Ellingsons in AZ

3 Months

2012-01-20T14:57:00.000-08:00

My sweet little guy is 3 months old. He is such an angel and is rolling over a lot and smiles and laughs often. He started daycare this week and his teachers said he never is fussy and is all smiles....sounds like my guy.

A Couple of Photos of Asher

2012-01-12T12:32:00.001-08:00

The sweet chunky monkey smile of Asher's....it cracks me up because he just looks chunky and silly.

Asher is showing off his muscles.

January, 2012

2012-01-04T10:21:00.000-08:00

It is January and the weather is beautiful right now. Our winters are more like a fall in Minnesota and the trees are starting to change colors, which always makes me nostalgic for home. I still have a couple of weeks home before I have to go back to work, so I am starting to get sad to leave my little guy. He sure is a sweet baby and smiles all the time. I have yet to really hear him cry, so I have been blessed with two easy going babies. Asher and Carsten like doing "tummy time" together and my little 2 1/2 month old rolled over last night. Of course Carsten had to show me how he can roll over too. Mitch and I walked yesterday with Boedy and Asher for about 2 hours and Boedy enjoyed his bed all day after the walk....he looked so sweet.

Happy 2012

2012-01-02T09:42:00.001-08:00

Yay, it is a new year and what I think will be an exciting year with our two boys getting bigger by the day. Asher turned 2 months on December 19th and weighed 13 lbs and 13 oz and was 24 inches tall. He has doubled his birth weight and I marvel at the fact of how big he is getting. I look back at his newborn babies and it doesn't even seem like the same baby. We had a good Christmas and New Year. The Johnson family came from Minnesota and Carsten loved having his cousins around. The weather has been gorgeous and as I write this, Mitch and Carsten are waiting to go to the park and hit some golf balls, so I better not keep them too long.

Our 1 Month Old

2011-11-19T18:28:00.000-08:00

Asher is 1 month old today and I can't believe how quickly the time has gone. He is a fairly mellow baby and very sweet. He has his moments of sleeping well at night, but we know a good night's sleep is not going to come for quite some time.

Unfortunely he seems to have the same food sensitivities that Carsten had and we will most likely have to follow a strict diet of a special formula you can't buy in stores. I am hoping the medicine he currently is taking will do the trick, but I know better. Soon we will be having visits to the GI doc all too often for my taste, but I know I am lucky if this is all I need to deal with.

Carsten is continuing to do pretty well as a big brother but certainly has his moments. I got bit for the first time yesterday and I know that is not in my little boy's character so we will have a date tomorrow to have some mom and Carsten time.

Carsten's Conferences

2011-10-31T14:15:00.000-07:00

Here is Carsten's assessment after his first part of school. I always get so nervous, but I know he is fully capable and incredibly sweet. Mitch went this time and I stayed back with Asher.

A Couple of Pics

2011-10-31T14:13:00.001-07:00

My Three Boys!

2011-10-24T10:38:00.000-07:00

Ahhh, I am so lucky. My little guys look nothing like me, but they sure are cute and sweet.

Asher Richard Ellingson - Part 2

2011-10-23T15:23:00.000-07:00

Here are some more pictures continued from the previous post of Asher. He definitely looks a lot like his big brother. We compared newborn photos and had to laugh.

Asher Richard Ellingson

2011-10-23T14:25:00.001-07:00

We are so happy Asher is here and excited to embark on this new journey as a family of four. We look forward to the many sleepless nights and trying to figure this all out again. We will try our best to update our blog as often as possible.

Now We Need Baby!

2011-10-14T13:03:00.000-07:00

We have three cribs set up for this little one throughout the house and each one is waiting for Baby Ellingson to arrive. I am currently 38.5 weeks and am dilated to a 4 and now it is just a waiting game. Oh well, it gives us more time to snuggle with Carsten before chaos ensues.

Carsten's Chosen Breakfast

2011-10-11T11:17:00.000-07:00

This was Carsten's chosen breakfast the other day. Jalapeno Pub Cheese and crackers and he was in heaven. He grabbed it himself and brought it to us and it made me laugh.

Vikings

2011-10-11T11:14:00.000-07:00

My boys were so excited for the Vikings to have their first win of the season. I told Mitch maybe we shouldn't hang our Vikings flag in AZ Cardinal territory, but we are happy to have a win!

Halloween Practice

2011-09-21T08:02:00.000-07:00

Our cutie pie shark is ready for Halloween and so excited for his shark costume. He had to try it on as soon as it came in the mail and that is why it is paired with plaid shorts. We love Halloween in the Ellingson household, but depending on when baby Ellingson comes, I may not be able to dress up this year because I will be busy taking care of the little one.

Relaxing in Sedona

2011-09-19T13:53:00.000-07:00

We had a nice time relaxing in Sedona last weekend. It was our last getaway before the baby comes, so we tried to enjoy the calm before the storm. It was truly a special place and I couldn't but help think of my Grandma Jean with all the Native American influence at the resort. She would have loved all the Native American teachings and music provided, so it made me smile.

