February 2019

I woke Alexa up to tell her the bad news was that she actually had school today, but the good news is that it's already Friday!! What better way to start a fresh new month than on a Friday - Happy February! Today is also Rock Around the Ages for Lilli at school, so she wore her poodle skirt. Stacey picked her and Ellie up after school and took them to her house for pizza. Adam joined them for dinner, too, and brought Lilli to her last Sock Hop. I cannot believe this is her last year of elementary school. She looks so grown up in these pictures. I took Alexa out of school at 2 o'clock, brought her home to do her hair and get her ready for Solo/Duet night at INnovate. Jolene picked us up and we took the girls to Subway to grab a quick sandwich for dinner. We signed them into the event at the Cowles Center and then left for dinner at City Works down the street. We made it back to watch the girls perform their duet and they nailed it. So proud of them. Their judges had such great comments about their synchronization and how well they work together. Their coach was so happy. We stayed and watched Taylor and the rest of the Synergy dancers. So excited to begin this season! Lilli also came home with a Student of the Month award for Perseverance. So dang proud of her and how much she works continually to improve. NGU!!

Alexa was up for assisting and hip hop on Saturday. I sent Adam and Lilli with the grocery list and I took my time in the shower trying to fight off a nasty cold/sinus infection that I most certainly got from Alexa. Poor kid is still battling with it. I took Alexa to Target to get a new swimsuit since she starts her swimming lesson next week in school. The Sharp's came over to finalize the event planning and then we met up with our group at Carbone's to plan our trip. Alexa went to the Budde's to hang out with the kiddos and Lilli had a birthday party at her friend Sydney's. We picked her up at 9 after our meeting. It was supposed to be a sleepover, but she had to be up early for INnovate on Sunday.

It was a rough night of sleep. Alexa was up coughing and my entire face/head just throbbed from sinus infection.

I was up to get ready at 6 and got the girls up closer to 7. They only needed a bun and no makeup for the event today, thank goodness. We met up with the Beissel's and Sharp's at Kwik Trip, grabbed some gas and donuts for the drive up and then dropped the girls off for the day at the Cowles Center. They did master classes, an awesome service project of making hats, scarves and neck warmers, and performed all their dances. The parents had breakfast at The Hen House and then the Beissel's, Sharps and us went to the Minneapolis Institute of Art. Let's just say we are the most immature adults to visit a place like this. I'm surprised we didn't get kicked out. We were followed by guards and even set off an alarm. Fun times. We had lunch at a Mexican place in South Minneapolis and then back to the Cowles to watch the girls perform. Alexa's lyrical dance - Breath of Poisiden was chosen as the showcase dance for Synergy. They did amazing. Then we got to watch the mixed age groups, hip hop, musical theater and jazz production. Adam and Bryson left early to go watch the Super Bowl, so the girls and I rode home with Stacey. We stopped at Culver's for dinner on the way home. I ran to CVS to grab a few things when I got home and surprised the girls with some teddy bears. I just love them so much and am so proud of them and not being able to snuggle them up and love on them from being sick is the worst, so I needed them to have something from me to snuggle with. We watched the half time show of the super bowl with some popcorn and just like that the weekend is over.

The temps warmed up over the weekend which melted a ton of snow. But, the freezing temps overnight made for some serious ice on the roads and sidewalks this morning. Michelle's car slid all the way past our driveway to pick Alexa up for school and Alexa slid all the way down the sidewalk to get into the car. Brutal! Lilli started her African Drumming unit in school this week. We're excited for her performance on Thursday. Alexa started her swimming unit in gym today, too. I am still feeling pretty stuffy, blowing my nose every minute and a half and feeling pretty blah overall. I made Adam and Lilli their favorite dinner, tunafish hot dish, and then Adam ran all my early dance carpools while I took a long bath. I got out to watch The Bachelor and then actually did my late carpool shift. Hoping to kick this cold very very soon!

The weather forecast called for 2-4" of snow today and we got about 6-8". Poor Alexa walked through most of it on the way home from school. The roads were terrible. It took Adam 2 hours and 45 mins to get home from work. Dance was cancelled for the evening. I shoveled the entire driveway, but by the time Adam got home you couldn't even tell. It was nice to have an evening to snuggle in, eat dinner together as a family and catch up with America's Got Talent Champions.

