One of those awesome moments

Andrew has been attending St Paul pre school this year in the 4 year old class.  It is a Lutheran pre school and we have been very happy with all that he has learned this year in class.  For instance when he started, he had no idea how to write his name.  Just two months after starting pre school, he was able to write his name.  I know that the ladies who teach there are really preparing my son for Kindergarten in a couple years.  He is also gaining a better understanding of who Jesus is and what He means to us as Christians.  The other day Andrew grabbed the Bible off of John's bed side table and was "reading" it.  I told him that we have a Bible for him in his room on his book shelf so I went and got it for him.  He kept insisting on reading mommy and daddy's Bible.  He was laying on the loveseat "reading" and I asked him if he wanted to go outside with daddy to work.  He responded no I want to stay in and read the Bible.  He then said, we read the Bible to spread God's word, right mommy?  Of course I was surprised when he said this and my heart filled with pride and joy.  I said why yes Andrew we do!  I know that we have had conversations with him about this recently and he is one to not forget too much.  It was such a great feeling to know that we are raising our child to love God and know who Jesus is.

Shutterfly how I love thee

I had to start another post about one of my favorite websites, Shutterfly.  Thanks to Shutterfly, I am able to save photos on line easily like a website, make calendars, and photobooks.  I am also excited to get 50 free holiday cards just by blogging about it!  Plus the many offers that shutterfly provides is awesome.  So thank you Shutterfly for being such a great website, I will use you for many years to come!

Thankful for many things

I am thankful for many things....my husband: he is wonderful.  I may not say it often enough, but he does so much for me and the boys.  My children are another thing I am thankful for.  They are just awesome kids.  Andrew is such a great big brother and a great helper around the house.  He has learned so much at pre school the past few months it amazes me everyday.  Jacob he is our little stinker.  If I ever thought Andrew was strong willed, he far surpasses Andrew with this.  Jacob likes to have his way and will let you know if he is not happy about it.  He can be very loving giving hugs and kisses and waving bye bye too.  I am also thankful for a pretty uneventful pregnancy.  Besides still feeling like I am in my first trimester a few times a day.  Things are going pretty well with the little guy.  I am also thankful for 2 day work weeks!  Next week I only have to work Monday and Tuesday and then have the rest of the week off.  I am hoping the long weekend at my parents will be enjoyable and a restful time for us all.  I am looking forward to seeing my family and friends.

Another baby boy!

That's right we are having another boy!!  We did not find out what we were having with Andrew or Jacob, but decided to with this one.  My life changed with losing the baby, especially how it all happened, in March.  Going from not even planning to get pregnant, to finding out we are, to having an ectopic pregnancy, and it rupturing is a life changing event.  At any rate we were in the ultrasound room and the tech asked us if we were finding out.  I looked at John (because I wanted him to make the decision if we were going to find out this time) and asked him what he thought and he still wasn't sure.  I told the tech I was pretty sure it was a boy again because of how active the baby is.  So the tech proceeded to do the ultrasound.  She then came to a point where she obviously knew what the baby was and said, well do you want to know?  I looked at John again and he said ok, let's find out.  The tech said you were right, its a boy!  I was so excited and so was John.  Don't get me wrong, I would have been happy with a girl, but I just feel like I was destined to be a mom to boys :-)

Speaking of boys, our neighborhood (which I call the horseshoe) has 13 boys 5 and under.  One boy who is 8, one girl who is 6, and two teenage girls.  Of course we are due with a boy sometime the end of March.  A gal who lives across the street who has a 2 year old boy is due with a boy a week before me, and a neighbor on the corner is due the beginning of March with her first...a GIRL!  Needless to say, the boys in the neighborhood will not have any problems finding friends.  so when all the babies are born in March there will 15 boys under the age of 6!  That is insane, but what a fun neighborhood to live in.  I know we want to build a house in the next 5-10 years, so it will be hard to leave a neighborhood with so many kids (especially boys) our sons age.  However, our house isn't getting any bigger and it is a dream of ours to build.

Well here is another Saturday.  I enjoy Saturdays for the obvious reasons, day off of work, no need to hustle and bustle around, and college football!  Since living in Iowa for over 5 years, I have developed a love for the Hawkeyes.  Growing up, we never really had a strong love for any team in college, except Notre Dame.  College football is just different in Iowa than any other place I have lived.  I always felt that growing up in the UP you were either a Packer or Lion fan.  I am smart so therefore I am a Packer fan!  Now I live with a Bears fan who is brainwashing our children to be Bears fans.  Eventually they will learn that the Packers are the superior team!