Mitch surprised me with some lovely spa treatments which were divine and the weather was crisp and sometimes chilly.....yay, fall.

My little boy who has the sweetest smile has decided to smile awkwardly in photos so I apologize for some goofy smiles.

Baby Ellingson

2011-09-13T09:40:00.001-07:00

We had the opportunity to do a 4D ultrasound this past weekend and it was nice to focus on the little peanut. With lives being busy and with a preschooler, it is easy to get wrapped up in everything else, so we thought it was good to take some time out and do this. Carsten came with and had lots of questions, but thought his baby brother looked like a "frog". Thanks Carsten. 4D ultrasounds are a little odd and the baby looks more like an alien than a baby and the tech mentioned he was pushed up against the uterine wall so he was a little smushed, but still adorable.

We are excited for the little guy to make his appearance and now we are at the point that it is going to come sooner than later. The nursery is almost done, but I am not sure why I feel the need to finish because he will be in our room anyway for the first couple of months, but it is good to feel an accomplishment, right?

Snackin' In Style

2011-09-07T15:19:00.000-07:00

Carsten is very proud of his new Fedora and thinks it is pretty cool he can look like dad. He was just relaxing and having a snack in his new Fedora yesterday...so cool!

D-Backs

2011-08-31T08:59:00.000-07:00

Carsten was so excited to have a date with his dad last night and they went to the d-backs game. Of course he had to come home with jersey and wore it to school today. He told me last night that he missed me while he was at the game. Ahh, sweet boy.

Memorable Moment

2011-08-26T16:45:00.000-07:00

At Carsten's preschool they give the parent a daily report of what the child did that day and also include a memorable moment. Well, yesterday Carsten told his teacher, Ms. Mandee, that he loves his daddy so much and his daddy gives big hugs. Well, mom's mention was that she sometimes plays spiders with Carsten.

Ahh, the life of the mom. We do all the grunt work and daddy gets all the glory. Oh well, I know how crazy Carsten is about his dad. They have a sweet relationship and dad is much more fun than mom.

Growing Up Way Too Fast!

2011-08-23T08:59:00.000-07:00

Carsten was wearing what he likes to call his "golf shirt" today, which he loves his golf shirts. He recently got a haircut and I always feel like he looks so much older when he gets a haircut, it makes me sad. When I was driving him to school today he told me "when I get bigger and older I am going to ride on a school bus and you can ride behind me in your car." Huh? Um, no, you will stay with mommy forever. I told him I liked riding with him to school and he told me "sorry, maybe there is room on the school bus for you." Seriously, I love our little conversations, he is so sweet.

How Cute is This?

2011-08-16T19:38:00.000-07:00

Carsten is working on "My Family" this week at school and he created a picture of his mommy today. Melt my heart, how cute is this picture?

Minnesota

2011-08-09T11:35:00.000-07:00

We had a great time in Minnesota and it was so nice to see all the cousins and family, but it gets busy. Carsten delighted in the fact he was able to go fishing on Big Sand and loved being able to catch fish everytime his line went in the water thanks to Alex. Carsten and I have it down now traveling to everyone's house every 48 hours....thank goodness he is a trooper because he makes it a lot easier. I am not sure how it will work next year with another one traveling all the time, but I am sure I will figure it out. Also, we were able to visit the Historic Courthouse in Stillwater, MN where Mitch and I got married 7 years ago on July 16. That was nice to be able to go back on our anniversary and show Carsten although he cared more about running around with Hayley and Nyah, but oh well.

First Day of School!

2011-08-09T09:10:00.000-07:00

He was so excited to be with all his buddies again. My sweet little pre-schooler.

Happy Day!

2011-08-08T14:43:00.000-07:00

He is so excited to have his firefighter hat and was riding in his jammies on his bike this morning. Yes, in Arizona in the summer we ride bikes in the house - don't judge.

Disneyland

2011-06-30T18:06:00.000-07:00

We were so happy to be in Disney again and although Mitch was in class most of the time, I would like to think I am as much fun, but I know that isn't true. It was great to see Carsten get so excited and I think mom and dad were just as excited. At 40" he is moving up and now can ride some pretty fun rides, but he still has a couple more inches for the big guns.

Life is a Highway

2011-06-20T12:11:00.000-07:00

Carsten was having a blast on the Autopia ride at Disneyland.

Hip-Hop Carsten

2011-06-20T09:25:00.000-07:00

Carsten loves the hip-hop Mickey Dance Crew and had to show off his moves when the music started. They asked him to come up front and dance for everyone when we were visiting Disneyland this past weekend. Too Funny!

Our Little Fish

2011-06-13T10:08:00.000-07:00

Carsten absolutely loves to swim and gets so excited when daddy gets home to go swimming together.

Loves Super Heroes

2011-06-06T15:32:00.001-07:00

My poor son loves Super Heroes, but doesn't have any to play with so he has been having fun playing with his Super Hero undies as you can see in this picture.

