Wrapping up 2016.

I've spent some time reflecting on the year we are about to close. We, as a family have come so far. We started the year with a newborn and two very small kids, and a massive construction project. There is no way I could repeat those days with the grace I had the first time around. I vividly remember potty training Greta with our mason crew installing our fireplace, our painter, and our contractor's crew literally in the next room. Talk about pressure.

A significant memory I have is of my dad's health scare. The fear and concern we as a family experienced during those long ten days in March were so real. We had my parents over for dinner (and to very casually celebrate their 49th(!!) wedding anniversary) last evening before they hit the road to California for the remainder of the winter. It was a gathering I will cherish. My dad plays such a pivotal role in my life, I am just so accustomed to his presence. I am grateful for an awesome mom who keeps us all together and for my siblings for rallying when my parents' needed us most.

I love my growing family. And by growing, I mean that my kids are growing up happy and as healthy as can be. Although we have not (and prolly will never) rule out a fourth child, we are so content. Piper growing up a bit means my world has opened up a smidgen. She is set to start at Miss Jaspers' in the new year which means I might get one morning a week to myself (gasp). Sully is 4.5 and is really acting it. He is my helper with Piper, always looking out for her safety and alerting me when needed, and Greta is a fun, silly and independent 3 year old (which is trying at times ;)). The first year fog has lifted and I have even gained enough confidence to take all three out to do fun things around town, sweet relief.

My friends are better than ever. As I age, I am so grateful for those I have had from the beginning to the ones who have recently come in to my life. They fulfill me in many different ways. They have formed the person I am today, someone I am proud of and truly love. I have to give a mini shout out to my best friend of all, Maggie. She has helped me see the light this last year with chaotic toddler life. She shows up exactly when I need her, taking over and giving me the break I need (even if its just long enough to get a shower in), for that I will always be grateful.

Finally...Dave. He is patient, kind, tolerant, forgiving, supportive, helpful and all other things required to keep my boat afloat. I know he knows his presence is vital in my life but he will never really know. Life is busy and wild and isn't always fun, but he gives me what I need to keep on keeping on. He is the best dad, in fact, when he is around, he is who the kids want, which I love. I love his dedication and his optimistic outlook on what lies ahead. I am so thankful life worked out as it did for me, and I have his determination and love to thank.

Cheers to all of the fun that lies ahead in 2017.

Butterfly house fun.

New Year's Eve 'special' pancakes.
(Homemade rather than store bought ;)).

Ready for a New Year's Eve movie date with
Matt and Cassandra.

Reading a quick book while waiting for Matt.

Ringing in the new year with clean kids. 

Christmas fun and bugs all around.

Christmas is officially behind us and it was one for the books. The Christmas prep was perfect, the kids anticipated the arrival of the big man himself and we did everything to keep the spirit alive. From gingerbread houses, to homemade gifts (for Dave), to ice skating outings for me and the older two, we covered all of the bases. Then the sicknesses set in. We all had lingering colds which didn't waver, poor Piper took it the worst. After a persistent fever and cough/cold which turned into vomiting and serious snuggles and major moodiness, I got her in to see the doctor. Unfortunately she had a raging ear infection. After a few days of antibiotics, she was finally starting to show signs of her old self, which is actually her new self...a full fledged toddler! After pulling it together for a family gathering at my parents' house on Christmas Eve, I woke up on Christmas morning sick as a dog. I was only able to stay vertical long enough to open gifts before I made my way back to bed. It was awful. I slept on an off all day, poor Dave was left to his own devices with all three. We cancelled all plans and focused on recovering. We are finally on the mend after four solid weeks of someone being sick.

Since Piper's week long flu required us to eliminate her bottles (due to her vomiting), we decided it was a good time to ditch the bottle, rather than fight that fight again in a few months. She has tolerated the transition just ok. She refuses milk in any form, but she has picked up eating table food really well. So, we are well on our way. She is a mega toddler who knows what she wants and knows exactly how to get it. Sully and Greta think her tantrums are hilarious and I think they are darling. Her looks are even changing a bit, too. She seems taller and acts so independent, and has the silliest sense of humor.

Although it isn't a Christmas I want to repeat, it was a great holiday. The kids all got what they wanted and loved their gifts. It is so fun to see them get into the spirit and their imaginations take place. They make life so fun. 

