Crazy!

This morning Allie, Doug and I were 3 of the 22,000 participants in the 30th annual Crazylegs Classic. The last two years it rained on the race and we were afraid it would rain today too. But it turned out perfect! It was pretty windy, but as the temperature rose, the wind was good because it got humid too.

We parked downtown at 9:15. The start was at 10, so we walked around a bit and I got some breakfast at Subway.

Allie decided she didn't really care for the stroller, that she'd rather walk, or run, around. Too bad there were so many people around! She had to stay in the stroller.

We saw Bucky when we were waiting for the walk to start! I did the 8K run and Doug and Allie did the 2-mile walk.

I was in one of the last waves, so I hung out with them until they started walking and then I went to wait for my start.

 We took a fun family picture, and then it was time for Allie and Dada to start walking!

The races end on the 50-yard line of Camp Randall Stadium. Doug couldn't take the stroller into the stadium, so Allie got to run around after all. She liked running around on the field.

Because there were so many people, there's a wave start. My wave didn't start until Doug and Allie were almost done walking!

They hung out right outside the stadium to watch me finish my run. It was a nice surprise to see them there. We weren't sure how we would coordinate because we would have to walk back downtown to get to the car. My arm looks like its broken in the picture because I was waving and calling Allie. We don't know if she actually saw me.

I had a great run. My official finish time was 57:15, which is over 8 minutes faster than I ran it two years ago and its also 5 minutes faster than I thought I'd run this year! I'll be posting a full race report over in My Marathon Journey.

Mesmerized

Allie is so smart. When we were off together last week I asked if she wanted to watch her Baby Einstein. She jumped off the couch and went to the entertainment center and tried to open the drawer (thats locked) where we keep the remote for the DVD player.

I love how Allie is so mesmerized when watching her Baby Einstein. She will either stand right up in front of the TV or sit still on the couch like she did on the Sunday morning when I took these photos.

Friday flashback: Bittersweet

Five years ago this week I moved to Madison to start working at the Wisconsin State Journal. Well, I moved in with my parents in Rockton for three weeks before moving to Madison. Doug joined me a couple months later in June and started working at the Rockford Register Star.

A year later, on April 30, 2007, Doug and I closed on our house.

Its bittersweet because I love our life in Madison, but I still get sad once in awhile that I don't work at the newspaper anymore. Sometimes I wish I'd never had to deal with the difficulty that was 2009 after being laid off. Considering that difficulty, I'm grateful that we still have our house.

I gave a speech during Jeni's wedding reception, and it was in part inspired by the difficulty we've had in the past. Here's the gist of what I said and what I live by: I learned a long time ago that our lives happen when and how they're supposed to. We're not in charge. I definitely learned that again and again in 2009. Theres plenty of bad but also plenty of good.

I know if I hadn't worked in the newspaper business and gotten laid off, we wouldn't have Allie or the great life we have now. We had to endure the bad in order to have the good. And that is why I look back fondly at both the good and the bad that were set in motion when I moved to Madison five years ago to work at the Wisconsin State Journal.

Easter surprise

On Sunday while Allie was napping, a special guest brought her a present. He was a little late, but we didn't mind.

The Easter bunny filled her bucket with Baby Einstein "World of Rhythm" and six plastic eggs. Guess which she liked more?

We were hoping the Easter bunny would bring Allie some eggs since she liked playing with them so much at the Easter egg hunt on Saturday. We had to return those because they get reused each year.

Luckily, he did bring Allie the eggs! We haven't watched the DVD yet because she's been too enthralled by the eggs.

Getting ready for the Easter bunny

Allie loved seeing the eggs change colors!

We got things ready for the Easter bunny yesterday. Allie's still too little to actually color the eggs, but that didn't matter. Just watching was enough for her.

Here's the finished products! The Easter bunny hasn't been to our house just yet. We got up early and went to church this morning and then Easter brunch at the Great Dane. Allie ate a TON, including dessert. And now she's taking her nap. I think the Easter bunny will be here any minute now to leave a surprise for Allie when she wakes up!

Egg-cellent day!

This morning Allie went to her first Easter egg hunt. It was over pretty quickly, but we think she enjoyed it. She didn't really get the egg hunting part, but she spent a lot of time afterward dumping her eggs out of her bucket and picking them up again!