Good Morning with a V8 Smile

2011-06-06T09:32:00.001-07:00

It is amazing to see that your child's love for certain foods and drinks are what mommy and daddy likes. Well, Carsten loves tomato juice as much as him mom does and I am certainly happy to see that tomato juice mustache in the morning.

Excited for Big Sand

2011-05-26T13:51:00.000-07:00

Carsten is excited to take a trip to Big Sand and go fishing in July. It will be his first time and I hope papa is prepared to take him swimming.

Loves His Hockey Helmet

2011-05-23T08:42:00.001-07:00

Carsten is so proud of his new helmet. He is now taking ice skating lessons and he thinks he is a hockey player, so of course a hockey helmet is necessary.

Love Him

2011-05-19T13:11:00.000-07:00

This photo is from a couple of months back from San Diego, but look at that tongue out while he is running...too funny. Grandma Jean would be proud.

So Sweet!

2011-05-17T10:27:00.000-07:00

I love my little guy so much. I have decided I don't want him to get any older than 3...he couldn't get any sweeter at this age.

Ice Cream Boys

2011-05-02T13:05:00.000-07:00

My sweet boys enjoyed some ice cream together in front of the fire place outside. Such a nice night, but mom typically says "no" to dessert, but not my boys.

Fore!

2011-04-26T13:37:00.000-07:00

Off to play golf with dad...so excited!

Easter Fun

2011-04-25T11:29:00.000-07:00

Carsten had a great Easter and loved going to the petting zoo and seeing the Easter Bunny. I think he was about one of the only kids who weren't scared and jumped right up on the bunny's lap and was giving him loves. Carsten was also lucky to get two Easter baskets because he stayed at Nana and Papa's house on Saturday night so the bunny visited their house and our house...he will be eating candy for a month.

Good Morning!

2011-04-14T09:26:00.000-07:00

Here is my little bug enjoying his morning. Have a good day.

Florida

2011-04-11T14:47:00.000-07:00

We went to Orlando, Florida last week because Mitch had a class there and who doesn't want to visit Florida if they get the chance, right? Carsten and I were able to hang out much of the time because Mitch was in class, but we had a nice time enjoying the weather and playing at the pool. Carsten even got a shark tattoo, which he loves!
We also were able to meet up with some good friends who we haven't seen in a long time and went to Animal Kingdom together. Their little boy, Thomas is 5 months older than Carsten and it was great to see them become instant buddies and get along so well...melt my heart. I will post more pictures when I get a chance.

San Diego

2011-03-22T14:07:00.001-07:00

Carsten and Mitch went with the Rich family to San Diego this weekend and had a blast. He was so excited to visit Sea World and see the sharks, but he was sleeping at the zoo when they saw the snakes...he isn't happy about that one. Carsten was all chilled out on the way home to fly on an airplane, he is definitely an expert by now.

The Zoo

2011-03-14T15:55:00.000-07:00

We went to the Phx zoo on Saturday as a family and it was such a beautiful day, not to mention we got free tickets to go from the people in front of us, so it made it that much better. Our little Carsten is obsessed with coyotes and snakes and we had to go to the zoo to check out the rattlesnakes....gross! We even had to visit them twice and buy a toy snake after. I think his obsession stems from the fact that he knows papa hates snakes so that makes it that much more fun. He was a tuckered boy on the way home.

Happy 3rd Birthday, Carsten!

2011-02-22T09:33:00.001-08:00

I will post more pictures from the party later, but wanted to include this one for now.

Water Baby

2011-02-17T09:47:00.000-08:00

Our little boy loves to swim and be in the water. He loves his swimming class and is all smiles while he is there. We went swimming last weekend and Carsten would throw a fit and scream when we made him take breaks from swimming.

In the video, Carsten swims down to the bottom of the pool and collects diving rings. You will see his head pop up after he got it.

Happy Boy

2011-02-15T12:58:00.000-08:00

It is the simple things in life. If Carsten can have his sports and his cars, then he is ecstatic. It is difficult to sleep and travel with a basketball, but he will make sure it happens.

Chilly

2011-02-05T20:17:00.000-08:00

While all of the USA was feeling the cold, Arizona was too. The last couple of days were cold, but I always find it a nice change to have some variation in the weather. Carsten and his friend, Cooper were all bundled up for the park and our water fountain was frozen solid.

Coyotes Again

2011-01-27T19:29:00.001-08:00

Thank you daddy for the Coyotes jersey that mom wouldn't buy me.

Playtime at the Park

2011-01-26T14:56:00.000-08:00

New Scooter!

2011-01-21T19:28:00.001-08:00

New Year's Eve

2011-01-21T19:21:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of photos from New Year's Eve.

Sampa

2010-12-07T11:25:00.000-08:00

Carsten was excited to see Santa or "Sampa" as he calls him. He told Santa he wanted cars for Christmas...we'll see if Santa comes through.

