New Years Celebration

JoHanna, Samantha, Adelynn, Seth & Mustache Josh

A few months ago the Taylor family invited us to join them at Metropolis Resort in Eau Claire, Wisconsin to ring in the new year. How could I say no?! Our only other option would be hanging out at home watching movies or playing Wii.

On one end of the hotel was a nice waterpark with a few slides, lazy river, pool, hot tub and a kiddie area for the little ones. We spent the first day of our arrival there. Addy wasn't too interested in playing in her gigantic bathtub. I'm sure the chlorine was a bit much for her.

On the other end of the hotel is Action City. This is where we spent much of our time. There was so much to do. We purchased unlimited bracelets that were to be good until 11pm, at which point their "Lock-in" Event would begin and run until 2am. We had rock walls to climb, go-carts to drive, bumber cars to spin on, mini-bowling, laser tag, batting cages, arcade games that didn't give tickets were free, and those that gave tickets would cost money. We were the 'no fun' parents and had the kids do things their wrist band would allow. If you want something from the Reward Store, I'll buy it for you rather than spending twice as much in the hopes to win tickets.

At 11pm we were planning to head back to the room and play the Wii since Addy took a three hour nap around 6pm. Instead we realized that our wrist bands were still good. What did that mean? We were going to soak it up and see if their computer glitch would stop our bracelets at midnight. Which they did. We grabbed some free pizza and the unlimited beverages and watched our clocks flip to midnight. There were TVs all over the place. I was disappointed that they didn't have any of the local stations on to watch the ball drop. Instead I pulled up someone YouTube video that they posted ridiculously fast and let the kids watch that.

Happy New Years!!!

We all made it to midnight - yes ALL.

Sam made it three feet from the top. I'm sure her fuzzy
boots didn't offer the best support climbing walls.

Addy was obsessed with this train!

Our hotel room - gotta have a picture of the room.

Addy was helping her dah bowl on the mini
bowling lanes. The pins were supported by strings
which was pretty neat.
She also learned to say "Go" when her dah would say
"Ready? Set? ___" where she'd fill in "GO!"

Addy stood next to the height stick to see if she was tall
enough to ride. We learned that she is as tall as the
shortest woman.

Nick and Sam racing one another. Sam's pink sports car could
bust through any obstacle in the road. Unfortunatly,
she didn't have the driving experience that Nick does.

Go Seth Go!

Nick and Sam trying to stay
in the lead.

It's a Boy!!!!

We are thrilled beyond all means!

Seth was the first boy into the Schiller family and then came Skyler who was born to Cassie (Nick's step-cousin in a sense.) and Todd Knuth November of 2011. He's family like Seth. Not one who can carry on the Schiller name. We were just as thrilled when Adelynn was born. She was perfect! A piece of Nick.

Now, we are blessed with a baby boy too. Life couldn't be any better. Boy, girl, girl and boy. A family of six, that is enough for one house. 20 or so more weeks until we meet our baby boy.

Christmas Eve

It is always hard being away from my children, especially on holidays. I tend to sit and wonder what they are doing, what presents they are unwrapping, and what memories I won't be able to share. We are given their gifts wrapped to bring home from the Schiller Family. Christmas doesn't feel like Christmas when family can't be together.

I understand why they can't be with me and how their dad feels when he is without them. I'd doesn't get easier. It never will.

Tonight we watched Adelynn unwrap her presents. She was so happy to have more to unwrap after her first gift. She crawled around and played with all the little girls, and was held by most of the guys. She sure loves those with beards.

We've had a rough patch with some of the family and a close friend from our wedding weekend. Time has passed, and we're all coming back together. I am grateful for that.

Shut-Out no more

It's been close to four years since Nick has shot a pheasant. He would go out a handful of times each season, and not have any luck. Most days he wouldn't see anything.

Today he went down to the WMA (wildlife management area) in Red Wing which is roughly 500 acres and his luck changed.

Muska, Nick, and Belle

Seth will be sad that he missed this big day. Although, I'm sure he's having a lot of fun with his dad.

Tea for Two

Adelynn got two of the same tea sets for her birthday. Marie, at daycare, says how Adelynn plays with her tea set all day. We had bought her a set, and Marie did as well. Nicky's working, the big kids are with their Dad, so Adelynn and I sit here having tea together. She pours the tea into her cup, then quickly drinks her tea. It's a good thing we are using our imagination, her clothes would be soaked, and she'd would still be pretty thirsty.

My baby is pretty clever, she amazes each and every day with what she does.

