Can't Sleep

Well, it's 3:24am and I can't sleep. I got up to go to the bathroom and I can't fall back asleep. I keep thinking about what else needs to be done before the baby gets here and how I have to go through some baby clothes and wash them, what else I need to buy to prepare for when the baby is here and all that stuff. I guess I should write this stuff down instead of trying to keep it in my head. Plus, it doesn't help that I can hear my husband snoring through the walls (I have been sleeping in the baby's room the past couple nights). So I decided to get up and update the blog and watch some TV. Hopefully I will get some more sleep.

So, an update on my Gestational Diabetes....I have been doing great on my sugar tests. They have all been in the range where it is suppose to be, but I have been losing weight. So basically I have not been getting enough calories. So they gave me one more week to try to figure this all out. If I can't get it to where I have negative keytones, I will have to start taking insulin shots. Whatever will make it all work and keep the baby healthy. I go in on Thursday morning, and so far it has been going pretty good. My last appointment at the Diabetes Center was last Thursday so on Friday Nick and I went to the grocery store so I could buy food that was needed badly. I think that was part of the problem. I didn't really have snacks for me to snack on. So now I feel like I am eating constantly. But I have been gaining some weight back. I usually check every night before I go to bed and in the morning when I wake up. So, wish me luck! I don't really want to take insulin shots, but I gotta do what I gotta do, right?!

The baby's room is pretty much done, all I need is a dresser (I promise to post pictures of the room soon. I just keep forgetting!). Hopefully we will be able to go out and by one this week so I can start washing some clothes. I need to go through all our boys clothes too! I am hoping Paul and Tesa have a boy so maybe me getting stuff ready for them will make it happen! :) Plus, if they don't have a boy I would like to sell our stuff in a garage sale. Two of my neighbors are planning on having a garage sale during the Woodbury City Wide so I would like to get things ready before hand especially since one of them just told me it is the weekend I will be in the hospital. If I can't sell our stuff than, I will just have to wait until next time.

Nicholas' birthday is coming up. We are having his party at Club Just Jump in Woodbury. He is pretty excited. We plan on getting him a new bigger bike. He was out riding his bike yesterday and he just looked huge on it! Definitely needs a new bike. It was so nice to be able to play outside. All the kids were out and my boys were out there for about 3 1/2 hours. They had so much fun! Mike had gotten their 4 wheelers out so they were riding those, we played catch and got the basketball hoop out. Jon and Colin were pretty good, they actually tried to get a game started and they both knew what to do. Of course Daddy practice the basics with Jon so he wouldn't forget what he had learned in basketball camp.

Anything else I need to share? Can't think of anything else....It is now 3:43am. I am going to turn on the TV and try to get some sleep!

Birthday Treats At Jon's School

Today Jon had asked me to bring Birthday Treats for snack today at school. I told him that I would ask Mrs. Ritzer first to make sure it was OK. She said I could bring afternoon snack at around 2:30pm. So Nicholas and I made a trip out to Jon's school. While we were waiting for them to get back from the Gym, I took pictures of some of Jon's art that was hanging on the wall. They had an Art teacher come in and work with the kids. Some of them were really good! I was very surprised on how artistic my Jon was! Below is his art work. When they got back from Gym they all got into a circle to sing Jon Happy birthday and some other birthday songs. It was very cute! Than it was time for snack. I had bought Jon's favorite cookies from Sam's Club. The Sugar Cookies with frosting and sprinkles. After snack it was choice play and all the boys went to the big wooden blocks to build houses and all the girls went to get paper and color. It was too cute! Mrs. Ritzer let me take Jon home early since we were there already, so we left at 3:00. Normally school gets out at 3:30pm and Jon actually doesn't get home until 4:00 because he takes the bus. So that was nice of her to let me take him. Any way, enjoy the pictures below!


Flower Garden: Color Wheel - Primary & Secondary Colors


Van Gogh's "Starry Night" - Oil Pastels


Picasso's "Girl In The Mirror" - a work in chalk


Getting ready to sign Jon Happy Birthday!


The class in a circle signing Birthday Songs


Getting ready to eat snack. They all have to wait untill everyone gets a cookie and than they all can start eating.


Eating his snack


Some of his buddies playing with the Big Wooden Blocks. From L to R: Dan, Reid, Jacob, Jon, Nicholas. Olajide, Mitchell, & Chase

Jon's 6th Birthday Party

Can you believe it?! My Jonathan turns 6 today! Below is a picture of him shortly after his birth 6 years ago with Lolo. I can't believe he is 6 already! He has gotten so big!



