Surprise Anniversary Trip!

Josh is such a sweetheart!

Yesterday was our 2nd Wedding Anniversary, and to celebrate he planned a surprise trip to Duluth, MN where we honeymooned only two years ago...

I was so surprised and excited to see everything again, and also to experience them with Leah!

We left early in the AM, and got to Duluth in time to have lunch at the Miller Hill Mall.

Then, we took Leah to the Great Lakes Aquarium! She just loved looking at the fish in the big tanks, and thought it was great fun to play with the activities they had there. (A Model of the great lakes she really liked, because she got to play with a toy boat in the water!)

Then, we went to the Superior Zoo, which was great fun!

The weather was incredible for this time of year, and because the zoo is outside, it was a really nice present! Leah loved the Cougars especially, I think because they reminded her of kitties! Plus, she loved that she could get right up close to the glass, and they were only inches away!

Then, we went down to Canal Park, and got to see our hotel that we stayed in for our honeymoon. Leah liked to watch the seagulls go overhead!

We topped off our evening with dinner at Red Lobster, which Leah thought was ok, but we of course LOVED it! It was such a nice treat!

It was such a great trip, really a celebration for all of us! But I think Josh and I had more fun watching Leah experiencing new things! It was great!

Here's some pics of our trip!

Josh and Leah look at the huge fishies!

In the Beaver House!

Don't you just love the little smile?

Leah lovin' the tigers!

This is how Leah enjoyed most of the trip... in her new stroller!

Josh watching the HUGE Kodiak Bear in the water!

Fun with Blocks

Here are a couple pics of Leah playing with one of her new toys, the Wooden ABC Blocks she got from Josh's parents for her birthday.

First she piles them all up by her (Mom helps)

Then she offers to share with Mom (so nice!)

Then she spreads (or throws) them all over the living room

Ending with a satifying chew on the blocks!

(Note her new and very cute pigtails!)

(Her hair is so long now, it needs to be up and out of her face!)
So Cute!

Reminds me of Winter...

Minnesota sure has goofy weather!

I was so encouraged this week, because the ground was drying out, and getting to be more like spring instead of the muddy mess we had. Then last night we get more snow! Only about an inch or two, but what a bummer. I was disappointed. I'm soooooo looking forward to spring! (yes, Cabin Fever has hit!)

But, here are some pictures of Leah's first time outside in the snow! They were taken a while ago, but they are so fun! Makes me appreciate the snow more when I see these pics!

By the way, she HATED her sled, and being pulled in it. (Funny girl!) The only thing she liked about it was getting pulled to the garage to see Daddy! Enjoy!

Fun at MOPS!

Wow.. the MOPS meeting last night was a lot of fun!

We were able to enjoy a cooking demo from Sue Doeden, Bemidji Pioneer chef. (she's in the paper every week) She gave us lots of fun ideas to "spruce up our menus!" It was so neat to watch her create these amazingly good (and easy) dishes!

(But this is me you're talking to, I would watch food network 24/7 if I could!)

I got a lot of neat tips on kitchen prep, too! For instance, if you put cilantro in a pint size jar full of water, then put a sandwich bag over the top, it will last for 2x as long in the fridge? Cool tip! We also did a very fun craft (magnetic picture frame). It was a great evening!

But the best part was at the end, though! We had prize drawings and my name was called! I won a batch of "Mexican Muffin-Tin Meatloaves" we had made that night at the cooking demo. They are sooooo good and so easy!

I thought I would put the recipe here so all of you can enjoy it too!

Mexican Muffin-Tin Meatloaves

1 1/2 lbs ground beef

1/2 Cup mild chunky salsa

2tsp Chilli Powder

1 1/2 tsp Cumin

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 Cup Oats (quick or old-fashioned)

1/4 Cup chopped fresh cilantro

Preheat oven to 400. In large bowl combine all ingredients, mixing well.

Press about 1/3 Cup of meat mixture into each of the 12 medium muffin cups.

Bake 15-20 minutes or until centers are no longer pink.

Serve warm with salsa and cheese on top.

(meatloaves can be frozen for future use! Before baking, line each muffin cup with plastic wrap, (large enough to wrap around the muffin-loaf) then pack mixture into cups and wrap with plastic wrap. Stick tray in the freezer until all the cups are frozen. Remove from muffin tray and place in freezer bag. Then, thaw and bake at your convienience!)

The next MOPS meeting will be April 26 from 6-8 pm at the First Lutheran Church.

Write it on your calendars! It'd be great to see you all there!

Happy Birthday to Leah!

Monday was Leah's first birthday! It's still so hard to believe... a year ago, I would have been in the hospital with her, a newborn! Time really flies, huh?

Sunday night we had her birthday party at our house. Most of Josh's family came from Warroad, my family, and my Aunt and her family. It was a houseful!

It was a great party, we all had so much fun visiting, except for the fact that Leah was sick for the first half of it. She had a fever, and was so miserable... she just wanted me to hold her the entire time. But eventually, we got her to open presents and after that she was just fine!

Some of her favorite gifts were; the dolly we gave her (she carries it everywhere!), the wood blocks set, and the big green rubber ball.. (she plays with that for hours)

When we sang "Happy Birthday" to her, she was so funny, because she was scared of the candle! Silly Leah. All in all, it was a great party, I just felt so bad that Leah was feverish the first part of it. But after cake and presents, she was her normal self again.

Happy Birthday to our Leah Rose!

Our funny one year old!

I love my dolly!

Fun playing with her ball!

The Crappie King!

Well he did it again! My husband is the Fishing Wonder!

My brother Isaac and Josh went out fishing yesterday, and they came back with the most amazing catch of crappies! The huge crappie (AKA "The King") is the biggest crappie I've ever seen! The guys had a blast catching their limit of fish, and all before dark!

