came through. It is so frustrating! There are toys everywhere...ugh.

I spent a hour cleaning the floors on Saturday. And a wondering boy with a pear (while a sitter was here) dropped little squirts of pear juice all over the place. I came home to really sticky floor. I asked him why he wasn't eating at the table (the rule), and course he said he didn't know.

Okay, I'll stop complaining...I'm off to clean again.