For those who read this, you all have figured out that I am not great at keeping this up.  I also got ticked off and the picture uploader and so I am not wasting anymore time putting pictures on this.  However, if you check Shutterfly or Facebook, I do put pictures there.  Point being, I would love to post some pictures of the boys decked out in their Halloween costumes, but you aren't going to find it here!  Halloween was super fun this year, and we have way too much candy.  Jacob and Andrew's buckets were overflowing by the time we came home.  We lasted the entire two hours and were able to trick or treat with some friends of ours and their girls. 

Other news of the week is the mid term election.  I often have to chuckle about some of the things I see people post on FB about the election, especially my bleeding heart libreral friends.  This election was obviously letting the powers that be know that the people are tired of what is going in the government.  Too much of anything isn't a good thing; food, tv, and government to name a few.  I for one am not a fan of Obama and think he is not a good President at all.  In fact its amazing that he is sitting in the highest office in the land and what do we really know about him.  Listening to news and radio programs we (as a whole country) know very little about the man.  It seems those who elected him were so disgusted with George Bush that they were enamored with a person who is able read a teleprompter.  He has been in office for 2 years and Congress is already making a shift and his biggest supporters are even questioning why they elected him.  I just hope Americans will come around and not elect him to a second term.  Well enough politics for this post.

Up next in our household is Thanksgiving!  I always look forward to this day as its a day to not do anything and just EAT!  I love it.  We are heading up to the good ole UP this year and join in the festivities with my crazy family.  It will be good to see my grandma as she is 95 years old this year!  Of course its always good to see my sister, her family, my parents, extended family and my friends.  We usually make it up there twice a year and its always so busy and a quick visits that I usually never get to do all that I would like or see everyone that I would like to either.  Oh well!

4 months and counting

Well here I am 4 months pregnat with my third and last child.  It still amazes me that I am pregnant again especially after losing our baby last March.  I find myself being quite emotional about most things.  I know its the hormones and I am a pretty sensitive person, but man I cry about everything!  I think well, maybe this times its a girl (honestly we do not care what we are having as long as the baby is healthy that is what matters most!) because I really don't remember being so emotional with the boys. 

At any rate, this weekend has been fabulous so far.  Friday night after work I met up with 3 of 4 former co workers for dinner.  We talked, laughed, were loud, ate, and drank.  Of course I drank lemonade, but a cold beer would have been tasty on a warm evening as last night!  I then got a massage, which was AWESOME!!  Thanks hubby!!  Today (Saturday) we went to a pancake breakfast the Polk City fire dept put on, yum! and Jacob, Andrew, and I got to ride in the fire truck afterwards, its was so fun.  Then while Jake was napping we cleaned out the garage!!  Tomorrow comes the shed.  I get way too excited about cleaning and organizing.  Plus with the weather in the 80's you can't beat it.

wonderful weekend

This weekend was a pretty nice one.  John came home from work early, which was awesome, and surprised the boys by picking them up from daycare.  On a side note, our daycare is still working out REALLY well and we love it and the boys do too :-)  As I believe, everything is in God's plan so there is a reason our kids are at this daycare.  At any rate, we decided to go out to dinner, and not fast food, which is usually all our kids can really handle.  We went to Chili's and the boys were awesome!  We have not enjoyed a meal out as a family of four that was that enjoyable in a LONG time. 

On Saturday we cleaned the house in the morning and ran some errands.  John and some buddies went up to the Iowa State/UNI game and the boys and I hung out at home.  It was really cold and rainy most of the afternoon so we snuggled up and watched Home Alone that was on TV.  John had a good time at the game and got to see Ben Boothby play for UNI. 

Sunday we relaxed most of the morning and then headed over to the outlet mall and I bought a few items of clothing :-) and John took the boys so I could shop by myself.  It was a wonderful day and the weather was GREAT!  When we got home I had to run to the mall to get one more thing and John and the boys hung out at home.  When I got home we worked in the yard and took a couple walks around the block.  We also stopped and chatted with a newer neighbor gal.  She has a little boy that is a month older than Jacob.  She is a super nice gal and I always enjoy stopping by and visiting with her.  All and all a nice weekend.

Next weekend we head to Champaign to visit John's parents and go the Illinois/Ohio State game.  Should be a fun weekend as John and I will also go out on a date that night :-)  We haven't done that in MONTHS so we are due for a date night :-)

Happy 4th birthday Andrew!