A party to kick off winter break

Seth was invited to his first birthday party outside of his best friends, Josh & JoHanna. On Thursday he was pretty nervous since school was cancelled that it would be cancelled on Friday too. If that happened then how could he ride the bus home with Derek and would he still have his birthday party?

We went shopping for a present, which took quite some time. Seth forgot what Derek wanted for his birthday. I pointed out an Ant Farm and Seth knew Derek would love it. "Let's get me one too!" He placed a second one in the cart. "Um, no bud, Christmas is next week." We moved along to the next aisle to fine a second gift. Seth starts pointing out a bunch of things, like a keyboard ($86), remote helicopter ($38), a new pedal bike ($50+), a sporty looking sled with skis ($60+), and the list continued of spendy gifts. We finally settled on a plastic snowboard with a rope and handle. That was even after trying to figure out how he'd get by carrying it to school and taking it on the bus to Derek's house.

Seth had a lot of fun at the party. He told Derek's mom to blame me if the farm broke and ants invaded his house. What a sweet boy I have.

Goodbye Elf

Although it is not Christmas Eve when elf typically returns to the North Pole, he has taken flight early this year with Seth and Sam being gone until Christmas Day.

He snapped a picture with each of our babes as a keepsake until next year.

His stay went by quickly and we all had fun seeking him out each morning to see what he was up to last night. The giggles that accompanied each mornings hunt was all worth the clean-up from the overnight fun.

He will be missed...

Braces

Seth had his braces put on today. Parts were uncomfortable compared to others but that didn't stop Seth from asking questions about every device in hand and liquid used. I love how inquisitive his mind is. He wants to know how everything works and how this piece affects the next.

Seth was given a bag of goodies to help set him off in the right path. One was a card that laid out the items he needs to avoid. One of those being peanut butter. It will be a long year and a half.

When we left, we swung through Dairy Queen and I bought him a Peanut Butter Shake.

Christmas Concert

Today the kids had two concerts at school. The first at 1:00pm and the second at 6:30pm. I missed the first one because of a horrible headache/migraine. Nick, Grandma Linda, Grandpa Jim, Dave and I made it to the evening concert. The kids and I got there at 6:00pm to find that we should have just walked to school and that the south gym, as usual was packed. The north gym is much larger, but lacks a stage. The school always has to have the older students carry in 50+ more chairs to minimize the number who are required to stand. I realized it was going to be impossible to block off six chairs, especially with all those still standing, and only Addy and I to fill those spots. I found two open seats in the second row. Nick joined us, Linda sat by herself in the front row, not too far from us, and Jim stood in the back. Dave snuck in and I didn't see him until afterwards. Addy spent much of the concert on Brett Fredrickson's lap. (Nick did consignment for Gibson, where Brett worked, and I teach church to his daughter Kylin.) She was as content as could be, and he seemed to enjoy holding a baby again. His wife, Kendra was the one who wanted to snuggle our girl, but Addy wanted Brett instead.

Seth and Sam are in Elementary Choir with meets every Monday from 3:00-3:30pm. They both seem to enjoy it as well. It was one of the best concerts I've been to. They both sang and looked happy on the stage.

Happy 1st Birthday Adelynn!

I can't believe it has been a year already. It just shows you how time really does fly. If you don't slow it down, it's easy to forget what really happened.

She is such an amazing baby. From 10 weeks old she has slept through the night (7pm to 7am). She prefers to put herself to sleep for naps and bedtime. If she wakes up, she puts herself back to sleep. If she wakes before we do, she lays around and plays with her puppy or babies until we come get her. When she rubs her eyes, you know she is ready for her crib. Crying? Doesn't happen very often. She may pout but rarely does she have crying fits. She adores her brother and sister. You can see her sadness when I pick her up from daycare and she looks to both sides of her carseat and doesn't see her siblings smiling at her.




She plays contently by herself and is always chatty with whoever is in the area. We experienced a week or two of stranger anxiety in October where she cried if someone else held her outside of her immediate family and Grandparents. If we are running errands and it's after her bedtime, even 10pm, she is still a happy little girl saying "hi" to strangers.

Adelynn isn't ready to walk yet. I'm sure being carried by sissy doesn't help, nor our hardwood floors throughout the house accompanied by cold nights where socks are a must. She'll hold our hand and walk beside us, but the minute our hands separate, she drops to the floor.

Words: mama, dada, hi, hot, uh-oh, and a whole lot of jibberish that at times could pass as a true word.