Adam was up early and snow blowed the driveway and sidewalks. Alexa had Kenzie ride the bus home with her after school so they could go to duet practice together. Middle school Faith Formation was cancelled for Alexa but Lilli and I still had class. Adam was home and had dinner ready for us when we got home - chicken tacos with beans and guac and Lilli's favorite - soupa. So delicious. Lilli worked on her homework and then her and I took a bath together and used a bath bomb. We snuggled in our bed with the girls for a bit and watched a new show - The Best Of..or something like that. It's another AGT type show. So cool!

The girls were a little disappointed this morning when I woke them up for school. We were certain we'd have another snow day. It was my day to drive the middle school carpool and the snow had just begun when we left. The reports have wavered a bit on how much we're supposed to get. I got to stay home with Lilli this morning and take her to school with Adam and then join in on the ceremony for Star Student. Lilli was nominated for "Perseverance". We are so dang proud of her. I just beamed seeing my daughter stand up amongst the kids that push through in any situation and never give up. We ran into Lilli's teacher and she said that Lilli is the perfect student to have in her class. She just loves her and is so proud of her growth. We have noticed her confidence this year, too. We know Lilli is a star, but it's so fun to have others recognize her strengths and abilities, too. My favorite was when her friends were walking to class and gave Lilli huge thumbs up and big smiles as she was standing up front for the ceremony! She has such sweet supportive friends, which is so telling of her character. Adam and I are super proud parents. I dropped Adam off at home so he could work from home and then drove into work. The snow was starting to accumulate. Yikes. When I got to work I saw an email that Lilli's African Drumming concert was canceled for tonight but the parents could come for the 2:30 performance for the school. This led to Adam pulling Alexa out of school at 11:20 to take her to the dentist. Her appointment was supposed to be at 2:40, but he was able to get her in earlier due to so many cancelations because of the weather. Then, all 3 of us were able to surprise Lilli at school for her performance. They ended up sending middle schoolers home at 2pm so they could get the buses back to transport elementary kids home on time. What a day and so much snow! Lilli was so excited to see us all there for her performance. She was in the front row for the dancing part and told us the instructor asked her to be the "leader" because she was the only one who remembered the dance. She also is a pretty awesome drummer. I am so proud of her. And seeing her smiling face just light up the stage was so much fun. We were able to take her home after the performance and also found out dance was canceled for the evening. I was so excited to be home early and have an entire evening with my family. We made frozen pizzas and popcorn and watched a few shows. The girls and I played Yatzee while Adam snow blowed. And we found out while snuggled in our bed that school was canceled the next day.

The girls' 5th snow/cold day off of school. I'm pretty certain that's the most they've had off in an entire year, ever. We not only got about 8 more inches of snow yesterday, but we're in a windchill advisory. The roads were super icy coming into work this morning and temps are -35. So glad the girls are home, safe and warm. It was a Flex Day so they did online school from their ipads. I'm so proud of how they handle these days. While it's not ever fun, they get up right away and work through it. Adam and I had an appointment in Albert Lea to do our taxes but due to the icy roads we decided to reschedule. The girls had Kaylee and Kenzie over to work on their vision boards for leadership and had a sleepover. Adam and I went out on a date night to Wengs for dinner and did the grocery shopping for our event. The kids were downstairs and Adam and I were snuggled up in bed before 8:30. Wild Friday night.

We had to get the girls up early for leadership at 8:30. Lilli was home a little after 10 and Alexa stayed for hip hip until 11:45. Adam and I busily finished up some cleaning and errands for our event. The girls showered and got their sleepover stuff ready for Taylor's Birthday. We dropped them off at the Budde's at 1:30 for Taylor's party. The Sharp's came over after and Stacey and I did each other's hair and then walked through our whole event with the guys. I will post a separate post with all the details. We had a total blast. We sent our friends on a fun little scavenger hunt, had a lumberjack dinner and then went to Flannel Jax in St. Paul to throw axes. We had a 2 hour time slot but all of us agreed we could have stayed and thrown more. It was so much fun. We went back to our house and had another drink. Everyone left after that and the Sharp's stayed with us until 2:30am to recap the entire night. It was a lot of fun! Our 5th couples event in the books - so excited for the next one.