On Saturday we celebrated his 6th birthday at the house. All of his cousins were there and a couple of his preschool friends and our one neighbor. He had so much fun! The day didn't start out to good. I had asked him to clean up his room and he just refused! He only had a few things on the floor that I wanted him to put away, but he just wouldn't do it. Finally, I told him that I would call all of his friends and cousins and cancel his party and he finally picked up. It only took him 5 minutes! Poor thing! After that, family started coming and his friends. Right away everyone went downstairs to play pinball and video games. The basement was a huge hit with all the kids AND the adults! After everyone arrived we ate lunch. Thanks to Tita Li for cooking the adobo, punsit, egg rolls and rice! Dad cooked meatballs too so we had a ton of food! After we ate the kids and adults played a little more and than we opened up presents. The best part was that Jon told Nicholas that he could help open up his presents with him and Nick's reactions were the best! You can see some of them below! After we opened up presents we ate cake and after that we had a pinata. The party was a huge success! Such a success that some people didn't even leave until 9pm! Jon said he had a great time and he thanks everyone for his gifts! Enjoy the pictures below! Now I just have to start preparing for Nicholas' 4th birthday! At least his is not at the house. We are celebrating his a Just Jump! in Woodbury. No cleaning up for me to do! Yeah!


All of his buddies! Back Row:Noah D., Anthony, TJ Front Row: Colin (neighbor), Kuba (preschool buddy), Jon, Blake (preschool buddy), Nicholas


The Birthday Boy!


Opening up presents. This was a big hit! Thanks to the Cardenas'!




Look at Nicholas' face! I think he is more excited than Jon is! This was Lolo & Lola's gift. they got him Super Mario's Super Smash Brawl for Wii.


The Dehne's got Jon the new Light Saber


This one, Nicholas was so excited to open the present he hit Jon in the face trying to rip the paper!


Jon's b-day cake. I always get my cakes from PJ Murphy's Bakery in St. Paul! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE their cakes! Thanks to Uncle Matt for picking up the cake!


Jon & his cake




Colin and Jon tried out the Dart Tag after cake and the pinata. Everyone had fun trying it out.

Scrapbooking Retreat for Mommy/Update on Basement

I went on a scrapbooking retreat with Auntie Missy, Auntie Tesa and Tesa's Sister-in-Law Juli. It was up in Cross Lake about 2 1/2 hours away by Brainerd. We booked it way back in January! I was excited when I booked it, but as the date got closer I wasn't too excited about it until Tesa told me what she was going to work on there. Close To My Heart had just come out with some really nice paper for wedding albums and that was what she was going to work. Her Wedding Album. I thought that was a great idea! So last month at our monthly scrapbooking I put together some pictures and picked out lay-outs for me to do at the retreat. A few days before I left I finished picking out pictures and lay-outs. We left Thursday afternoon and was up there by 4pm. We unloaded the car, picked out our beds and went straight downstairs to the scrapbooking room! We were there with about 12 other ladies that go there every March. Our host for the weekend was a consultant for Creative Memories and she did such a wonderful job. Thanks Katie! It was such a great weekend! There was such great food and everyone was SO nice! One lady brought her Cricut Machine and she let me use it a lot this weekend. Our cousin in Oklahoma had one and when we were down there for Thanksgiving, Tesa and Missy were able to use hers, but I didn't scrapbook that night because Nicholas was sick. So, when I used it this weekend I thought it was the best thing ever! We, meaning the four of us that went to the retreat, already agreed to get one together and we were going to get one before the weekend but it didn't work out. Well, it was decided that Tesa is going to buy the machine and the rest of us are going to buy the cartridges, blades and mats. They actually came out with the Cricut Expression which can fit a 12x12 cardstock. The one that I used this weekend you had to cut down the paper and that is the one we plan on getting. I can't wait! So of course we all started working on our projects. The first night I got about 7 pages completed. I thought that was pretty good until I heard what Missy had finished! I think she had done like 11 finished pages! She is just a fast worker and loves what she does. All the other ladies were surprised on how fast we were and how much we got done. Especially Missy. The second day/night was a lot better for me. I thought I was working a lot faster and the pages were coming together easy for me. The last night we were there seemed to go a little slower for me but I ended up staying up until 3:30am. I didn't want to have 5 pages to do the next morning. I know I am crazy, but when you are determined to finish something you just have to get it done! So, needless to say I only got 5 hours of sleep that night because I knew I had three more pages to work on in the morning before we left. Missy and Julie were done the night before so they just hung out the last morning while Tesa and I finished our pages. I did get the whole album done though! I got 38 pages done and I love how it all turned out! Below are a few of my favorite pages. The other ladies and the host actually do this again in September (they do it every March & Sept), but I don't think I will be able to make it to that one with a newborn and all. But I do hope to make this a yearly thing in March! I had so much fun! Now all I have to do is buy a album to put them in!