Is that amazing or what?

Here's the pics you have to see to believe!

Embarrassing Mom Moment!

I just finished taking a LONG walk with Leah in her stroller.. (It's such a lovely day outside!)

I had been baking cupcakes all day for her b-day party tomorrow and some of the batter had spilled on my oversize T-shirt and skirt that wasn't exactly flattering. ( Hey, they were comfy, and It's a saturday!) I brought along my portable CD player, and the only headphones I could find were the ones I used when I was a teenager. You know the ones, the big and round, cover-your-ears, ugly headphones. I figured, well, it's better than nothing. So off I went. It was so nice, walking outside after a long winter, plus listening to my favorite tunes to keep me moving.. :)
Then, a car comes along... not a big deal. I just keep moving and stay on the side. Well, the couple driving was an older couple, and they slowed waaaaay down... so slow in fact, I saw my reflection in their van as I passed by. I looked so CRAZY! Like one of "those moms". You know, the moms with no style, their hair going everywhere, their big outdated headphones telling everyone that passed by, "Hi, I'm trying to be cool, but it's not my fault this headphone style died in the 80s!"
I laughed so hard at myself when the car had passed. I realized, I just didn't care what people thought. I knew I had style, (come on, I put together my rockin' outfit today right?) and I knew I was loved for who I am... who I really am. ;)

It was a great day altogether, yet I still laugh at the image of me... a "crazy mom." I'm glad I have a sense of humor, otherwise, I'd be reeeeally embarrassed!

Now, your turn, fellow moms. Fess up! Anyone else have a "funny mom" moment?
Please tell!

WY here we come!

For our family vacation this year, we are so excited to travel to Wyoming with Josh's family, (yes, all of them!) during Memorial Day weekend. We'll be visiting his Grandpa and Grandma in southeastern Wyoming, and doing all sorts of sight-seeing on the way there and back!

Josh, Leah and I will be renting a small car because it would be a LOT of mileage on our new van! Plus, air conditioning will be a must for WY in summer! :)

We'll be going through South Dakota and North Dakota also, so if anyone knows some great things to see that might not be on the travel guides, please let me know! (We'll of course see Mt.Rushmore, Black Hills, Rocky Mt. Nat'l Park, and Devil's Tower.)

We're really excited about it, and it will be so much fun for me especially. I have only ever been as far as Devil's Tower, so I am very excited to "go west, young man!"

I'll update with more info when we find out more about our trip! I can't believe it's coming up so fast! Less than 2 months! :)

Can you tell I love traveling?

Birthday Dresses

I decided to make her a couple summer dresses for her birthday present this year!

Also, I've just been itching to start sewing clothes for her! The dresses were so

easy to make and very cute! I love the new pattern I used... it's the Twirly Dress from Sew Baby Patterns. I love the fact that you can use a T-Shirt for the bodice, if you like! (blue dress) It's way easier and actually cheaper! But, making the bodice was easy too. (pink dress) It took me about an hour a dress to sew them. Very nice for busy moms! :)

Yet, they're a little big, but by summer she'll be walking and running and able to move better in them! I think i'll make little bloomers for her to go underneath, for modesty sake, too!

So fun to get sewing again!

Here's a sneak peek at her cute birthday presents.

Weaning Leah, a mom's story

Leah is one year old next week, and is now fully weaned!

I feel like having a party just for weaning ! :)

It started 3 weeks ago, I noticed Leah really wasn't nursing for food, but mainly for comfort. But, I needed to have her sleeping through the night, and not relying on me, as the mom, so much! So, I decided to drop one full day of nursing, cold turkey. You know what? She didn't even miss it at all. I was really surprised!! She still did nurse at night, but that really wasn't anything at all.

So as of this week, Leah was weaned of day-time feedings, but still not sleeping through the night. (Grrrh) So, I decided to try weaning of night feedings too. And you know what? Leah SLEPT THROUGH HE NIGHT the first night. She didn't miss it, because instead of nursing, I rocked her when she got up. (as she did the next night)

So, last night was the big test. Will she sleep all the way or not? Well, she didn't, but I stuck to my guns, and didn't nurse her, I got to sing and rock with her, which was soooooo precious. I almost didn't want to go back to bed! To have her asleep in my arms, just like when she was a baby! It was great.

So I am proud to say, Leah Helweg is now weaned completely!!!!!!!

What a great way for it to happen now... I really wasn't planning on weaning until after a year old, but she was ready! (Getting 2 more teeth in this week)

Such a grown up girl already! Wow!

Laura's Pirate Plunder!!!!!!!!!

Ok, I know I am an obsessed fan, but I have been waiting for this trailer for a LONG time! Pirates of the Carribbean 3: At World's End, releases May 25th! Finally!
This movie looks so good, I had to post the newly released trailer here... for you all to see it! Enjoy!
This will be the blockbuster movie of the summer!

Josh's Biggest Fish Yet!

Here is my Ice Fishing Husband, Josh, with his biggest fish he's ever caught Ice Fishing!

Every Sunday afternoon he goes fishing with my dad and brother. They have such a great time, trying out the "Secret lakes" in the area. A good fisherman never reaveals his secrets! :)

Especially since Josh and I just bought a HUGE Ice house, a Clam Sleeper! It has enough room for 4 holes, and you can stand up in it! It's so nice! The best one you can get!

Josh already looks forward to next year, when he and Leah can go fishing....
I can't wait for that either... as kids we always had fun fishing with dad!

Plus, It's a chance for the "women" to visit, while the "men be men". Great weekends at home!

Here's my sister Anna and her friends, Kristen and Kathryn,in front of our new fish house!