A NEW year, A NEW you!

I cannot believe that 2012 is already over! WOW- did this year move by in full speed or what?! It was a good year. No, it was a great year! I am happy to say that for the first time in our marriage, we did not have an major changes, moves, or big events happen! (Want to an overview of what happened in our lives in 2011? click here!) In 2012, it felt so good to just be! We were finally able to focus on being the best 'us' we can, as individuals and a family. Rest assured, we have A LOT of growing and bettering to do but it was a good start! 

Last year, for the first time ever I made a list of what I called New Years Goals…I have always been hesitant to make these because I didn't ever want to be just another person writing down a bunch of idealistic things that I would:

A. Forget come June  

B. Never achieve. 

So when I made this list, I meant it. 

I am a firm believer that if you don't have goals, you will never achieve them. This year, I daily (almost) worked toward these goals, and can honestly say I achieved them! I even exceeded one of them by running a FULL marathon instead of my goal to do a half or 10k!!! I only hope to continue on with these lifestyle changes and increase them as the years go by. 

This year, I made another list for 2013. I had been thinking for a long time about what things I could do to better my life in major ways and grow as a person. Here is what I came up with. You better believe that everyday will be spent working towards these goals!

Cheers to continuing to grow to be a better person not only for ourselves, but for our God and those around us. 

My little girl in her "party ballerina outfit!"

Happy New Year everyone!!!

Christmas time is here!

And just like that, it was Christmas! 

Last year, having a newborn- I expected the time to fly by. But this year it seemed to come and go quicker than ever! I officially think that many of us make Christmas too chaotic. too hectic. and too busy. I only got a small chunk of time I was able to sit and truly ponder on the wonder of why we celebrate. Next year, this will be different. I don't know how we are going to make the days not so filled with the stress of food/ gifts/ company etc, but I am determined to make it happen!

Anyways… We DID in fact have a great Christmas, despite the craziness! Last year, I didn't have to work because I was on maternity leave, and this year, I just lucked out! 

We started off our celebrating with the whole Dittrich gang in New Ulm on the 22nd! It was fun to see them again after just a month at Thanksgiving (which rarely happens!) and we enjoyed a full day with these great people! 

Addie officially understood how to open presents, and that there are good things inside! Although the boxes and wrapping are often just as fun for them :)

Then it was Christmas eve,  and I tried to snag a few pics before we headed off to church for a fun family service!

My family! 

The "kids" including the newest addition, we call him Theo as well…she is completely in love with him already!

We finally got to my parents house around 7pm on Christmas eve, and they once again braved a 'surf and turf' meal! (I on the other hand enjoyed some fine veggie pizza!)

 Addie got to meet her great Aunt Wai Pik from Hong Kong that was here to visit! They adored one another and had lot of fun being silly!

The boys were digging in! They mean business when it comes to their meals and meat. 

Addie loved opening some more presents, and got another round of "not so girlie gifts" from her uncle Scott which included a dump truck…lol

Christmas morning was here!…and well, it was a very very tired morning. Let's just say I am spoiled by having a baby who has since 3 months old not only slept through the night, but slept in until 8:00-8:45 am. I AM NOT used to having her up for hours on end at night. Pack and play + us in the same room just didn't fly that night. 

BUT….we got over that real quick, got all decked out in red and green, and got ready to brave the day full of fun!

All of my mom's side and part of my dad's side joined us Christmas morning at my parents for brunch and gifts! Addison was loving time with great aunt Judy- another favorite!

And of course, those priceless moments with Gramma Pam. Gosh these two have such a special relationship!

Christmas night, we hosted the immediate Dittrich family at our house! Good times were had, and the cousins were so fun to watch together!

Completely delusional from no sleep, but loving every moment of the play time with new toys and family!

Aunt Haley is like a magnet for kids. They all love her- and I don't blame them, she is amazing!

Uncle Alex even scored some cuddle time the next day- gotta love these moments!

Merry Christmas!!!

Gearing up for Christmas!

The December birthdays had past.

The lights and decorations were hung. 

The snow had fallen, with even a snow storm behind us.

(Almost) All the presents had been bought.

...And now it was time to enjoy a few more special moments/ traditions before Christmas arrived! We really try to soak things in around here…sometimes we fail, but other times we succeed! Here are some of the successes that we were able to capture with the good 'ol iphone!

Addie, Theo and I braved it out on the deck during the huge snow storm in order for her to have her first full fledge snow experience… So, I set her down….and she sat still…and did not move. ever. lol Oh well! There were no tears and this was the most expression I got out of her! At least we have the first one under our belt! 

We complain and complain about the cold winters in the midwest, but sometimes I don't think I realize how much I actually appreciate them. Even though the roads are NOT fun to drive on, the snow is absolutely beautiful! I loved this view as I was driving into my neighborhood, and just had to snap a couple pictures!