UPDATE ON BASEMENT____________________
Well, the basement is pretty much finished now. Mike just has to install the sink in the bar area. Everything else is pretty much done. We have been hanging out down there every night. Now all we have to do is get the baby room ready! Mike had already moved the queen size bed in the guest room to Nicholas' room this weekend. He cleared out the Guest room and He was actually going to paint the room while I was gone too, but he didn't know what colors I wanted. So now we just have to paint the room and get it set up. He went out last night and got the paint colors, so today I am hoping to get the room taped up for him so he can prime and paint the room before Jon's b-day. Right now we have the twin bed that used to be in Nicholas' room in our room and the crib so it will be nice to get them out since I bump into the twin almost every time I go to the bathroom at night! :) I will take pics when that project is finished as well!

Basement Is Complete.....Well Almost

So this past weekend and these last few days Mike, myself and Lolo have been trying to finish up the basement. Lolo and Mike installed our cabinets that we picked out from IKEA. They are not quit done yet, but they have the upper and lower cabinets put in. All they need to do is put on the counter top and install the sink to go inside it. Also, Mike has to finish up the finishing trim work on the cabinets. I like the way they turned out and the color looks great downstairs.

Mike also bought a new 46" LCD TV to go above the fireplace and the Dish Network guy came in on Sunday morning to install the new receiver. So now we have a TV down there! Now the only thing we need is to have Tito Narding come over and put power to that part of the basement. He has been sick so we have to wait until he is better.

My job was to go through all the boys toys and get the playroom together. It was exhausting going through all their stuff! They did help me pick out a few things to sell in a garage sale this spring, but a lot of it we kept. I cleared out a lot of their toys before we moved. It was just the organizing part that took really long. But we did finish it! Now I want to buy a kids arts table so they can color and stuff down there, and maybe put a few more storage things up that we already have.

Poor Lolo & Lola...We have all been hanging out down there every night. But at least they too like to play pinball! Lolo is addicted to Pin Bot! :) Below are some pics so I hope you enjoy!


Playroom


Arcade Lane


Hallway from outside Lolo & Lola's room


Looking to the main room from Lolo & Lola's room


The Fireplace and TV


Fridge and Bar area


Looking into the main room by the fireplace

Our Gameroom is Complete!

Well, not exactly.....Mike and Justin picked up Pin Bot and Ms. PacMan yesterday and they couldn't fit Pin Bot down the stairs. So after work today I think they are going to go around the house through the sliding glass doors. So, the only games that are downstairs right now are Sinbad and Ms. PacMan. Pin Bot is in the office. The boys this morning has played Pin Bot and the Ms. PacMan game. They got up early so we had them take a shower and eat breakfast first before they could play anything. Tonight we are having our neighbors over for dinner and it will be fun and probably a late night. Below are some pics of Pin Bot and Ms. PacMan!

Carpet Installation Complete!

They guys just left about 45 minutes ago and everything looks great downstairs! I couldn't even tell where the seams were and I knew where they were suppose to be! They did a wonderful job! It is finally all done! Now the next step is putting in the furniture, buying a new TV, getting a new receiver from Dish Network and putting the playroom together. Oh! Of course we need to get the arcade games! Mike and his buddy Justin plan on going to the store to pick them up after work today. I can already tell it will be a late night for us! Tomorrow night we are inviting our neighbors over for some Adobo and a pinball machine tourney! Well, it is most likely going to be Mike and Paula competing against each other. Paula had a pinball machine in her dorm room in college. She played it all the time I guess! So it will be a fun night. Here are the pictures below of the finished basement! Enjoy! Can't wait to have Jon's 6th B-day party down there!






Nicholas standing on the extra carpet in the playroom




Picture of Ace taken by Nicholas. He was just happy to be able to go downstairs with us!

Carpet Installation

Well, I forgot to take pictures when I got home from VB last night so I don't have what the basement looks like before the carpet installers started working on it. I ran down there quick to take some pictures while they are away at the store to buy the silver strip to finish off the carpet underneath the doors. When I got down there they had already laid out all the padding and some of the carpet was laid out as well. It was SO nice to walk on! It was SO soft! I am SO excited! So here are some pictures of what it looks like now. Once they are done I will take more pics of the finished product.

