Happy Anniversary to us!

In honor of our 5 year wedding anniversary today - I have posted some of my favorite photos from the past 8+ years! Wow.

Apparently we dont have that many -- because this is most of them! We dont have any of us with just Mia... so when you see us next time, please feel free to snap away.

**Mental note to allow more pictures of myself.**

Anyways --on with the reminiscing... and check out all my different hair colors and styles... hehe!

I love this picture. One of my all time favorites. We were just newly dating - I think maybe about 4 months or so... February 2001.

John and Jill's wedding in May 2002

Another favorite... July 2004

One of the best days of our lives... David ran Twin Cities Marathon - October 2004.

Trip to France, Italy and Spain - October 2004. I was pregnant with Nicholas here, but didn't know it yet!

First Christmas with Nick... 2005.

January 2006

Nick's 1st Birthday - May 2006

August 2006 - I love this one... the scenery makes it even more special.

July 2007...

October 2007...

We have a fun day planned - David took the day off of work. We will be hitting the gym, having breakfast and then off to the Science Museum. A great family day. Later in the evening after Nick and Mia are in bed we will make a special dinner and enjoy a bottle of wine. Very low key... but sounds perfect to me!

Hope everyone is safe and cozied up in their nice warm homes tonight -- the snow is still piling up outside.

Have a great weekend... CHEERS!

So much to say - So little time!

Okay, wow - I just looked at my last post and it was from February 2. Woah! So, sit back, curl up with your favorite beverage, and get ready for some Wray family immersion...

Hmmm. Where to start! We have been having a wonderful month. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this new schedule we have going over here with Nick only in school on Mondays... I am enjoying being with both Nick and Mia every day - all day. I am truly amazed that I get to wake up every day and enjoy our children. Each day is filled with new, fulfilling and challenging events, and while some days are a true test of my patience, over all I could not love my new "work" days any more.

Nick has also really liked our change in routine - and I have been very proactive in setting up lots of play dates for him (and for me!), as well as doing a lot of fun and special events. I am getting the hang of doing 4 or 5 things at once (wink wink) in order to keep both Mia and Nick happy. I have also been taking time every day for myself to work out. All of you know this is 100% essential for not only my health, but almost more so for my mood and temperament. Our gym has a child care center and I have been dropping off the kids every morning to get in my cardio and weight training. It feels great - and what is even better is that both kids really enjoy the play area. It is a nice way to start off the day! Afterall, I did sign up for Grandma's half marathon (I AM CRAZY, and a glutton for punishment. We find out March 5th if we get in)... so I need to build up my endurance and stamina.

As I mentioned, we have been play date crazy... here are some pictures of our wonderful weekly playdate friends!

Addie (4 months) and Mia (can it be? she is almost 7 months old!)

Nick and Grace being shy ---

and not so shy...

I swear, Grace and Addie's mom, Katie is like my twin. We are always amazed at the amount of things we have in common. What is so much fun about these playdates is that Grace and Nick actually go off and play... alone. Of course we are near by, but I actually have an entire conversation about adult things. SO nice. We get together with Katie and her girls at least once a week... and we love it.

Here they are another time at Eagles Nest sharing a snack of cheddar bunnies and applesauce...

And then of course there is our Rylan, Natalie, Mia trio... How much do I love watching these babies grow. As Nick would say: "You love them from Earth to Jupiter" and he would be right... We got together right before our Florida trip - and thank goodness I am seeing them again in a week or so.

Mia is totally drooling all over Rylan... both figuratively and literally... HA! I love his shirt - It says: "I'm kind of a big deal" How cute is that!

Hmmm. Love this... It is like they are willing us to stop taking pictures...

And who could forget my little (I mean big, ahem...) nephew, Keaten??!! I asked Nicki if I could take Keaten for a whole day right before Florida... We had a blast. It was mild weather so we bundled up and played outside (Mia near by, all bundled up in her stroller in the garage, fast asleep and loving the clean crisp air... err, at least I think she was!)

I also think our day consisted of eating, eating and more eating. I am in awe of the appetites of these guys... we had breakfast, then snack of chips and salsa - picnic style, then lunch, then made cupcakes (and of course had to taste test the batter, taste the frosting, frost the cupcakes, sample the cupcakes, you get the idea) and then rest time... which wasnt rest time at all. BUT, in their corner (and the sugar's corner), they stayed in Nick's bed reading books and whispering, then giggling for about 45 minutes. I sat outside Nick's room and grinned from ear to ear... as I know this is just the beginning of the secrets and giggles these two boys will share!

There is oh so much more to tell... but really, this is one lengthy post and I am one tired out mommy. We are playing with Morgan tomorrow (weather permitting!) and I cant wait. I havent seen Angel for a couple of weeks... I am so thankful for my friends. I am so thankful to have the time to enjoy with my family. Ahhh. Things are looking up, up, up...

I will post my Florida update and photos soon... That incredible trip deserves its own post. All I will say for now -- that was 10 sunny, fresh air, warm, SUNNY, happy days. One of my most favorite vacations of all time. If only Dave could have been with us... Soon... but in the mean time here is one little picture of Miss Mia that I just cant wait to share...

sweet days & sweet dreams

"A baby will make love stronger, days shorter, nights longer, bankroll smaller, home happier, clothes shabbier, the past forgotten, and the future worth living for."
- Unknown Author

Last night when I went up to bed, I decided to have a slumber party with Nick! I woke him up, moved him over and asked him if I could sleep with him! Of course he was groggy and half awake, but he rolled over and I curled up right next to him. Ahhh, Heaven. He rolled over and put his arms around me nonchalantly and went right back to sleep. I laid there for a while just looking at him and holding his hands. He is the sweetest little boy I have ever known. I remember when I was pregnant with him - I was worried that we were having a boy and not knowing anything about boys... would he let me cuddle him? What's the deal with cars, trucks, Lego's and dirt anyways? Of course being a mommy to a boy is a work in progress and learn as you go kinda thing. But one thing is for certain - he is as cuddly as anyone could ever be!