Music Class

2010-11-12T14:18:00.001-08:00

A fun day at music class.

Coyotes!

2010-11-09T19:35:00.000-08:00

So, I think Carsten has some Minnesota blood in him because he loves hockey. We went to a hockey game last weekend and he was yelling and dancing and cheering the whole time. We have even had to watch some Coyotes on tv. The howling is inside him and go Coyotes!

Disney

2010-11-02T16:12:00.001-07:00

We love Disney and everytime I go I am reminded by why I love it so much. But, this time it was different. Carsten is finally at an age where he "gets it" and his excitement and happiness is infectious. We saw so many characters and he was a pro after a bit and had his routine all down. We saw the fireworks and the new light show at California Adventure which was amazing. Mainly, I was so happy to be with my family and have the opportunity to share in this special memory together. We were also able to spend a day with our friends, The Tallmans. The little boys had a blast together and the spirit of Halloween was definitely in the air.

Happy Halloween

2010-11-01T21:19:00.001-07:00

Carsten had a blast this Halloween as Handy Manny. It was the first year he actually trick or treated and got some candy which he thought was amazing and was bouncing off the walls at the end of the night. Mitch and I dressed up too and that was fun as well.

M-I-N-N-E-S-O-T-A

2010-10-10T09:40:00.000-07:00

We were able to visit MN a couple of weeks ago and it was nice to see family and friends. I love being able to see Carsten play with his cousins and just get right in the mix. We were sad to go and we miss everyone dearly, but it is also nice to be home too.

Puttin on the Ritz

2010-09-16T09:02:00.000-07:00

We went to the Ritz-Carlton last weekend on Dove Mountain and had a great time. It was gorgeous weather and of course the resort was beautiful. Thank you to the AZ Dental Association for deciding to have your convention here.

Dance Party!

2010-09-12T20:25:00.000-07:00

Carsten had fun dancing to Usher on the MTV video music awards. For some reason Carsten loves Usher. It cracks me up to watch him dance.

Pinetop

2010-08-19T20:30:00.001-07:00

We went to Pinetop last weekend and it amazes me that we can drive 3.5 hours north and it is 20 degrees less and it looks like we are in northern Minnesota. We really like it there and it is so beautiful and great hiking.

Lake Pleasant

2010-08-11T13:06:00.000-07:00

It was a gorgeous day on Lake Pleasant when we went on Sunday. Thanks to Mitch for being our Captain and Carsten as the Co-captain.

Minnesota

2010-08-10T15:12:00.001-07:00

We had such a nice time in Minnesota and it was great to see my family and Mitch's family. It always makes me sad when I get to see Carsten with his cousins and how he just gets right in the mix. I wish he could spend more time with his cousins and family, but I guess we just make the time we are together count.

More San Diego

2010-07-05T21:48:00.001-07:00

Here are some more cute pictures from San Diego.

Tiger Woods...Minus the Bad Stuff

2010-07-05T21:34:00.000-07:00

Carsten loves golf and is actually a pretty good little golfer. I figure golf is a good thing to push since we are in Arizona. Golfers don't get hurt much, do they? When he can take time out from Thomas, sports are definitely on his radar.

San Diego

2010-07-05T21:26:00.001-07:00

We had a great time in San Diego the other week for a Dental Convention. It isn't too shabby to have a convention in San Diego. We were so lucky to have Diane come and visit too and be able to spend time with Carsten. We had a blast and really enjoyed Sea World. Grandma Dee Dee bought Carsten a stuffed dolphin which you will see in some pictures. Well, when visiting the dolphin tank, Carsten decided to throw the dolphin toy in with real dolphins. I had to track down a dolphin trainer and get her to save our dolphin. I guess Carsten felt like his toy needed to be free. The weather was gorgeous and it was nice to get away and be with Diane.

Too Cute

2010-06-22T10:33:00.001-07:00

Here is a sweet picture of Carsten and his buddy, Selah. Carsten loves Selah and asks if he is going to see her daily. I love how the water is shooting up in the background.

Cruisin!

2010-06-18T11:58:00.000-07:00

We have a lot of fun riding around on the trike. As you can see Carsten's feet don't quite reach when his legs go peddling around, so he just pushes with his feet. You need to be warned that the video coverage is from me on another trike.

Water Fun

2010-06-15T15:44:00.000-07:00

Well, there is no denying it is hot in Arizona summers. But, that is what water and air conditioning is for, right? We've had lots of fun playing in the water over the last couple of weeks. We look forward to San Diego next week and being by the ocean. Mitch is at a Dental convention and Carsten and I will be enjoying resort life. We are lucky to have Mitch's mom, grandma Dee Dee come visit us there.

So Much Fun

2010-06-01T20:34:00.000-07:00

We have been up to a lot of fun lately and Carsten keeps us in stitches on a daily basis. It would be great if Carsten would keep his clothes on, but he likes to wear his Thomas the Train undies and at times wear daddy's undies too. We went to vacation this weekend and I will get pictures later to post...they are on Mitch's fancy camera. He didn't like that his mom and dad were too slow when it was time for swimming. We would hear "come on guys, it's swim time." Hope everyone is doing well and will add pictures from Memorial Day weekend when I get a chance.