Now that I have some time I thought it would be nice to dedicate a post to our Andrew John in honor of his 4th birthday.  Its hard to believe that 4 years have passed since Andrew became a part of our lives.  It seems like yesterday he was born and we were bringing home a tiny infant trying to figure out how parenthood works.  I have learned a lot from Andrew over the past four years.  I have learned to be more patient and pray for more patience daily.  He is a wonderfully smart little boy and very curious about his surroundings.  We will be riding in the car and he will point out that there is a police car (thanks buddy), mail truck, package truck, or whatever he sees.  It amazes me house observant he is.  Andrew is also a very good big brother.  Often times he shares his toys with Jacob really well and shows Jacob how to take turns.  He is also patient with Jacob (most of the time) and enjoys having a little brother to play with.  It will be fun to see how he is with his new brother or sister.  Andrew has also had some big changes this year.  Along with he and Jacob starting at a new daycare center he also started preschool at St Paul church.  So far  he is loving it and enjoys going there 3 days a week.  Since his birthday was Monday September 13 Andrew was student of the week at pre school this week.  He was able to bring something special to him to share everyday with his classmates and also brought a snack to share on Monday to celebrate his birthday.  He seemed to really enjoy it.  Andrew has brought so much joy and laughter into our lives that we couldn't imagine life without him!

The Big News!

Well we have finally made it public...Andrew and Jacob are going to have a baby brother or sister!  I am 12 weeks along and so far so good.  After what happened last March when we lost the baby and I could have lost my life, things have certainly turned around.  So to answer the usual pregnancy questions that one gets when people find out that you are pregnant here ya go:
How are you feeling?
pretty sick, but I am not complaining as this is a good sign and I am actually hoping that since my first trimester is over, things will turn around.  Usually by 12 weeks, the morning sickness (or in my case all day sickness) usually subsides.  Yes I also did feel the same with the boys so I know it will pass :-)

Are you going to find out what you are having?
We did not with the boys, but I told John I could be persuaded either way.  This has been an emotional year, and I feel so blessed that we were able to get pregnant again and pretty quickly after the loss of the baby, so I wouldn't mind knowing this time.  It is actually up to John if we are going to find out this time.  As of today, he wasn't sure.  I already warned him that if its a girl, the nursery is turning ALL PINK!!!

Have you picked out names?
We have our girl name picked out, well about 98% sure but that could always change.  Boy names are a lot harder for us this time.  Andrew was a no brainer because I have always loved that name and knew when I had a boy that would be his name.  Jacob was easy too because we loved that too.  If this one's a boy we can't agree on a name yet so if you have any ideas (for boy or girl names) we would love to hear them.  One name I have ruled out is Frank.  To sign our Christmas card Andrew, Jacob, and Frank did that name in for me! LOL

When are you due?
I am saying March.  Being that I have two kids that didn't wait until their due date, and its really more of a guide for Drs. in my opinion, I really don't want to say an exact date.  Let's say I am hoping I go the week of spring break (sometime the week of March 14).

Will you go back to work or stay home?
I will be going back to work after my leave is up.  With being a teacher and having a March baby, my baby will be 5 months old before I go back to work.  I feel that I have the best job in the world (for several reasons) to be a working mom.  How many other jobs do you get every holiday, spring break, and the summer off?

I have to say with the third baby I am showing a lot more quickly that I did with the boys.  But it makes sense since my body has been here before and already knows what to do so it does it a lot quicker. 

Some other big changes in our home are the boys started new day care after Labor Day.  We decided to go with a day care center as we needed more reliability than an in home.  The in home has been great, but so far the boys seem to be adjusting well and are liking their new day care.  Andrew also started pre school at our church.  He does get preschool with the center, but we wanted him to have the experience at our church as well.  He really is loving it and can't wait to go back.

stats of our boys

Now that we are parents of two boys people often ask how big was Andrew when he was Jacob's age.  I thought I would dedicate this post to our boys and just see how different and similar they are!  Its interesting because they are very similar in height and weight for the first year of their lives.