We woke up to lots more snow. Adam shoveled and we picked up the kids at 11. Adam went and got groceries and the girls showered and cleaned up their rooms. We started Lilli's science fair board. In the afternoon we all went out, after the girls shoveled the driveway again, to the Dollar Tree and Culver's for a treat. We also picked up a movie from Red Box. We continued working on Lilli's board when we got home and Alexa and Adam shoveled more and snow blowed. The snow kept coming all day. After dinner we watched The Nutcracker. Adam and I both fell asleep and the girls were kind of disappointed with it. Adam and I watched a bit of the Grammy's before bed.

We got the wonderful news that sweet Hallie Louise was born this morning. We are so excited to welcome a new niece/cousin into our family!! She was about a month early, so she's a tiny peanut and spent some time in the NICU getting help breathing. We are loving all the pictures we've been sent and can't wait to meet her. The girls had a normal Monday of school and dance and Adam worked the Timberwolves game with Craig. Everyone got home safely before the next big snowstorm hit, thank goodness. I started week 5 of my workout program and watched The Bachelor.

We woke up to about 4 more inches of snow and it continued most of the day. The girls were expecting a snow day today, but they ended up having school. Adam snow blowed and shoveled for Javie in the back. The snow is getting out of control. We haven't had this much in a long time. I made stir fry for dinner, both girls had regular dance and Adam was home early. He went and took our cars in for car washes. Mine was especially bad with a ton of slush stuck up in the wheel wells. We did our work outs and then chilled the rest of the night. I made some surprise cheesecake desserts for the girls when they got home from dance.

Happy Hump Day! Alexa had duet practice today and her and Kenz got to try on their costumes. They are adorable!! Lilli had regular hip hop and then we all had church! Adam worked a Twolves game. We were lucky enough to have Adam start a roast for us for dinner so we got to eat hassle free when we got home. It was delicious. We FaceTimed Tiny and Finn for a little bit and checked in on baby Hallie, then the girls did homework and their nightly routines. I cleaned up and fell asleep before Adam got home. I have been sleeping so hard lately - I didn't even hear Adam get home.

Happy Valentine's Day! Adam surprised us 3 girls with flowers and treats. He's so sweet and thoughtful!! I drove the middle school carpool and braided Lilli's hair for her field trip today! Their class went to Feed My Starving Children in lieu of a Valentine party and I was lucky enough to go along and chaperone. Adam does most of the chaperoning for the girls' field trips, so this was a special treat for me to go along and spend the day with Lilli and her classmates. We had so much fun. The girls in our group rotated around so that they could each do every "job". I let Lilli pick out a special beaded heart decoration before we left. I was able to take her with me and brought her to my office for about an hour. She worked on her homework. I brought her to Abdullah and picked up a few chocolates for Adam and for each of the girls to put in their dinner for dance. I dropped both girls off at dance and then Adam and I went to the Bourbon Butcher. We had a couple drinks and ate dinner. Greg Ohlhues came in and was going to eat solo because Suzi is out of town, so we asked him to join us. Craig and Michelle also came. I had to buzz out to pick up the girls at dance and when they all were done eating they came to our house. Greg brought Tabitha and Kailey and Autumn brought Alexa home from dance. The Ohlhue girls ended up staying the night.

No school for the girls today. It was a scheduled Flex Day, but due to the amount of Flex days they used for "snow days", they called this a staff development day. The Ohlhue's stayed and hung out most of the day. They all went to DQ for an ice-cream treat. We had a pretty deserved chill night and caught up on a lot of our shows together. I just love snuggling in as a family!

I got Alexa up for assisting and dance, came home and did a workout and then took Lilli to Step N Stretch for a new dance bra. We quickly got ready when we got home, grabbed a quick lunch and then brought the girls to the Beissel's. They hung out for the night with all the kiddos and ordered pizza for dinner. The Sharps, McCabes, Michelle and us worked the Monster Jam event at US Bank Stadium. It wasn't super busy but fun to work in the same stand together. We picked up the girls and were home and in bed by 11.

Today was dedicated to finishing Lilli's science fair project. We had a great head start and knew what we needed to do, but it was a long day and Lilli really worked hard. She ended up needing a couple more adults to test and we were able to get them all over by asking neighbors and friends. Adam and Alexa got groceries for us and we had a break for lunch. Lilli still needs to finish her conclusion, but we let her and Alexa have a sleepover at the Beissel's because we all needed a break and she had worked so so hard. Alexa had been so patient all day, too, and helped a ton. They deserved the sleepover!