After getting Addie's 1 year pictures taken by a wonderful friend, we made some more Christmas cookies! Sam and I have done this every year since we have been married. We love doing it…However every year we find the need to make a simpler cookie recipe. Not because we don't have the time, but because of our severe lack of baking skills! Either way, we have fun doing it…and this year we got to show Add the ropes! 

Us girls had one last trip to the Mall of America to wrap up the last of our gift buying and ended up scoring some AMAZING deals for ourselves too…oops :) We always have so much fun together though- we make a great team!

We decided to make it a tradition last year (when Addie was just 3 weeks old) to try and make it Downtown Minneapolis and look at the Macy's 8th floor display. I think every year I go, I forget how short the display actually is, and that they don't change the theme each year…but again we went, and it was great! Addie is at such a fun age, and was so fun to watch her be mesmerized by everything!

I think she pointed at things 95% of the time! It's been her new thing, and I adore it!

Of course one of us had to catch the stomach flu, so I took one for the team! Addie very much enjoyed the empty bottle of sprite that remained though!

Christmas season was upon us, and soon to be here! We tried our best not to hurry the moments so they didn't slip on by!

The last of the firsts for her!

Thanksgiving 2012 was Addie's official last "first holiday" {besides her birthday, but I think that will technically be her 2nd time right?!} and it was a good one!

Being a nurse, It is expected that you will have to work your fair share of holidays…so I fully intended on working Thanksgiving or Christmas and/ or New Years. Thankfully, I got scheduled for NONE of them! How could that have happened?! I am not sure, but I am not going to complain! Although the double or double and 1/2 time would have been nice, there is nothing that beats holidays with my family.

Back to Thanksgiving… The day started off right with a beautiful run, and non other than my favorite treats: A veggie egg and cheese breakfast sandwich and pumpkin spice latte from my love {Starbucks}. 

Sam, Addie and I then made the 2 1/2 hr trip to New Ulm to Sam's wonderful Grandparents house. They always do such a great job hosting. They are seriously the most active and spunky grandparents I have ever met! It was nice to see all of his aunts, uncles, cousins etc that we don't get to see that often! Believe it or not, some of them had never even met little miss Addison yet! {Last Christmas we didn't brave the trip down there with a 3 week old, and I was scheduled to work on Easter.}

Addie was shy for a while {would we expect anything else?!} but after a couple hours, and a nap, she warmed up to a few people... and especially enjoyed the 50+ year old blocks!

I for one LOVE thanksgiving not for the food {I really don't like 99% of thanksgiving foods} but for the fact that it is a holiday NOT centered around gifts! So it was very nice just to 'be' with others!

On our way home, we stopped by my parents to pick up Mr. Theo, who of course couldn't spend Thanksgiving alone- and plotted the next days early morning shopping.

It was great {of course} to get the majority of our Christmas shopping done, and to get some good deals during our 12 hr shopping day…but so often I just felt sick to my stomach! The focus on spending so much money and all the gifts you 'HAVE' to buy just really got to me! I so wish we could do without gifts on Christmas. Or people would be satisfied with all home crafted gifts! It is nice to get new things for yourself, and to buy for others…but how much do we really need? It says a lot that most of the time we have to sit down, and think hard about what we want for Christmas.

Anyways, It was a super fun day with my mom, and maybe one year {hopefully sooner rather than later} we can start scaling down even more on the gifts, but it is hard because it seems like everyone would have to be on board!

All in all, I am SO thankful, and SO blessed beyond words can describe. I loved this Thanksgiving and look forward to the Birthday and Christmas festivities ahead! We fully intend on soaking up every bit of it! Can you believe my little monkey is going to be ONE year old in just a few days!?! WOW, it is cliche, but so true, time really does fly with the little ones! What a beautiful, sweet, silly, and special girl she is! Her giggles and sweet/ thoughtful spirit melt my heart each and every day!

Happy 50th!

This is my 50th post…yay! However, considering the fact that I've had this blog for a couple years, maybe I should pick up my game a little bit! Anyways, here are my thoughts right now…

Summer is actually winding down. To me, this is marked by none other than the MN State fair, and the talk of all the kids going back to school as well as the youth ministry starting back up full swing again. I am sad to see summer go [as I am every year] but the beauty of change and the beginning of something is also quite exciting and fills me with hope and anticipation! [I am not referring to the State fair when I say this, although I am quite excited about the pizza on a stick and animals we will get to enjoy ;)]

Us at the fair last year!

Greatly anticipating her arrival!!!

As a somewhat newly married couple [3 years] and as new parents, we get the joy of experiencing many "firsts" together. From then on, we get the opportunity to form traditions and things we as a family regularly do! This summer has not been any exception. Everything was a first for Addie, given she is only 8 1/2 months old, but how fun it was to experience so much along side her and each other!
The many trips to the zoo, walks around the river and neighborhood, camping, and more than that, just the simple joys of trying new everyday things were so fun!!