Andrew John Haase

birthday September 13, 2006

11:51 PM

8 lbs 10 oz

20 3/4" long

Mercy Medical Center

Des Moines, IA

Jacob Matthew Haase

birthday May 12, 2009

7:57 PM

8 lbs 61/2 oz

21 1/2" long

Mercy Medical Center

Des Moines, IA

Andrew at two weeks

weight 9lbs 2 oz

length 21 1/2"

Jacob at two weeks
weight 9 lbs

length 21 7/8"

Andrew at two months
weight 13 lbs 10 oz
length 23 3/4"

                                         

Jacob at two months

weight 12 lbs 5 oz
length 24"

Andrew at 6 months

weight 16 lbs 8 oz
length 27"

Jacob at six months

weight 17 lbs 6 oz
length 27"

 
 
Andrew at nine months

weight 19 lbs 10 oz
length 29"






Jacob at nine months

weight 18 lbs 11 oz
length 29 1/2"

 

Andrew at one year

weight 23 lbs 9 oz
length 30 1/2"

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
   

Jacob at one year
weight 21 lbs 6 oz
length 30 1/2"

babies babies everywhere!

It seems everytime I turn around, the past few months, someone I know is having a baby :-)  Since we have two kids ourselves I know how great it is to not have to worry about meals.  Last year after we had Jacob, many of our friends brought over meals.  Well my friend Amy brought over BBQ meatballs and cheesy potatoes.  It was awesome.  Naturally John wanted me to get the recipe and since then I tend to make this meal when people I know have a baby.  It also makes a ton so I get a two for one meal. 

cheesy potatoes

The ingredients for the meatballs

The finished product!

funny Target story

So today I was in Target looking for a bathing suit.  I see this woman around my age looking for one as well.  I hear her say, "well that's a bit skimpy don't you think?"  I look up and I don't see her talking to anyone.  I then walk around the rack and I see her daughter whose about 3 or 4 holding a bikini top.  The mom then says, "oh is that for you?"  The little girl walks away and says, "no, I don't have any boobies."  I about lost it.

Weekend party and the week so far...

This past Saturday we celebrated Jacob's first birthday!  We had friends and family over for his party and it was just awesome.  Jacob REALLY got into his cake and was covered head to toe in frosting.  It was a beautiful day on Saturday, so we were able to enjoy the outdoors, which was nice.  It still blows my mind that a year has past since Jacob's birth.  He continues to be such a joy to us.  Jake also had his one year apt on Tuesday and weighed 21.5 lbs and was 30.5" tall.  We are surprised he doesn't weigh more, because the lil' man CONSTANTLY eats!!  But our PA said that's normal since he is walking and so active.  He also got three shots.  I always hate that part, but know that it is necessary for him to remain healthy.  He cried a bit, but was really brave.

Tuesday afternoon Andrew was complaining about not feeling well, and sure enough he had a slight fever.  This morning (Wednesday) he still had a fever when he woke up.  Since he can't go to day care, I get to stay home with both boys :-)  He seems to be doing better now as he is playing and not complaining as much, but I am glad I kept him home. 

John also got home Tuesday night from his work trip to NYC.  He had a great trip, but we are glad to have him home.  We really missed him a lot.  When John went to get Jakey out of his crib this morning, he looked up at John and said da da.  So darn CUTE!

Happy 1st Birthday Jacob Matthew Haase

Jacob May 12, 2009

Its hard to believe that a year has past since my baby was born.  It just seems like yesterday he was a tiny little guy cuddling in my arms for the 1st time.  Its been an amazing year to have him in our lives.  He is such a joy.  Some of Jacob's favorite things to do is lay down on his couch and "relax", eat, dance, play with his big brother, laugh, and run away from us when we chase him.  Jakey's laugh is just awesome.  It is one of the most amazing sounds that I hear on a daily basis.  Since today was his real birthday Saturday is the big birthday party.  We have a busy next couple days, but I can't wait to celebrate his party and have a bunch of family and friends over!  Happy Birthday Jacob!!!

Jacob May 12, 2010

Busy and fun weekend

We had quite a fun and busy weekend!  Saturday started the day with Andrew sleeping in and Jakey and I making a cake for my co workers son's graduation party.  It was an oreo stuffed chocolate covered cake.  It was delish.  If I was thinking I would have taken a picture.  I guess that means I need to make it again.  Then I ran some errands and went to the graduation party.  It was a super nice party and had nice conversation.  We then went down to Tulip Time in Pella.  We got to meet up with grandma and grandpa Haase and watched the parade, saw Uncle Paul, and ate many delicious Dutch treats.  Awesome.   Sunday was great!  My gift, OK besides the flowers and stuff from my favorite spa, was a 2 1/2 hour nap.  NICE!  It was fabulous.  We then went to dinner in Ames at Valentinos.  Again delicious.  So the amount of calories I consumed this weekend was ridiculous, but oh so worth it! 
So its back to work today, ho hum.  However, only 2 more Mondays!!!  AND a month from yesterday I will be in Charleston with two of my bestest girlfriends for a girls only weekend!!  WOO HOO.
Another fun thing, my friend Amy is due in September with her second baby!  She has a girl right now, and is running a contest on her blog to see who can guess what the sex of this baby is.  I think its going to be a girl. But whatever she has, I am sure will be as perfect and cute as Miss Lilly is.  Congratulations again Amy and Dave!