No school today in honor of President's Day. Adam picked the girls up from the Beissel's at 9 to get Lilli home to finish her project. She wrote and typed out an excellent conclusion and finished up her report. Adam dropped Lilli off at the Sharp's for Stacey to bring her to dance at 3, dropped Javie off at the groomer and then took Alexa to her follow up doctor appointment for her fingers. She got new x-rays that showed her ring finger is healed and her middle finger is still broken. She has to keep the buddy tape on for another 4 weeks. She was cleared to start doing gymnastics at her own risk/comfort level after 3 weeks which puts her right at the 1st competition, but after talking to her coaches, they aren't going to push that and will wait until the next comp to start utilizing her gymnastics.I picked Javie up from her haircut after work. Lilli had dance from 3-9pm and Alexa got there late after her appointment - had regular practice until 7 and then duet practice from 7:30-8. I'm exhausted just thinking about the day! Lilli got home after 9 and finished putting her conclusion on her board for science fair. The girls didn't get to bed until after 10:30. Ugh! Adam and I scored some one on one time while the girls were at dance. We had Subway for dinner and then took a little adventure for a treat at CVS while looking for tape for Alexa's fingers. We also went and watched Alexa's duet practice.

It's back to school after a long 4 day weekend for the girls. Both had a regular day of school and dance. I was able to get my work out in and when I came upstairs Adam was home sitting at the kitchen island with his laptop and work phone making adjustments due to Minneapolis closing schools for Wednesday. It wasn't snowing yet, but another huge snowstorm was on it's way. Around 7, Alexa text us that her friend Sarah's school in Apple Valley closed as well. Then we knew it was only a matter of time before Farmington was close, too. Sure enough we got the news as Alexa walked in the door from dance. Another snow day! Lilli finished up her homework she started and the girls snuggled up with us in our bed to watch World's Best. It still wasn't snowing when we sent them off to their own beds, but it came during the early morning hours.

I woke up to more WHITE, so much white! So happy the girls (and Adam) were able to be home and safe during yet another snow storm. The roads had been plowed at one point it looked like, but the snow was coming down so fast that it was accumulating again. I made it to work safely and watched the snow pile up even more outside my office window. I also got the email that church classes were cancelled for the night. The girls did Flex homework all morning. They opened the school from 1:30-4:30 today to set up for the science fair. We took Lilli as soon as I got home. She did awesome at setting up, her display looks amazing. We also walked around a little bit and checked out some of the others. They're all so neat and creative. I did a work out when we got home. Adam made burgers for dinner and we made popcorn and watched AGT Champions and The Goldburgs. These snow days aren't so bad when it means I get to snuggle in with my family!

This was a big day today for Lilli. She presented her science fair project - Can Your Eyes Fool Your Tastebuds? to a couple of high school science students who will be judging the science fair competition at her school. All 5th graders are required to participate and any other students in the other grades can on an optional basis. There was an open house for all parents to attend from 4:30-5:30 and then the award ceremony at 5:30. Lilli was super confident in her presentation and had a blast doing her project. While she didn't place, she was still very happy with herself and learned a lot from the experience. So so happy and proud of her. We took her and Ellie out to Pizza Man for dinner afterwards and to DQ for ice-cream. We also picked up costumes at Synergy for companie kick-off this weekend. Dream Duffel's are officially out of storage and temporary fixtures in our den again.

Adam took my car today and got an oil change for me and then came to my office and exchanged vehicles. We are still hoping for a trip up to Moorhead this weekend to meet baby Hallie, but the weather is not looking very promising. The thought of waiting to see her and hold her is about killing me, but we're still holding out hope that the forecast is wrong. Adam took an overnight trip to Mankato to play in some fun poker tournaments at his friend Aric's house. Ever since we've been together and he's stayed the night away from me and the girls he's left us each one of his t-shirts with a spritz of his cologne on it to sleep in. I love him so much for this. The girls and I had a super busy night. Our to-do list was nearly an entire page long. We first ran to HyVee and picked out some cute little outfits for baby Hallie and then to Target to pick up the items we needed for the potluck and other random things for dance. Then we swung over to Chipotle to pick up dinner. We brought it home to eat and then went through all the dance costumes and labeled everything. We put them all in garment bags and organized the dream duffels and hair/make up supplies. The girls slept with me in my bed.