Enjoying the Beautiful Morning

2010-05-25T20:23:00.000-07:00

Dinner Time

2010-05-17T21:32:00.000-07:00

Carsten and I were chatting after dinner and I decided to grab my camera. It is so funny the conversations you have with a 2-year-old. You'll also see a bit of a 2 year old attitude too, but I guess that comes with the territory. We take a music class right now and he likes to sing along to the cd. He likes the Native American chant song, so we were practicing that too. He is certainly a cutie and we are working on potty training, which is going okay. I think he just likes to take off his diaper and pretend it is for potty reasons.

Eating S'mores

2010-05-16T21:56:00.001-07:00

We were able to eat S'mores outside a couple of weeks ago and it was nummy. We have been so busy and I will need to take more pictures and post a new message soon. Carsten has been great and really has been into singing along with his music class songs right now. It is so cute to hear his little voice singing songs. He is still obsessed with Thomas the Train, so that is a constant in our househould. We are preparing for summer and are able to take a couple of trips to get away from the heat, so that will be nice.

March Madness!

2010-04-05T20:06:00.001-07:00

We celebrated Easter, which was beautiful. The kids went to a petting zoo and participated in a neighborhood egg hunt....it was too funny to watch kids run around for eggs. We also celebrated at our home.

We were so excited to go to Disney again. I love Disney Land and it is such a magical place to visit. The Provinzino family met us in California and it was the first visit for Vonnie, Abby and Drew. Nana and papa came too and were able to watch the kiddos while we went on the roller coasters. It amazes me to see their little faces light up at Disney...it is so worth being wiped out for the next couple of days.

The Miller family also came and visited from Texas...a very long drive. Carsten was lucky to spend time with his cousins and meet family who liked sports even more than he does. Yay, hoops! It is hard to see family for short periods of time, but it makes the time you have very special. We even got Kyren to hold a U of Minnesota glass...that was a major accomplishment because he loves Duke.

Sarah and Brynn visited the last weekend in February and it was so nice to see them. It was Founder's Day weekend in our community, so there was lots to do and we went to the Big Bad Voodoo Daddy concert on Saturday.

Happy Birthday

2010-02-24T13:14:00.000-08:00

We woke Carsten up on his birthday and were able to sing Happy Birthday! He was so excited on his birthday and kept on saying "Happy Day."

Two!!!!!!

2010-02-24T12:56:00.000-08:00

These pictures are from the Children's Museum. It is fun to play there, but sometimes it can be really busy with visiting schools.

Carsten was lucky enough to have Grandma Dee Dee and Grandma Marge come and visit from Minnesota. They were a lot of help while they visited, but the party wiped everyone out, except for me. Nana and papa came to visit too, and Carsten was excited they were there too.

Wow, I can't believe our little boy is two years old. Looking back at baby pictures, it is hard to remember that he was so little. We had a nice birthday party for him and he celebrated with his buddies in the neighborhood. The party was going to be at a park, but it rained and was moved indoors. It was a little chaotic having a bunch of little ones running around, but they had a blast.

New Tent

2010-02-15T13:02:00.000-08:00

Carsten was so excited to get this tent for his birthday. Ahh....to be so excited and happy over the little things.

Minnesota Visit

2010-02-15T12:01:00.001-08:00

When you spend time with family, it makes you realize how special it is for your kids to play with their cousins. It is completely amazing to watch my nieces and nephews teach Carsten new things. It seems like not too long ago they were the same age of Carsten.

We celebrated Carsten's birthday a couple of times in Minnesota and he loves birthdays. He likes to sing "Happy, to you" He leaves out the birthday part in his songs.

Carsten had a lot of fun with his cousins Hayley and Nyah. It is so sweet to see him spend time with family and interact with his cousins. The funniest part was catching Carsten with his hand in Hayley's fish bowl and Hayley trying to feed the fish a lot of food. I guess they wanted to see who could kill the fish first.

San Diego

2010-01-14T15:55:00.001-08:00

Here we are at Coronado and the weather was perfect and Carsten couldn't of had more fun running into the cold water and rolling in the sand. Daddy did a good job of keeping up with him, otherwise I think we would have been lost out at sea if we didn't stop him from running straight into the water.

We were lucky enough to have a chance to get away to San Deigo last weekend and enjoy the gorgeous weather and beautiful landscape. We went to the San Diego Zoo which was lots of fun and great to see all the amazing animals. I was bummed the Polar Bear exhibit was closed...that is my favorite. The best thing is that Nana and Papa were able to come with us too, which made it that much more special.

Christmas

2009-12-27T19:01:00.001-08:00

Carsten got a special gift from Grandma Dee Dee and was happy to ride his Radio Flyer Fire Truck and said "wow" after opening every gift. He has been busy playing with his cars and trucks after Christmas and loves everything he got. I thought he would like the dinosaur I bought, but hopefully he will come around.