She gives 'five', waves, and claps her hands.

Happy birthday baby girl! We love you to pieces!!

19 lbs, 14 oz

It's my party and I'll smash my cake if I want to

We celebrated Adelynn's 1st Birthday today. We scrubbed the house from top to bottom over the past two weeks getting ready for today. By the end of the party our house was trashed with tissue paper and icing on the floor.

Adelynn was given her own smash cake and she wasn't quite sure what to do with it. About 10 minutes late she had a little tunnel going into the cake where she kept digging. I rinsed her off in the sink, put on her pretty dress and then started opening presents. She was given a lot of fun toys and a few outfits.

Those who celebrated the big day were:
Great Grandma & Grandpa Schiller
Great Grandma Adelmann
Grandma & Grandpa Schiller
Anita & Gene Meyers
Laila Meyers
Matt Meyers & Christina Bonella
Missy & Kimmy Meyers
Dorthoty & John Feidt
Mike, Allison & Emma Schiller
Steve & Deb Schiller
Dan Rudiger & Melanie Janke
Ted & Jean Zwart
Ken & Brenda Bauch
Luke Bauch

Space or Spacers

Seth visited the orthodontist today to have spacers put between a few of his back teeth. They'll push his teeth apart a little prepping him for braces next Wednesday. He was a so grown up about letting his peanut butter addiction go. I offered to blend some with milk to make a shake which he quickly turned down. We'll see how long before he changed his mind.

This morning we woke to find Harley gazing through the telescope. Wonder what he was looking for. At church all of the kids shared the crazy things their elf has been doing. Loads of giggles came out of that conversation.

A baby and her baby

Adelynn, Nick and I had to pick a few things up at the store over the weekend. Some of those items included Christmas presents, others included Adelynn's birthday present. This will be the only birthday we can get away with having her with us while we pick out her present. As I was strolling the aisles in search of the perfect present for a handful of 5-7 year old girls, I saw a baby and handed it to Adelynn. Immediately, she wrapped her arms around the baby and gave her a hug. Moments later, she began to shove her finger in the baby's mouth trying to pry the lips apart. Her and Daddy play a fun game. Well, she plays the game, Daddy is just a victim of wrapped around the pinky. She'll take her four fingers and pry his mouth open. At times it looks as if she is going to pull his lower lip right off his face. Usually, he escapes and then acts like he is going to bite her little fingers. She giggles and repeats. The two of them are so cute to watch. The moment he walks in the door, Adelynn drops to the ground and begins to scream, pant and jibber as she hurridley crawls to her Daddy for hugs. It is almost like she is saying Daddy! My day has been oh so horrible, rescue me!! It just doesn't fail. Every time she sees him, she responds the same way. I am so happy that Nick gets to experience this kind of unconditional love. In the mornings when Nick isn't home, I'll get Adelynn out of her crib and as soon as we walk into the dining room she is twisting her body from left to right to see if her Daddy is sitting in his chair, or around the corner in the kitchen. Nope. We then make our way around the house so she knows that he isn't home. Otherwise she's on a mad hunt to find him. There is no going to the bathroom for him in privacy. If she wants to be in his arms, she'll sit outside the bathroom tapping on the door telling him um Daddy, you left me out here. I'm waiting for you... hurry up... Daddy... Daddy... I'm still waiting.

Simon Says

At Girl Scouts we started our journey through "It's your world, change it". We only had two girls attend and Seth was hanging out since there wasn't a need for him to be in RCC if I was at school too. At the end we decided to play Simon Says. The girls had turns being 'Simon' and lastly, Seth took over. Poor girls, he was picking on them. They first had to hug each other, which they seemed to enjoy. Then he moved them into hugging the tables. Next, he directed them to lick the tables. Alright evil boy, you've been demoted.


While Sam was being 'Simon' a Dakota County Sheriff was standing by the table the girls are currently hugging in the second picture. Sam put out a command. "Simon Says don't arrest us!" The Sheriff heard her and asked her to clarify as he began to walk closer to her. "What? You want me to arrest you?" Immediately, Sam started giggling away. In her attempts to say, don't arrest us, it was too late, he turned her around, placed her arms behind her back and started reading her her rights. Then tickled her side and released her. I was too slow to grab a picture of it. His son, who just finished basketball practice found humor in his dad arresting Sam. Hopefully that will be the only time she's being read her rights.