Adam had set an alarm through the Echo for 6am. So we woke up to the song "Level Up" blasting in our ears. The girls were troopers. Lilli got up and ready first and then Alexa. We were ready with time to spare even. So proud of the girls and how the work together and hustle. I dropped them off at the studio at 8am for a full morning of team building and running their routines. I went home and did my work out, FaceTimed Tiny, Courtney, Finn and Hallie and pretty much made the sad decision that we wouldn't be coming up to visit this weekend due to projected weather. It was awful! Adam got home at 10 ish and we picked the girls up for lunch at 12:45. We took them to Subway and then arrived at Boeckman MS at 1:30 for a full dress rehearsal. The girls looked amazing and had so much fun. They had a ton of energy. You can just tell they're all in their element. We're super excited for competition season to start. We had a potluck dinner afterwards and then the Sharp's invited us over for a few drinks afterwards. The snow started when we left at around 10:30.

We woke up to loud rumbling winds. It sounded like a train. We had such a relaxing morning. Adam made breakfast and I sat with the girls and sipped my coffee. I did laundry and Adam snow blowed. He also scraped some snow off the roof. Alexa and I made a Target run for groceries. The roads were not great at all. But, I took the opportunity of an open and clear parking lot at Meadowview elementary school to let Alexa behind the wheel for the first time. She was super nervous and super excited at the same time. And she did a great job. She did 2 loops around the parking lot. Adam wasn't thrilled. But, it was mostly because he wasn't the first one to take her driving. So proud of my Shmoo. It was a special moment for us. We spent the rest of the day snuggled in watching TV. Lilli helped me make dinner and we watched part of the Oscar's.

For a brief moment I thought school may be cancelled today due to the windchill temps and the nasty drifting from the day before, but school was on and on time. I think we might actually get a full week of school in this week. Our friend Emily's grandma who usually picks her up from school is in Arizona for the next month, so Emily is riding the bus home and coming to our house with Alexa. Tammy had picked her up before I got home today, but I know Alexa is super excited to be with her for awhile after school. The girls had regular Monday night dance. I did a quick Target run after dropping Lilli off and then home to work out, do some laundry and watch The Bachelor. Adam worked a Timberwolves game with Craig.

I love love LOVE my mornings with my Shmoo. My alarm goes off at 6:05, I get out of bed and wake her up at 6:15. She comes and snuggles with Adam and Javie until 6:34, while I shower and get ready. She will join me in my bathroom and get dressed. We go downstairs, she eats breakfast and I drink my coffee and then we get to chat about everything and anything. She'll go upstairs to brush her teeth and get her coat on and then we get a few more minutes to hang out in the den before she gets picked up for school. I love her so much! Adam text me early in the afternoon that he was headed home because it was snowing pretty bad in Minneapolis and he wanted to beat the traffic home. I got the Lilli to dance, Adam made dinner for Alexa, I did my work out, Adam and I ate dinner together and then we went to the Sharp's to go over our money (what we owed each other) from our event. Stacey had also done bunch of research for me on my diet and bowel movements and she's going to help me track my fiber and help me make and necessary changes to help me become more regular. I'm excited to see how this goes.

Alexa and Mackenzie had studio time today. They were able to get some notes/feedback from Kris after the kick off last weekend and worked on things they needed to. Our 5th graders made sandwiches for Loaves & Fishes during our church class tonight. In what should have been a super easy assembly line of bread, cheese and bologna, our kids somehow managed to complain the entire time that they were hungry while begging to eat all the food, couldn't quite open the cheese packets with gloves on, couldn't keep the sandwiches actually looking like sandwiches, and begged...and begged and begged some more to slap each other in the face with the bologna. It was equal parts annoying and hilarious. Either way, between our 2 5th grade classes we made 295 sandwiches for those in need. Adam had enchiladas ready for us when we got home, the girls did homework and showered and then we snuggled in our bed to watch World of Dance.

I brought Lilli to the Sharp's early this morning. Adam had early meetings. She woke up with a bit of a stuffy nose. Hoping it doesn't get any worse. I got both girls to dance in the afternoon, did my workout and took a long hot bath to relax my muscles. Adam had bags tonight.