Gift wrapping at the mall. 

Making ornaments for daddy. 

Gingerbread house fun. 

Homemade wrap for daddy's present. 

Greta's masterpiece. 

Piper's. 

Holiday party at Sully's school. 

We had time to sneak in a tacky party for Liz's 40th(!!!).

The birthday girl with her guy. 

Snuggles with the crew. 

Doctor visit with my babe. 

The grand finale. 

Ice skating fun.

Barely standing ;).

Santa came!

Mastering the art of gift opening. 

Sooo excited. 

Piper gets in on the fun.
Smiles with tears...on the mend. 

Action photo of all three. 

Appointments (one with the Main Man) and other Munce fun.

We had a busy week last week with Dave on vacation. Most of our time was spent catching up on appointments for the kids and work credentials for me (ACLS... major sigh of relief to get that behind me). We topped off the week with a trip to see Santa at an event my employer throws annually. Its really fun with lots of activities for the kids. As the meeting approached, Sully talked excitedly about the meeting, Greta started out strong, but started to cave the morning of and Piper was her happy self. When it came time to meet the 'main man,' Sully climbed right up and requested a 'dinosaur popper,' he even had me pull it up on my phone in case Santa wasn't familiar with the exact toy. Greta panicked and said "I don't want to meet the main man!" She agreed to let Dave hold her and she shouted her request (a Hello Kitty candy phone) to Santa from Dave's arms. In true 13 month old fashion, Piper freaked out when I placed her in Santa's lap. She lasted long enough for a few photos before I rescued her.

The highlight was definitely the birth of Miles Henry Schock. Kyle, Amy and Maddie welcomed him on December 8th. He is perfect and healthy weighing 6lbs 3oz. Unfortunately I wasn't able to meet him in the hospital due to my cold, but made up for it with and extra long visit today. We are so excited to have another boy in the family!

We were back to normal this week with routines. Really cold weather and colds were the only hiccup.  Dave and I were excited to get our annual Christmas card and letter in the mail by midweek. It is such a job, but one we enjoy working on together. We topped the week off with a double birthday celebration for Anna and Hudson last evening at a pizza place. The kids had a great time watching the gift opening, eating too little pizza and too much cookie cake. Sully and Greta went over to the Oliver's after the party for their first ever sleep over. Much to my surprise, they both did great and lasted all night. They were peppered all over the Oliver house and Greta ultimately slept with Maggie and one of their dogs. They were to bed by 10 and up by 7. Yay! They are already looking forward to the next one (although I don't thing Maggie is ;).

Perfect check ups for these two. 

Waiting for (much needed) haircuts. 

Greta's first haircut. 

Sweet sisters. 

This is where Piper hangs during family movie night.

Christmas card stuffing. Dave wanted an 'unposed' photo.
Apparently he didn't get the message ;).

Miles Henry Schock. 

Santa success?

Gymnastics = perfect energy burner for the cold days. 

Everyone gets in on the fun.

An unexpected car issue means cookies at 9:30am for these two. 

Mostly walking these days. 

Sleepover fun. 

Sully and Suzie do St. Louis,

After our practice trip to the airport last month, Sully and I gave St. Louis another try this weekend. To say it was a success is a complete understatement. I picked him up from school on Friday and off to the airport we went. He was so excited to see his packed Paw Patrol suitcase and quizzed me on the way to the airport to make sure I didn't forget any of his essentials. "Did you remember my cozy? Gino? My Star Wars jams?" Fortunately nothing was forgotten and we started the trip on the right foot. We had lunch in the airplane (jet, according to Sully) and quickly made our way to our next flight in Minneapolis. Before we knew it, we were in Stacy's car headed for an evening of fun. We had dinner with her family and then went to the Myseum, followed by ice cream cones, and then a ride through a park full of lights where the kids got to pop out of the sunroof and take it all in. When we arrived at their house, Sully's mind was blown by the amount of toys he got to play with. We finally got to bed around 10 and before we went to sleep he said, "mama, St. Louis is so fun!"