Allie loved toting that bucket around. We had to give the plastic eggs back, but Allie will get her own tomorrow when we fill the bucket with our own goodies.

When we got home she discovered that she could put her cup in it and drink her milk from the bucket! I think since she likes putting things in her bucket so much, its time to teach her to pick up her toys.

It was an egg-cellent day all around! After getting Allie's prize, we went to Culvers for lunch. Then it was home for some naptime- for all three of us! Later we colored our own Easter eggs.

Party girl

I saved the best for last.

Allie had a lot of fun the the wedding reception. You can't tell from the picture, but she was rocking out while eating her cake. And she ate almost a full piece of cake!

And then Allie and Mama hit the dance floor!

She was a little unsure of herself at first. She didn't want Mama to let go, but she danced and danced.

She eventually got brave and let go of Mama. She danced until she dropped, literally. It was the most fun I've had at a wedding reception in a long time, and I know Allie enjoyed it.

We knew it was time to leave the reception when Allie was rocking it on the dancefloor while also rubbing her eyes. This picture doesn't do justice for how tired Allie looked! It also doesn't do justice for how jam packed the car was. We were glad it wasn't a longer trip!

We made a stop at Grandma and Grandpa Swanson's house to change clothes before driving home. Allie fell asleep on the way there, but then caught her second (third? fourth?) wind while we were changing clothes. But we changed her into her jammies so we could just put her straight in bed when we got home.

Here's a better representation of her exhaustion! She kept talking and laughing but fell asleep pretty suddenly. She was laughing one second and snoring the next. I think Allie would have danced all night if we'd let her.

It was a great weekend, and we were sad when it was over, but it was also nice to relax a bit on Sunday. Mama had a band concert, but Dada and Allie stayed home all day. In fact, Allie hung out in those same jammies all day! It took a few days, but a week later I think Allie has finally caught up on her lost sleep. Now its on to the next wedding... my cousin is getting married in three weeks. It will be more craziness, but I think Allie will enjoy it. :-)

And then the celebration

Allie didn't get to nap in between the wedding and the reception last Saturday. But she did amazingly well. When she wouldn't sleep, we finally got her up and got her freshened up.

I redid her hair and then the little stinker took it out on the way to the reception!

Then we went to the reception... it was the only thing that wasn't late all weekend! Above is the cake table.

And the bride and groom's first dance.

I think this picture is funny because my sister Jocelyn, who was the photographer, was taking a picture of the bride and the groom. But it kind of looks like she's taking a picture of the champaign bottle.

 Doug and I with my goofy brother Jacob.

Here's the wedding build-a-bear that Jeni and Dave gave Allie for being flower girl. She's so cute! Her name is Angel Mae and she's even wearing a garter!

The adventures don't stop

So Monday evening I promised more wedding fun, "tomorrow," which was Tuesday. Well, now its Thursday and there hasn't been any more wedding fun! I don't really have a good excuse, other than the adventures don't stop.

Tuesday we were just exhausted still from the crazy weekend and then grocery shopping after work on Monday night. When things are so crazy, I just don't feel like getting the computer out at night. So I promised myself I'd get the conclusion of the wedding festivities uploaded on Wednesday...

But then Wednesday morning came and I went to get Allie up to find she had puked in the crib. An emergency bath was in order, but she seemed fine, no temperature or anything. We took her to daycare without giving her breakfast. Bridget said she didn't eat too well during the day and had spit up a bit too.

So we packed her in the car to go home and she looked a little off but still seemed fine. And I suppose she was fine... until the rapid fire projectile vomiting that ensued when we were less than 5 minutes from home.

Oh wow that was disgusting. I had to open my window wide and stick my head out for fear that I'd projectile vomit as well. The smell was sooooo pungeant. The poor kid wimpered a bit during the incident and after, but then smiled at us and again, the fine mood returned!

Luckily we were close to home when this happened. We parked on the street and left the car windows open for awhile. I ran in and got some towels to try and clean Allie up a little bit to take her out of the car and up to the bathroom for her second bath of the day. The results of the pukefest were all over her, her clothes, her coat, the carseat and the seat in the car! Yuck!