Carsten was so excited to spend Christmas with his big cousins "Al-Lec" and "Lou-Lou" he wants to do anything they do and thinks they are so funny. It was great to see Cartsen open up the gifts and give to us and say "open."

These are pictures of Christmas Eve and the day before Christmas Eve when we went to church.

Hometown Holidays, Vikings and the Last Couple of Weeks

2009-12-18T14:48:00.000-08:00

We are busy getting ready for the holidays and enjoying the beautiful weather and the arrival of Santa Claus. Carsten knows who santa is, but prefers him from a distance. Mitch and I were able to see the Vikes play against the Cardinals and it was a very dissapointing loss. There are a lot of Vikings fans to help commiserate with. The nieghborhood had our tree lighting with Santa, sleigh rides and even Snow...these Arizona kids don't know what snow is. We also had a holiday party with Carsten's friends and moms in the neighborhood. It was lots of fun and the kids played well together and decorate cookies, or ate cookies before decorating.

Happy Turkey Day

2009-11-28T13:33:00.000-08:00

We had a nice Thanksgiving in Arizona and held Thanksgiving at our house. Everyone was complaining that I was crabby....I just like things to be run correctly and everyone was chatting too much and I wanted to be sure we plated all foods at the same time. Anyway, I entertained Carsten with a doughnut while I was trying to prepare things in the morning and that worked well. Carsten also decided to take out the small vaccuum cleaner and used it in his playroom. Carsten went down for a nap around the time we ate in the afternoon, so it was nice being able to enjoy the lovely meal. We also went to Zoolights in the evening. It feels good to walk around after a day of overindulgence. The lights were beautiful and Carsten thought they were great. He was ecspecially excited to be able to ride the carousel twice. Thanks mom and dad for being our guests. We ended the day with Carsten being able to say "Happy Turkey Day," but Thanksgiving was too hard.

Making a Mess, or Nest

2009-11-05T13:04:00.000-08:00

I see this is making a mess, but Carsten loved pulling the blankets, pillows and towels out of the linen closet and making a little nest. He grabbed his Vick's vaporizer box and that completed the nest.

Howdy Halloween

2009-11-02T18:57:00.001-08:00

Carsten was a cowboy for halloween and he actually kept his costume on throughout the night. He loved when the kids came to the door for candy and ran as soon as the doorbell rang to look out the window. We also had a boo bash with other kids and next year he will be able to participate in the games, but he did try to play golf and I found 3 eyeball golf balls with him...we had to return them. It is nice to have nana and papa back around and the weather has been wonderful.

Cover Boys

2009-10-27T20:52:00.000-07:00

Carsten and Mitch had a wonderful opportunity to do the cover for Raising Arizona Kids Magazine. Carsten certainly looks happy in this picture, but it is not easy to get a toddler to sit still and smile for a long period of time. We had fun doing it, but definitely are not pursuing a modeling career.

The Zoo and Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-20T13:22:00.000-07:00

Last week was fun and the weather is really starting to be beautiful. Carsten and I visited the zoo and I think everyone in AZ wanted to enjoy the nice weather too. We saw a lot of animals and fed the giraffes again...that is my favorite part. Wedding season has started again, so Mitch and Carsten get to hang out and Saturdays and I miss the family time. We went to the pumpkin patch on Sunday and saw the animals, went through the corn maze, which freaked me out, saw pumpkins, and went on a train ride. It was a lot of fun to be outside and enjoying Halloween activities.

September & October

2009-10-13T11:16:00.000-07:00

We have been busy the last couple of months with Carsten and Mitch doing a photo shoot for Raising Arizona Kids Magazine and going back to MN for 2 weeks and attending 2 weddings. Mitch and Carsten were lucky enough to do the cover of a magazine here in Arizona. The cover comes out in November and we are excited to see how it turns out. It was not the best thing getting a toddler to sit still, but they claim to have some cute photos to work with. We had a nice time back in MN, but both Carsten and I were sick most of the time we were there, so we weren't too much fun to be around. Mitch and I went to the MN/Wisconsin football game at the new stadium with some friends. We had a blast, but I lost my voice on vacation after a horrible sore throat, so I was no help to the Gophers. I went to Green Bay to be in a wedding for a good friend from college and also was a personal attendant in my cousin Anna's wedding. Both were beautiful weddings and it was nice to see family and friends I hadn't seen in awhile. Thank you to Grandma Diane for watching Carsten while I was at Anna's wedding.

The last couple of weeks

2009-09-09T21:23:00.000-07:00

We have been busy the last couple of weeks. We went to the Children's museum, got our 2nd hair cut, continued being silly, watched the Vikes and went to Pinetop and Greer for Labor Day weekend. We went on vacation with our friends, the O'Connors and had such a nice time enjoying the weather and outdoors. We all fell in love with Greer and are already planning the next trip. Carsten had fun with his friend Selah, and liked playing with her toys and eating her snacks. The weather was beautiful and it was wonderful to just relax.