Saturday was filled with more fun. Plenty of play time in the morning followed by lunch at P'sgettis, more play time and then an afternoon of fun shows and snuggling on the couch. The kids had pizza and got to watch a movie while Stacy and I went out for dinner(!!!!). For me, this was a major win. In the last three years, one of us has had a baby, wether it was one of hers or me bringing one along, so the excitement of our evenings usually included ice cream and '20/20,' which, don't get me wrong, was great, but being able to go out and enjoy a little nightlife was really fun, and good for us. We got home and did sneak in an episode of '20/20' but Sully was restless, so we hit the hay early.

We had a long travel day home on Sunday, but it was tolerated so well by Sullivan. He is definitely at a golden age and we can't wait to get back to see Stacy and her family. It was so easy. Sully hit it off with all of her kids, but her oldest, Sam was a definite favorite. They were buddies, she is so good to him. I was honestly sad to come home, and Sully was, too. He is already asking to go back.

Dave did great at home with the girls. They stayed busy baking cookies, taking naps, playing at home, and the girls went to an evening drop in at Miss Jaspers' house. On Sunday they had lunch with the Olivers and then visited Grandma Helen, It was a good weekend all around.

Greta had her three year appointment the morning before our flight and she is growing exactly as she should. She is 30lbs (25th percentile) and 3ft 4 inches (75th percentile). She told Dr Sam that her favorite food is grapes dipped in ketchup, so our secret is out ;). Piper is walking more than crawling these days, she is wobbly, but so so darling.

Greta's check up. 

Pizza on the jet. All set for take off. 

Myseum fun with Sam.

Already a success when the Myseum's mascot is a robot. 

Christmas light fun.

Sully, Joe, and Tom working on a puzzle. 

Afternoon quiet time. 

Photo with Snoop.

Airport Christmas tree.

Lots of tram riding while searching for a toy store. 

The latest and greatest happenings.

We have had a full and fun November, between mild and wild weather, holidays, and three busy kids, we are on our toes. 

My last entry was right before a trip Sully and I had planned to take to St. Louis (which was delayed, more on that later), and it feels like life has been on fast forward since then. I had geared up to wean Piper completely while we were gone and as life would have it, she took her first attempts at consecutive steps the evening before our flight. I was thrilled, but sad as I knew the following morning was our last nursing moments. Right before I knew it, she was turning into a toddler. As it turned out, we were socked with a snowstorm and our flight was delayed 10 hours which was a disaster considering our trip was less than 48 hours total. After a couple of important phone calls and lunch, we decided to delay the trip for two weeks. We made the right decision as our original flight ended up departing after midnight and arriving in Mpls around 1:30am, where we would have been stranded until the next flight to St Louis the following day. We ended up having a very low key weekend; I got lots of Christmas shopping done, an evening in with Maggie, and we bought our Christmas tree. 

We celebrated Thanksgiving the following week with a gathering at my parents' house. We had a small group this year; Maggie and her family, Sam and his family, my parents, and us. My cousin, Sara stopped over with her family for a visit, but otherwise it was very low key. We had the usual spread and the kids had a blast. We hardly knew they were around as they do such a good job entertaining each other. We were grateful for the food and family time. 

Sully and Greta are getting so fun. They play inside games together and I love to hear them run around here entertaining themselves. As long as we are not dealing with tired or hungry kids, they really are the best of friends. I have been meaning to include a couple of Sullyisms. He refers to packages as 'wrapages' and when he came home from school last week I had asked him what he had for a snack and he said 'mom, today we had graham crappers.' Greta has her own, she has turned into a master negotiator. I will ask her to get her cozy for quite time and she follows it up with, 'how 'bout I watch my iPad for just a few minutes.' or when telling her to finish her dinner, I get 'how 'bout I eat my dinner with just a couple of halloween candies.' Stay tuned for more. 

Sully and I are reattempting our trip to St. Louis on Friday. We are really excited to see the Winters! 

One last park outing before the snow comes in. 

The neighborhood girls on the stroller.
Piper, Khloe (both 12mos), Annika (4) and Greta (3)

Greta is SO excited about her holiday dress. 

'Say cheese and look at me!' 

Matching sisters. 

The first experience in the snow. 

She is thrilled! 

Airport rehearsal.

We found the tree!

Kids table at Thanksgiving.
Hudson (10), Isaac (8), Sully (4), Greta (3), and Anna (5)

The whole crew.

My baby girl, getting so big. 

Three dinosaurs.

Christmas jammie photo shoot.

Photoshoot fail. 

My first attempt at HyVee with all three (in jammies).
Yikes!