She is now fully on the move…She decided to wait until 7 months to sit up on her own, and just a few days later started crawling! Now she is a speedy Gonzales around the house and is pulling herself up on almost everything, but is still too wobbly to stay up for too long. Bring on the 'bonked heads' and hopefully they don't occur too often ;) It's is amazing how creative one can get while baby proofing! For us, we removed the major 'no-no's' and then its more of a change it as we go type of game, as we see what she likes to get into and how we can avoid that without turning our house upside down.

One of her first discoveries- of course!

Despite popular baby belief, kleenex does NOT really taste good!

She is such a delight [as grandma-sh as that sounds, but truly she is] Still a little shy with those she doesn't know well, but we are working on that ;) Sam and I were just reminiscing about how this stage is pretty easy compared to the first 3-4 months and what is to come in the toddler stage etc, and are fully prepared to soak up every minute of it right now!

Excited for another wedding shower for Auntie/ Godmother Tiffany!!!

Next mission: try to get Theo to be as in love with Addison and she is with him! Seriously, the look of awe and love and many laughs that get sent his way are unreal! Don't get me wrong, he likes her, but is still pretty guarded. We are hoping they really buddy up, because right now, he honestly seems like more work than her! And I guarantee, that has nothing to do with the fact that he has been completely spoiled and babied until we had her ;) lol

This says it all...

Last thought….Ever since Addie was born, I have really tried to live my life more simply. Away with the years of going going going [as I wrote about a while ago Here] and being involved in so much that what you are involved in becomes a task and not the help it maybe should be. I  [and sam too] have been trying to soak up every day as we are able. Simplify, simplify, simplify! [My love for efficiency also helps!] Packing your life with "good stuff" can be just as destructive as "bad stuff." So we try, and sometimes we fail, but none-the-less it is still the motto of how we want to live our lives and be as a family. So no, I may not be able to do as much as I once did with others or make more money by working more hours, but I am putting those things that are closest to my heart at the top of my priority list…in order to have a balanced, happy home!

LOVES to be upside down any chance she gets!

That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

We took the family camping July('12)

I love camping. I really do. Those who know me can attest to the fact that I usually scream bloody murder at the presence of a bug/ or gross things of that nature. However, when I am outside anything goes, and my tolerance for those nasty little critters diminishes (with the exception of ticks and biting mosquitos) When I am camping, I get to enjoy one of my greatest loves…the outdoors! I thrive on fresh air, THE SUN, the heat, and everything green :) I also love the simplicity that camping brings. I am a firm believer in sticking to the basics when camping…cooking everything on the fire and only creating work to be done when its a necessity. It's a time to get away from the expectations and chaos of everyday life. Sam on the other hand hates the heat & the beating sun... but as a whole, generally enjoys camping. Therefore, as a family on a tight budget, camping has been and will become even more of an activity that we will embrace together!

So, on a weekend with temps in the high 90's- low 100's why not drag the troops camping? This time was a little bit different for the following reasons:

A. We have a 7 month old, who we had obviously never camped with, so it was a trial run to see how she would do
B. We only had saturday afternoon-monday morning to go due to both of our work schedules
C. Sam still had to work Sunday morning
D. It was going to be HOT

The solution? Camp at a beautiful campsite right here in Hudson! The 3 Dittrichs (+ Theo) as well as my parents ventured a whole 3 miles from our house to Willow River State Park. This way, Sam could leave Sunday morning to go to work, we wouldn't waste time driving and we could always stop home if things got rough (with Addie) etc etc.

Sam setting up our new tent!

Despite the fact that we were one of the last people to reserve a site at the campsite (leaving us with a very UNshadded campsite) we really did enjoy ourselves. We made do with makeshift shade, AC trips to the car, spending a day at the "beach" and picnic area where there were lots of trees, and a lot of laughter! Other than the fact that poor Addie was pretty hot a lot of the time she was a gem and played in her pack-n-play so well (she even took a few short naps!)

Reading in the shade with grandma!

I myself, really enjoyed the heat and beating sun, however I spent a lot of time worrying if Add was cool enough and making sure she was okay. Sam…well, he of course hated the heat. Therefore, I think our future camping trips will take place in the spring and early fall. I can bake in the sun right here at home where no one else is subjected to it ;)

Who knew picking daises could be so much fun?!

LOVING exploring in the tent!

hot hot hot!

My first EVER motorcycle ride with my bro (note: thankfully our max speed= 25 mph)

Laughing with mommy :) 

Overall, it was a good trial run for us and our growing family & We didn't even need to stop home! We learned what we need to change for next time! I loved spending time with my parents (and the day visit from my brother). I look forward to exploring this campsite and many others in the future Spring and Fall months for years to come:)

Who wants to sleep when everyone else is hanging out by the fire?!