Jump

2009-08-29T21:09:00.000-07:00

Carsten loves to wear my heels around the house and now his new thing is jumping in heels. He has gotten pretty good at walking in heels and thinks he is quite cute when he is walking around.

Cracker

2009-08-29T20:47:00.000-07:00

Carsten is saying more and more words everyday and is so much fun. He loves to run around the house and gallop and jump. He is just full of wonder and excitement and couldn't be any cuter. Now that he is 18 months, he is certainly having tantrums/meltdowns and hitting a little too much...usually Boedy. Poor Boedy hides under furniture and the bed to escape the path of Carsten. Carsten's new word is "cracker" and he has been saying it often because he loves Trader Joe's peanut butter crackers. We were cleaning out some closets the other week and found Mitch's letterman jacket. We thought it was pretty funny to see little Carsten is his daddy's jacket.

Pinetop

2009-08-23T18:47:00.001-07:00

We had the pleasure of going to Pinetop the other week and it felt like we were in Minnesota with trees and lakes and it was absolutely beautiful. Did I mention it is 30 degrees cooler there than Phoenix? We went hiking and it was gorgeous and made s'mores and Carsten rode a horse named Hatchett. He loved the horse, but learned you can't hold on and suck your thumb at the same time. Also, Carsten is officially 18 months old and is 95% for height and 50% for weight. I guess he is just like Mitch. He moved up in weight, so we are happy he is getting a little bigger.

Feeding the giraffes

2009-08-09T20:38:00.000-07:00

We went to the zoo again and had a fabulous experience feeding the giraffes. It was quite an experience and I loved being able to see the giraffes up close. We were lucky that it wasn't so hot outside and were able to enjoy being outside and seeing the animals. I also included some additional pictures of Carsten over the last couple of weeks.

They went bye bye

2009-08-09T20:08:00.000-07:00

I took this video a couple of weeks ago and it was our breakfast conversation about his nana, papa, daddy and grandma dee dee. Grandma Diane was too difficult to say, so she has become grandma dee dee. He sure likes to test us and see what he can get away with. He loves Boedy and tries to give him hugs, but sometimes those hugs become hits and poor Boedy hides under the bed. He is starting to talk more and more and likes to look at animals and say their sounds. We are working on saying moo for cow and not boo. I guess in Carsten's world his cows are hecklers. Mitch and I were able to have a nice afternoon date today and went to Harry Potter and out to lunch. It is nice to have time spent with my husband as a couple.

Minnesota Fun & Starry Safari

2009-07-28T09:44:00.000-07:00

Carsten and I were able to enjoy Minnesota for a couple of weeks. We went to Park Rapids and stayed at my parent's lake home for a week, which was great. It was a little chilly at first, but warmed up. We went to Walmart and had to buy some shoes besides sandals. It was great to see all of his cousins and he learned he loves green tea and juice boxes. It was also nice to see the Hasbrouck family and meet sweet baby Carter. Carsten was ecspecially lucky because he was able to be with the Ellingson family side too and meet Kayla, Kyren and Kayden. The Miller family, the Rich family, Mitch's mom and grandma all were together. Carsten was able to see what is in store when he gets older and learn how to play as many games as possible. We went on lake Minnetonka on an absolutely perfect day. It couldn't have been more beautiful out and it was so nice to see water and boats. Thanks to everyone that let us stay at their home. We had so much fun and I am lucky Carsten is such a great traveler. Well, the flight home wasn't so good, but he was great the rest of the time. It was been so hot here, so we can't spend too mcuh time outside. Last weekend we went to the zoo and did their starry safari, which is at night. It is a little cooler at that time and we saw some animals, jumped on the bouncer and Carsten played in the water splash park. But, his favorite part was the carousel with daddy.

Father's Day Weekend

2009-06-22T12:19:00.000-07:00

We had such a nice weeekend celebrating Father's Day for Mitch at the Fairmont Scottsdale. Mitch definitely deserved a weekend away relaxing and enjoying a bit of golf. We were able to swim, have a wonderful dinner in a nice restaurant....apparently Carsten didn't get the memo about not throwing food in fancy places. Too bad Boedy wasn't there to eat it up. At night we watched a "Dive In" movie, yes, a dive in movie. Those are popular in Arizona and you can lounge in the pool and watch movies. It was such a beautiful night and I was lucky enough to have a tired boy sit on my lap for 45 minutes and watch Barnyard. Carsten was excited to get away and got right into the suitcase while I was packing. Funny story from last week....Carsten decided he didn't want to nap last Thursday so I went into his room and rested on the floor while he was in his crib. Sometimes that calms him down, but obviously not this time. I fell asleep on the floor and woke up to something hitting me in my face. Carsten took off his diaper and threw it at me. He obviously got my attention after that and wanted me to know he was not happy.