Natures Present

On Wednesday the clerk at the gas station and a customer were laughing because a truck filling up with diesel had a plow on the front. What's funny you ask? The clerk told me they must be in the wrong state. There isn't any snow here. The laugh was on the clerk and the customer because that was a man who was planning ahead. You can't waste valuable time while the snow is falling to put your plow on.

Last night the snow came in after midnight, by morning, there was only an inch. By 1pm, we had around 3.5-4 inches of snow. By nightfall, around 6 inches. Nothing dramatic like the 16 inches Hudson, Wisconsin got. If it's going to be cold, at least give us something beautiful to enjoy, and that's what we were given.

I left the house at 1:30pm to head to Cottage Grove to pick up the kids from their dad to get them to their Christmas program at church. The roads weren't too bad, but definitely a white out behind me. It took 45 minutes to get there and about her 45 minutes to get to church. Had we left right away instead of spending time at grandma's getting dressed we would have made it to church right as the program started. By the time we got their my class of 3rd graders were singing. I felt defeated. Seth didn't get to sing Silent Night, and Sam didn't get to dress up as an animal in the manger.

Back in Time

We spent most of the day at Dakota City Village located on the fairgrounds in Famington. Each year they open up the old buildings, dress in clothing from that period of time and provide activities around ever corner. In the old home that was donated, you can see what a typical house would look like back in the early 1900s. What a one cell jail looked like, how the fire department would hook up their horses to pull necessary equipment to help put out fires, what old schools looked like including desks, chalk boards, coat room and so forth. Before entering each building, we have the kids read the plaque out front. "What did this building used to be used for?", "What year was it built?", "Does this look the same as today?"

In the firehouse, the kids made candy canes out of pipe cleaners and another candy cane out of beads.

In the old house, they watched two women bake cookies on the very old wood burning stove.

In the print building, they saw how newspapers used to be made. One letter at a time, slid into a line.

In the blacksmith building, they watched men heat the iron, then hit it with hammers to shape it into its final product.

In the church we sang carols.
In the general store we learned about how farmers would bring their grain to the store to trade for other items, how the farmer's wife would knit and sew items to sell to the store in exchange for other items.
In the library, we met Mrs. Claus and wrote a letter to Santa Claus.

In the train depot, we spoke with Santa.

Horse drawn carriage rides were offered around the village for convenience. Had there been snow on the ground, it would have been a sleigh. It didn't matter to the kids, as long as there were horses.

Jean, Jessica and Jayden Ludescher, Joan Schorn, Hunter and Zack Schorn also joined us with some of Jean's family from her husbands side. We enjoyed hot cocoa, and then they left to go visit baby Jax Schorn in the hospital. He was born just a few days prior but was still struggling maintaining is blood glucose levels. Josh and Danielle have been blessed with three boys.

Your sneezes are cute

We were riding in the car and little Adelynn was sneezing up a storm. Seth says to her "Your sneezes are cute!" Then asked if I agree.

I've always loved my babies faves when sneezing. The cute little expression, the pure sneeze without silly noises. I've even taken pictures of Seth sneezing as a little baby.

Notes from Sam

This morning there was a note on the fish tank from Sam clearly stating who owns this fish tank. We tried adding a plecostomus to help keep the tank clean, but he only lasted 10 hours. I found him in the morning about an inch out of the tank. He was either eager to get out of there or he got stuck and his struggling to break free only raised him higher out of the tank. We'll give it another try.

What a Daddy won't do for his daughter

Pups is a loved pooch. He is tightly squeezed with 10 little fingers between a neck and a shoulder, then squished by a head. Adelynn adores her pooch from the very beginning of their lives together. He is always with her for naps and nights. On occasion he'll join us on a car ride in case there is a nap in the near future. She'll nap without him, but we love seeing her love that little stuffed animal.

Recently, his seams started to pull apart on his rear, then his left eyeball disappeared. It was time he underwent a surgical repair. Thankfully, I paid close enough attention during procedures in the clinic to know how to perform surgery. Nick patched up his back where the seams were becoming a bit loose.

Besides his missing eye, he's almost as good as new.

Drive In with the Top Down

This was Nick:

Dancin

Sam has been preparing for the Northfield Winter Walk performance on Bridge Square. They will be blocking the roads and having festivities throughout downtown Northfield. Sam is in the black leotard, she seems to have fun during lessons yet never looks happy to be dancing during a performance or even singing on stage at school concerts. Maybe she is nervous and doesn't appreciate the attention.