April milestones

This month there have been quite a few milestones for Mr. Jacob.  He has been walking since 10 months, but excusively for the past week.  A week ago Saturday he had his first haircut and went from baby to big boy in about 15 minutes.  On Wednesday, Jacob had his last bottle at home and last at daycare on Thursday.  Hard to believe he will be a year in 10 days!  Where does the time go? 

Andrew continues to be a determined 3 1/2 year old.  He is becoming more independent and continues to be a big helper around the house.  He also has quite a sense of humor and doesn't forget much. 

The boys are starting to play together more.  Jacob tries to copy all that Andrew does (good and bad LOL) but its so fun watching them interact with each other.  Andrew can make Jacob laugh and its so darn cute.  We are very blessed to have these two cuties in our life!

day off of school

So far today has been a great day!  I was able to go to the gym before John left for work and then I got to play with my boys for the morning.  Jacob is taking his name and Andrew is watching a lil TV.  Once Jakey wakes up we are going to meet daddy for lunch and do a lil shopping.  I love having the day off.  I wish the weather was nicer, but it is nice to be snuggled up with my boys too!

tulips and the park

Andrew playing on the equipment                       

First wagon ride of the year and Jacob's first wagon ride ever.

                

 Jacob enjoying the swing

Tulips April 4

Tulips April 17

still working on it

So I am still working on getting the motivation to put pictures on here.  I should do it now, but I got things to do.  Like watching a show with my favorite 3 1/2 year old and play myself a lil FB.  John is out on the motorcycle today and I get to hang with my boys!  Then tonight Andrea and I are going to dinner.  Not sure where yet, but its her choice :-)  Being that she is due in a month, she can pick wherever she wants.  I DID draw the line at McDonalds though...Anyway, I think now is a good time to grab a sammich and chips for lunch.  Peace out people.

spring has sprung

The weather has been absolutely gorgeous the past few days.  I just love being able to take walks and play outside with the boys.  I also got my bike out, which I haven't ridden in about 5 years.  Andrew thought it was pretty cool riding bikes with mom.  I also planted about 64 bulbs last fall, in addition to the bulbs I planted the fall before and I am amazed at the amount of tulips that are coming up and blooming.  I don't really feel I have a green thumb, but I surprised my own self! 

My next task with the blog is to start putting some pictures on here!

good news

I went to my second school board meeting this school year.  There was probably about 300 people + at NVMS.  The school boards task was to approve a tax increase or cut programs from the Ankeny school district.  Thankfully, they passed the tax increase and jobs were saved and education was preserved in Ankeny.  People complain about raising taxes, but that's what happens when we have public education!  Just wait until they get their "free healthcare"! 

questions

I have many questions in life.  Most recently, why did I decide to start this blog back up?  First off, is my life really all that interesting to share blatherings of it on the Internet.  My hubs would say no you're boring, (thanks dear).  However, I love reading other people's blogs and thus my decision to start mine back up was made.  I have tried to make it more eye catching, if you will, but I am still a rookie when it comes to this kind of thing.  Its like decorating my house, I am not too good at that.  I just don't do cutesy.  I would love to, but honestly, if I could, I would hire someone to implement cutesy, warm, fuzzy into my home.  However, with two small boys, I can't have things on end tables or within arms reach because it will be broken.  Bare minimum thank you.  So I will continue to admire from afar all the cutesy things people do in their home and someday, my cutesy will come. 

Finally spring

After a long winter and not posting to this in over 2 years, I figured it was time. We had a wonderful Easter weekend as a family of four. The weather was wonderful and we were able to get a lot done around the house. John entertained the boys and I cleaned all of the windows inside and out and the screens. It took majority of the day, but it was well worth it! I also organized our pantry and a few cupboards. On Sunday, the Easter bunny made a visit and Andrew was super excited about his basket. He also hunted for the Easter eggs that he left. We then went to mass at All Saints. It was so packed we got to sit up in the choir loft. We then came home, had breakfast and watched Andrew's new movie; Alvin and the Chipmunks, the Sqeekqual. We then had a delicious lunch and pretty much hung out the rest of the day. All and all a great weekend.