Sedona

2009-06-15T20:38:00.000-07:00

We has such a nice weekend and spent time with friends and family. Mitch and I met some friends on Friday night in Tempe and had a blast enjoying sushi and some adult conversation. We then went to Sedona on Saturday and had a beautiful and peaceful lunch at L'Auberge. Carsten was perfect at lunch and we discovered he has a sophisticated palette. He tried cantaloupe soup with creme fraiche, fries with truffle oil and creme brule. We of course had to go hiking to work off all the calories. It is nice to get away and energize....ecspecially in a place like Sedona.

Life of a 15 month old

2009-06-10T20:55:00.000-07:00

Carsten has been a busy boy and is constantly on the go. He enjoys standing and climbing on anything he can. He also likes to find boxes and spaces that he can fit into. Carsten has been talking a ton and mostly it is jibberish. He does however have words that make sense like: mama, dada, hi, please, ball, doggie, no and bo, which is Boedy. We are excited to visit Minnesota in a couple of weeks and see friends and family. I have to admit that Carsten has become quite a daddy's boy and momma is chopped liver on the weekends. It makes me sad, but I am glad to see he loves his daddy so much.

Buckethead

2009-05-19T15:07:00.000-07:00

I took this video of Carsten today and I thought he looked so funny walking around with a bucket on his head. We went to a wedding last weekend and he was a hit on the dance floor. He bounced and moved his hands to the beat and quickly was surrounded by 10 ladies who all wanted to dance with him. Carsten just had his 15 month check up and is doing well. He is in the 50% weight and 95% height...I guess he takes after his daddy. Carsten is certainly friendly and says hi to people everywhere we go.

Disneyland

2009-05-13T10:08:00.000-07:00

We went to Disneyland last weekend and had so much fun. We tried to hit as many rides as possible and we went from 9:00am to 9:00pm. Carsten did great and slept for only about 30 minutes in his stroller. He however did not like meeting the characters and cried everytime one came close. He did however like Pluto, so we bought him a Pluto stuffed animal. I woke up yesterday morning to a loud thud and then I heard cries....it turns out that Carsten now has learned how to get out of his crib. He has becoming more and more of a monkey and likes to get up on everything. My mom and dad have left for Minnesota and it will be sad not having family around, but we look forward to visiting in June. I noticed I have three of the same picture, so I apologize.

What We Have Been Doing

2009-05-03T20:11:00.000-07:00

Carsten has been very busy over the last couple of weeks. He loves to play and run around and plays football with daddy. Basically Mitch hands off the football and Carsten runs and spikes the ball. It is starting to get hot out so playing with water in the backyard has been filling our afternoons. Carsten is going to start Gymboree class and be able to run around and play indoors. We are all getting excited for Disneyland, but Carsten doesn't realize it yet. I have been showing him pictures of Mickey in hopes he will recognize him.

Zoo Photos

2009-04-21T21:44:00.000-07:00

These pictures were taken right after Carsten turned 1 and a friend shot them for us at the zoo. I just thought they were cute, so I figured I would share with everyone. We had story hour at the library today and Carsten was more interested in the other kids, than listening to the teacher. He proceeded to make 1 kid cry because he wouldn't give them a ball and took away a baby's pacifier. Oh well, it is fun to watch him interact with other kids. He loves balloons, doggies, eating as fast as he can, listening to daddy play guitar and trying to go outside as much as possible. His feelings get hurt very easily when you tell him he can't do something he really wants to, like shoving lots of food in his mouth. We leave in a couple of weeks for Disneyland. We are really excited.

Easter

2009-04-15T10:09:00.000-07:00

Carsten has a fun Easter and looked for eggs over at Nana and Papa's house. He somewhat got the concept of finding eggs and putting them in the basket. But, everytime he put one in the basket he would pull it back out. Only 2 eggs would fit in his hands, and he was okay with that. We had a nice dinner and were able to eat Easter dinner outside...that was a 1st for all.

Family and 1st Haircut

2009-04-08T21:07:00.000-07:00

We had a fun last couple of weeks with family visiting. First, my sister Sarah came for a week. Carsten sure loved his auntie and had a blast playing and getting yummy snacks from her. We enjoyed our time at the botanical gardens, Sarah's great salsa and we went to a LA Dodgers game. We also watched a lot of basketball. Secondly, my brother and his family came and visited for a week. Carsten loved to see his cousins and watch what the older kids were doing. Thanks to Drew for letting Carsten play with his cars. Abby showed Carsten a great time in the pool by pulling him around in his float toy. We also had a blast at the zoo and enjoyed a wonderful day. It is sad to see family go, ecspecially since Carsten doesn't get much time with his relatives.
Carsten had his first "big boy" haircut and was perfect. He didn't cry and had a fun time in his car. He only didn't like that he couldn't get his arms free in the cape. The family was also able to go to Lake Pleasant for dinner last Saturday. Ahh....we forgot what water looked like being Arizonans. Lakes are much different in Arizona than Minnesota, but it was so nice to see water.