We had a great weekend! We spent Saturday lounging around - and Sunday we went to the Nickelodeon Universe at Mall of America. We had a blast... I'll let Nick take it from here!

Hi guys, it's me, Nick. Sheesh, Mommy. What is with the sappy stuff you wrote up there?? I mean, I am a boy. Not everyone needs to know that I like to cuddle my mommy. Will you guys keep my secret?

Okay, well anyways. We DID have a good time at the Mall of America. I went on some big rides. BIG rides. I went on Big Rigs with Daddy. So cool! I was driving a semi truck. And you all know how much I LOVE semi trucks. I can point out Peterbilts, Macs and Volvo's... I also rode on Blue's Clue's and jumped in Sponge Bob Square Pants Pineapple house TWO times.

My favorite ride though was the Wonder Pets Fly Boat. I rode that two times too... and you could hear me belly laugh all the way across the park I think!

This is me and Mommy on the Dora the Explore Ferris Wheel.. Mommy doesnt really like heights very much - but she braved it for me! I couldnt stop laughing... and I kept waving like crazy at Daddy and Mia all the way down on the ground!

I laughed so hard. Too bad Mia cant go on rides. She is too little. You have to be like 36 inches at least to ride. So - she just hung out in her stroller. We ate lunch and had ice cream. AND... we played at Lego Land!! Daddy and I bought a car for big kids to put together. We love legos.

Today, Mia had her 6 month appointment. I cannot believe she is 6 months old! I mean, really! It was like just yesterday when I would sit next to Mommy and we would watch Mia kicking inside Mommy's tummy.

Mia had a big day yesterday too...

She sat in the high chair for the first time! Silly Mommy - she dressed Mia in her Christmas Pajamas... WHAT?? I mean, I keep telling her Christmas is really really far away. What a stinker. It just got me finkin about Christmas again.

Hmm, anyway. Mia liked sitting in the big high chair. And if you must know. It is MY highchair. It is MY favorite color blue. But since I like Mia a whole bunch, she can use it. Afterall, I am waaaay to big for it anyway. Food. Mia loves it. She likes sweet potatoes and apple sauce. She does NOT like winter squash. She is so-so on the banana's. She gets to try some more new foods tomorrow. She eats food now at lunch and dinner right with us! One thing about my sister... she really likes to drool. Mommy and Daddy keep saying she must be getting a tooth... but nothing yet. I'll keep ya posted.

And the results are in from my little punkin pie's appointment today. She weighs 17 lbs and is 26 1/2 inches - which makes her in the 62% for weight and the 67% for height. (She is a little bit smaller than me when I was 6 months, I weighed 19lbs and was 28 inches!) Anyways, she had to get her shots today. Poor little Miss Mia. Mommy made sure to keep up on her tylenol so she doesnt have sore legs.

Well - today was my last day of school for a long long long time! Tomorrow we start my at home routine. Unfortunately I have a doctor's appointment... but in the morning I have a special friend coming over! Grace Vetter! I cant wait to see her. Our Mommies are friends from a long time ago when Mommy worked at Juut. And Grace and I, we are friends from Jack and Jill. Grace has a new sister just a couple of months younger than Mia. So, they will have a play date too. Then on Thursday we are playing with Rylan and Natalie... and hopefully we will see Morgan this week before we head off to sunny Florida on Monday! Yippeee. I am kind of already missing daddy though... uhoh. (and Mommy keeps telling me, we have a whole week til we leave... daddy is right here!)

Kay, off to bed for me... Night!

Hmmm. Wonder if Mommy is planning another fun slumber party tonight??!!

Nickisms

Nick is hilarious - and over the past couple of days he has said a few things that are noteworthy...
Enjoy!
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Mommy: "I am out patience for the day, buddy. Please eat your food and THEN we can get down and play. I am not going to count to 3. My patience have run out."

Nick: "Well Mommy, I am sorry to hear that."

Mommy: (trying not to smile) "Thank you, I appreciate your thoughtfulness."

Nick: "Hey Mommy, would you like some of my patience?"

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Mommy: "How was your day today? Who did you play with?"

Nick: "Good. I played with Gus, Emmit and Sam."

Daddy: "What did you talk about with your friends?"

Nick: (thoughtful for a few seconds. shrugs his shoulders.) "We had a conversation. It wasn't about anything important. We just talked about alligators and Lightening McQueen."

Mommy and Daddy: "Oh, that is a great conversation!" Smiling, of course!
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When Nick finishes his food on his plate, he yells out loud: "I'm part of the clewing plate club, guys!" We still aren't sure if he means the "clean plate club" or the "come and play club"

Nick calls a calculator a "canaculator" - it makes me smile!

Next time you see Nick - ask him to tell you about the planets - he can tell you all of them, in order and what they are made of!

Hope these gave you a giggle... they make me laugh just thinking about him saying them!

Have a great night!