Mess Makers

Seth & Sam have a big sticky mess to clean up after school today. Elf made a mess. He set out their toothpaste and brushes, along with a Dino-floss and cup for each. Brushy, Flossy, and Spit written all over the sink.

Seth brought the picture to school for show and tell.

Nick has stated that Elf needs to be grounded. He probably will be saying that often over the next 27 days.

Girl Scouts

I recently took over as Girl Scouts Brownie Troop Leader, which is 2nd and 3rd grade girls. We have four, or five, girls so far and are hoping for a successful fall sign-up. We had our first meeting where the girls learned the GS hand sign, GS Promise and earned their first badge, Playing Fair. We had a fun meeting.

Today we had Emma Dibble, Isabel Siple, McKenzie Farrington, and Sam.

Potty Dance McFluffy Pants

Our fifth trip to the doctors in a week and a half. It's Seth's turn to get checked for pneumonia. Last night he developed a fever, chills, headache, stomach ache and nausea.

While waiting for Seth to be called they were reading magazines. Both got a kick out of the cat doing the potty dance.

Between the cat and Mr. McFluffy Pants, the squirrel, running around outside, we were kept pretty entertained.

Elf must be feeling under the weather too.

He's Back...

Last year Elf joined our family. He flies in on Thanksgiving and hangs out until Christmas Day to see the children's faces as they open presents from Santa.

Sam found him yesterday morning sitting on Adelynn's crib. She covered her mouth with both hands and started jumping up and down. Once the excitement passes, she began to look closer. "Why does he look so fake?" "He's made out of plastic!" "He even has a tag!" The tag is for note taking I said.

This morning as I was trying to sleep until at least 9am, Sam peeked her head into our room and asked if we've seen him. "No, babes, I haven't been out of bed."

A half hour later when I crawled out of bed, she pointed him out. Seth woke up at 6am from his alarm to get ready for trapping with Grandpa Jim. He hung out in the dining room for an hour and didn't see him. But on his behalf, I'm sure he was still sleepy and too excited about trapping to think about the search.

Not a goodbye, instead, I'll see you later

Indy is a wonderful dog for the kids. He's incredibly mellow and seems to enjoy being an oversized pillow for the kids. During the day we've had to kennel him because he'd chew around the house. He's since outgrown that puppy phase, so we allowed him in the basement when we're not home. Then came Belle. She hated the kennel. After trying a few things, we ended up realizing that Indy soothes Belle. When we are not home, the two kennel-up together.

During the fall we picked up a 6'x12' outdoor kennel. Perfect option we thought. Until one day we came home to find the dogs out of their kennel. It didn't take long to determine the escape artist was Indy. He pulled the fencing apart so his head could stick out. He would move the kennel off the pad, which would allow the door to swing open easily, and eventually, he became so talented, he could open the door with a quick jerk of the neck. Nick built a nice insulated dog house hoping that would calm Indy. The panel with the door was flipped around so the pre-cut hole now lined up with the dog house and his last hole was now 5' off the ground. After one eight hour stretch while we were at work, Indy pulled the fence apart enough to make a hole big enough for all three of them to escape.

Grandma Lorraine has been looking for a dog to keep her company since Pups passed away not too long ago. Their first attempt was a failure. The dog bit Grandma and one of her caretakers. On Thanksgiving, Nick mentioned to his mom that maybe Grandma would want Indy as a companion. Today, Linda stopped by to pick up Indy. Wait, what? We only asked Seth once what his thoughts were around having to find Indy a new home. His response at that time was "If we have to, then okay." I wasn't ready for this decision to be finalized, nor did I feel Seth was given enough time to really think about what this meant. I was taken back that this was happening so quick after being just a brief two minute conversation with Seth.

I asked Seth if it was okay for Indy to go live with Grandma Lorraine at her farm. Amazingly, Seth was completely okay. Not a tear, not a fight, just a big boy saying it would be okay. "As long as I get to see him all the time." At 11:30am, Indy rode off to his new trial home. At 5:00pm we pulled up to the farm and visited Indy. It was like he was at home. He stretched out under the table and enjoyed the warmth of the home. With the number of caretakers that Grandma has, he will have to earn his right to stay. No forms of aggression. Although we heard he growled at one of Nick's aunts, we don't know what exactly happened. It's unheard of for him to show any signs of aggression. The closest is that he stands a few yards off the sidewalk and barks at people walking by.

I'm not sure who was more saddened today. Seth, or myself. We have had Indy since he was a puppy. He became Seth 's dog within a year. Slept at the foot of the bed and all-in-all has been a great dog for Seth.