First thing was first, we got Allie cleaned up and bathed. I called the doctor as we were pretty freaked out by the whole thing. The doctor just said it was most likely viral and to give her clear liquids that night and told me the reasons we'd want to bring her in. Once we got Allie settled with a glass of apple juice diluted with water, laundry was started and Dada went out the scrub the car down. Luckily the open windows and the resolve took care of the smell. Later once Allie went to bed, Mama got the task of cleaning the car seat. I never want to do that again. It took a long time and there were a few nooks and crannies where I couldn't clean. The straps are still gross. The smell is still there, but luckily just when you're up close. I guess we'll have to see how it all smells as the car warmed up today... Allie did go to daycare because she did not puke again overnight. We haven't heard from Bridget, so hopefully that means there have been no further incidents.

So thats my excuse for not posting with punctuality. The things we learned from this incident are: 1) I hope I never have to deal with projectile vomit ever again. and 2) We figured out how to put the car seat in the car on the first try! Every time we've taken the seat out and had to put it back in, its been like an hour-long venture. So at least we have that.

Today is my Friday as I have a furlough tomorrow. So rest assured loyal readers, the wedding fun will be posted before the weekend is out. And I also have a few other fun things to post as well. Then there will be Easter fun this weekend!

A special day for family

It was a stressful couple weeks, but it ended with a great day-great wedding and a great party to follow.

This is my favorite picture. We clean up really well! I'm happy to have some nice family pictures with us all dressed up.

Me and Jeni. She cleaned up pretty well too.

Jeni and her new husband Dave!

The girls of the bridal party. Lanah is our neice, Angie is Jeni's best friend and then there's me.

Allie and Dada hanging around while pictures were being taken. Unfortunately there was some kind of miscommunication and one of the groomsmen left before pictures were taken. So we all had to wait to get the pictures of the whole bridal party.

Sisters! Johanna did a reading, Jeni was the bride, I was a bridesmaid and Jocelyn was the photographer.

Now we have Mama and Allie hanging around during pictures.

The happy couple!

It was a great day. Allie was a perfect angel rock star even though she didn't get a nap. We had some great family time and enjoyed welcoming a new addition to the family!

More wedding fun coming tomorrow!

Sneak peek

We clean up pretty well, if I do say so myself.

Allie at her best

April brings rain and it also brings lots of activity! We've been busy every week for what seems like a really long time. This week has been especially busy leading up to Jeni's wedding this weekend. So unfortunately I haven't had much time to blog and I don't know when I will get the time!

But I do have this video to share. We went out to dinner on Monday night, sort of a "get out of cooking and relax a bit before things get really crazy" dinner. We went to the Great Dane where is was loud and interesting, so Allie wasn't the least bit interested in her food. She was in a great mood though. I'd left my cell phone in the car, so I got Doug's phone to take a few pictures and discovered that his phone has a camcorder! Allie was really hamming it up so I filmed a bit of her antics. The picture is on its side because I didn't know which way was up on the camcorder. But its cute so I wanted to share!

Hopefully I'll return soon to tell of all our adventures! I'm looking forward to getting some nice family pictures this weekend when we're all dressed up.

Spring Saturday

Saturday was a beautiful day, so we took advantage and headed downtown for the afternoon. We walked around the Capitol and up and down State Street.

Allie and Dada took in the sights.

Allie and Mama practiced walking and holding hands. We're going to walk down the aisle together at Aunt Jeni's wedding this Saturday!

Allie and Dada walked together too.

And then to top it all off, we went to The Chocolate Shoppe for ice cream. It was Allie's first time having ice cream. She loved it, but didn't seem too interested in eating a lot. Thats good Allie! Don't eat a lot of ice cream! Its better for your health and it leaves more for Mama and Dada.

It was such a nice and fun day. We're looking forward to all the fun things we get to do outside now that the weather is nice!

Lovely skin

Allie is messy. So messy, in fact, that we often have to remove her shirt after she eats. She doesn't wear bibs. We quit trying to put them on her because she always yanks them off. Anyway, last Sunday, we had to change her shirt twice after she was especially messy at both lunch and dinner! After dinner we didn't have another shirt downstairs to put on her, so we let her go au natural. Of course, the messes all happened after giving her a bath that morning, so we had to give her another one in quick succession.

She's so funny when we get her undressed. Its like she forgets whats under her clothes. She always thinks its the funniest thing in the world to go shirtless. On this particular evening, she was also infatuated with Mama's water bottle.

I think the green socks make this outfit.

Choo choo blocks

Most days we come home from work and Allie goes straight for her blocks and the train they are stored in. These blocks definitely were a good purchase!