Unofficial Reunion Weekend

This weekend was filled with parties and get-togethers...and unofficially, it ended up being a high school youth group reunion for me!  

We started the weekend by celebrating Carly's 30th Birthday with her and many friends!  There were a few kids at her place but mainly adults.  We kept Tryg up past his bedtime which caused him to have many legs to walk around and through as he navigated his way back and forth from one end of the house to the other.  He loved the challenge of practicing his new walking skills.  Mom and Dad got a little tired of following him around to make sure he wasn't getting into anything, but we had fun celebrating with Carly and crew!

On Saturday we had two gatherings.  We first went to the park to celebrate Alex's 5th Birthday!  We joined lots of friends (young and old) for a great BBQ.  Tryg enjoyed playing on the playground with other kids his age.  The swing is his favorite!

 After the BBQ we went to Oborn's to spend time with Northbridge church friends.  This began the 'youth group reunion' as Dan was there (he was our youth pastor while we were growing up) and Shane grew up with me as well.  We had a fantastic time spending time with everyone there.  The evening ended with an all out dance party in their family room.  It made me want to live in community with these people.  However, Carol had to remind me that that would work for me, being a huge extrovert, but not for the rest of the group.  Oh well.  I sure enjoyed spending time with our friends and their kids!

On Sunday afternoon we met up with the Mortimer's!  I went to high school with Jamie and Julia and we did youth group things together too.  They were in town from Nebraska doing a family missions trip.  I'm glad they got a hold of us and that we were able to meet up with them.  We spent some time at the Mall of America just talking about life with kids and what was happening in our lives.  And now, thanks to Julia, Tryg really likes french fries! :) :)  Thanks Julia! :)  (It's fine...I'm really fine with it.  It will give us more options for dinner now!)

Finally, Sunday evening we met with the Livesay's.  After being here for a year, they will be leaving for Morocco in a week and a half to continue their missions work there.  It is sad to see them go, but we are excited for what they will be able to do in Morocco.  Who knows, maybe we'll get to Morocco to visit them!!  Since Sarah was in our high school youth group as well, this gathering brought a few more friends from high school to complete the 'reunion weekend.'

Tryg really wanted to walk up the hill.

Ollie was great about swinging with Tryg.

All in all, it was a great weekend with friends!  It was also a little funny that it happened to be a weekend of gatherings including different friends from my high school youth group.  I think it's great that I have been able to keep in touch with so many people I grew up with.  It's wonderful to stay connected to them and watch their families grow.  

Tryg's One Year Photos

So, I just have to show off our cute little boy a bit.  Here are just a few of the one year photos we had taken a couple weeks ago:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is also a link to our photographer/friend's blog with more photos from the shoot.  Thanks again, Tess!  We love the way you captured our little boy on camera.

Hooks are Finally Up

I bought hooks for Tryg's room about a year ago.  Last night they finally went up...even though it caused Tryg to have a melt down because we were hitting his bedtime and beyond, I'm glad to have a completed project.  We now have a place for Tryg's stuffed animals and the lamp I made last weekend.  I don't love the lamp...but it will be fine for now.

 

Energy.

It seems weird for me to talk about and even think about, but I really feel like I have turned some type of invisible corner within the past couple weeks.  I just feel like I have a lot more energy.  I actually WANT to clean (shocking...I know!).  This past week Erik has even said a few times, "What has gotten into you?"  I will fully admit to all my friends and family (and whoever else reads this blog) that Erik is the one who cleans our house!  He is a rock star!  I do most of the cooking, but he pretty much does all of the cleaning!  Without him our house would be a complete disaster.  Most wives I tell this to are extremely jealous (and/or confused).  I am VERY grateful to him...even though I do not always show him the appreciation that I should.  

I'm not sure what caused the lack of energy or this idea that I now have 'more' energy.  It might be because I no longer have grad school (probably a big factor)!  And/Or it may be because Tryg is getting older, becoming a little more independent and I have more room to breath!  I'm not completely sure.  When Tryg was two months old, I remember one of my friends telling me that you won't realize how much energy is drained from you after having your first born until they are one or two.  Then you'll look back and see the change.  Maybe that is it!

Whatever it is...I like it!  

I love it!

The best part for me is that I now have energy to create!!  My sister-in-law, Rachel, has passed on a blessing curse of some creative idea websites.  This one is my favorite.  I love hate them!  They are full of ideas for decoration and organization.  As a result I spent one of my entire lunch hours last week meandering through the isles of Michael's!  I am so excited to have more free time to take on a few creative projects...but am also a little overwhelmed about all the ideas swimming through my head.  

This weekend I made one project and also did some rearranging in Tryg's room in preparation of displaying said project.  I was going for a variation of this.  Here is the progression:   

This lamp is currently in our kitchen, but will be going in the corner of Tryg's room next to his changing table.  I changed the mobile that was there (a gift from Auntie Rachel) in preparation for the addition of the lamp.  
Here is the before and after:

***Note Tryg at the bottom of both of those photos getting into the wipes.  He likes to bypass the step of actually using the wipes and just puts clean wipes directly into the garbage...this is VERY helpful!

Anyway, I might just start a few more projects around our house (yes, Erik is a bit concerned).  I'll try to post photos of my adventures when I can/remember.

Happy 4th of July!

I hope everyone has a happy and safe Independance Day!

Ma Ma?

So, the jury is still out (including me), but there is a chance that Tryg may have said his first intentional word.  As I was getting ready to run to the store for some eggs, Tryg crawled straight to me and said "Ma Ma" over and over again the whole way.  Although I am not convinced it was real, it still melts my heart!  Could it be? :)

We're having a great weekend.  Tryg is getting the hang of this whole walking thing.  He's getting further and further each time and probably takes 10-12 steps now.  He is also waving at EVERYONE and anything!  However, it is not always something he'll do on command.  He tries to wave at people to get their attention.  However, since waving is silent, it doesn't work the best.  It can also be random or about 30 seconds after the person stops looking at him.

Happy 4th of July Everyone!!