The playroom area


Hallway looking outside of Lolo & Lola's room


Main living area


Fridge & Bar area


Fireplace

The stairs

Ace waiting for me at the top of the stairs! Soon he will be able to go down there! :)

Basement Update

We are getting our carpet installed tomorrow so as I am typing Lolo and Mike are working hard downstairs putting in the trim. I took a peak and it looks really good. Everything is finally coming together. Last night they had installed the two doors and now all they have to do is finish putting in the trim and paint the doors white. Lolo had primed them today so hopefully when they are done with the trim they will paint the doors. The carpet installers are coming here anytime between 7 - 9 am and will probably be here all day installing the carpet. It will be so nice to walk down there with no shores on! Plus, Ace has been waiting patiently to join us down there. It is so cute, because when we are down there now, he just lays down at the top of the stairs looking down. I will try to get pictures of the rooms before the carpet is installed, but I have VB tonight so I will most likely take pictures when I get home or tomorrow morning before they come. Next will be buying a new TV, calling Dish Network and getting furniture in! Yeah! I can't wait!

Pregnancy & Diabetes Update

Well, yesterday I went in for my Gestational Diabetes Class at United. It went pretty well. We learned how to poke our fingers and talked with a Nutritionist. I have to poke my finger 4 times a day. It actually isn't that bad. It hurts worse when you get poked at the Dr.'s office than using what I have to use. The most pain in the butt part of all of this is figuring out how many carbs are in everything you eat. I am allowed to eat 14 - 16 carbs total per day, and I am suppose to eat 3 meals a day and 3 snacks a day. So really I am eating every 2 - 3 hours a day. So, we will see how everything goes. I am hoping that just the diet will help control this and that I don't have to take insulin shots. That would be the worst! I will keep you posted.

Today I had my regular Dr. Apt and she just did a belly check. Baby heart rate was 152. Everything else was normal so she is just going to keep an eye on this diabetes thing. I am hoping I will not continue to have this once the baby is born. I will definitely have to get back into shape after she is born. I don't want to be counting carbs for the rest of my life!

Pregnancy Update

Well, I go in tomorrow afternoon to the Pregnancy and Diabetes Center at United Hospital. I am not really sure what I will be doing there from 1 - 4pm. Mike will be taking the afternoon off so I can go. I hope it won't be too bad. I than have my regular Dr. Appointment with Dr. Becicka on Wednesday at 11am. So hopefully she will be able to explain things to me if I have question about tomorrow. I haven't been able to sleep lately. Last night was rough. I went to go to the bathroom around 2am and I couldn't go back to sleep. I ended up going downstairs to watch some TV and I didn't turn it off until 4:30am. I slept on the couch so I woudn't wake up Mike and he woke me up when he left for work. Hopefully I can sleep better tonight. If not, I am going to ask Dr. Becicka what I can do for sleep. Only 67 more days! Its going by SO fast!

Getting Ready For Carpet

We are finally going to get our carpet installed this Thursday! I am SO excited! They called on Friday to schedule the installation and we could have had it installed as early as Tuesday, but I have my appointment at the Pregnancy and Diabetes Center at United from 1 - 4pm, so I couldn't schedule it for that day. Wednesday I have appointments too along with Jon. He has an eye appointment in the morning, than I have my regular Dr. appointment, than I also have a dentist appointment in the afternoon. So Wednesday didn't work either. Thursday was the day! They will be calling us Wednesday to set up the time of the installation. I am glad Thursday was the day because when I called Mike to tell him it was going to be installed that day he was glad he had a few days to get things ready. So, he finished putting in the grout on the tile and finished the fireplace. We decided not to do a hearth or stone since it was going to take too long. So, we just got the same tile and put tile around the fireplace. It looks really good. Great job Mike! Lolo is finishing up putting the cover on all the electrical stuff and than his friend will add the fuse for the power to that part of the room. Hopefully it will all work when he is done! Otherwise we might have to break through the drywall! Mike I believe only has to install the doors (2 of them, one going into the utility/storage room and the other for underneath the stairs). He would also like to put in all the trim before the carpet comes. I think that is it and we will be all done! I can't believe it! Than we can finally put the furniture away, and bring Sinbad downstairs and get our other games too. I think Mike plans on picking them up on Friday. We also need to go shopping for a new TV for down there and also get dish to come out and add another receiver. We will also be putting our Nintendo Wii down there so whenever the boys want to play their games, I won't have to stop watching my TV! I am excited to get the boys playroom done. We plan on keeping all, I mean all of their toys down there. They are going to help us go through everything and donate some of the toys that are to small for them. We also want to buy a big kids table for down there when they do their art or when we have parties so all the kids can eat at the table together. We just have to figure out how big we want it. I can't wait until it all done! Here are some updated pics! Enjoy!


Main living area


Bar/Fridge area


Fireplace


Stairs