Behind Every Great Woman...

there is a great man. Well, I know that isn't quite how the saying goes, but close enough. I feel the need to give my wonderful husband some much deserved credit for making things extra special this year.

I realize I have yet to do a post on Christmas, but I would like to share with you one of my favorite Christmas presents this year. From none other than my husband himself. I can vouch for the fact that he put many (80ish?) hours into this book. And while I kind of knew what he was doing, I never expected it to be as great as it turned out in the end.

Jason took our blog from way back in May 2006 and made it into a book. At the time, I was using a Mac website to publish the blog and when our subscription ran out we decided not to renew it. So, all of the hard work I put into the blog for 2 years was no longer available for viewing. I knew I wanted it to become a book at some point, but it wasn't super high on my priority list knowing it was going to be a huge undertaking. As I outlined in my 101 things list, my plan eventually is to have all of my blog entries made into books.

These pictures don't really do it justice, but trust me when I say it is INCREDIBLE!

The cover:

The back cover:

A sample page inside:

Seriously, its the best!

Not only did Jason decide to make Christmas super special with the blog book, he also worked his magic for my birthday. Turns out Henry and my birthdays are exactly one week apart, so you can imagine that I wasn't up for much celebrating this year. The nursing factor kept me from being able to go out and enjoy a nice dinner and since it was Jason's last day home with the family before returning to work, I really wanted something low key.

Henry surprised me by starting the morning off with an uninterrupted 4.5 hours of sleep. Then, when Amelia woke up, she and Jason headed downstairs for a secret mission. Turns out they were decorating the place with signs and streamers.

Later in the day (given Amelia's built up energy), Jason decided to take her out to Monkey Joe's to try to wear her down a bit. This was gift #2! Amelia came home and actually took a nap (gift #3!).

After she woke up, she and Jason decorated my cake. Jason was brave enough to take the giant cupcake form I got for Christmas and give it a try.

Not too bad for a guy and a three year old! (Of course Jason felt the need to put all (gulp) 31 candles on the cake for me.

And if all that wasn't enough, Jason and Amelia presented me with a frame with pictures inside that spelled out "MOM". Much like the frame I did for Jason for father's day. I really don't think it gets much cuter than this, I mean really!

(Check out the socks in this last one).

And last, but not least, I picked out this necklace long before Henry was born and sent Jason the Etsy link. It arrived on my birthday, so you know he had to work fast to get that done!

Not to get all mushy on my blog, but I am so lucky to have such a wonderful man in my life. I'll leave it at that.

101 Things--Almost 1 Year Down

101 Things to do in 1001 Days
Official Start Date: January 16, 2009
Official End Date: October 14, 2011
Official Progress Report: 19 items completed, 15 items started, 82 items to go
(Anything that has been completed is marked in bold, items in progress are pink)

Things have been moving along these last few months. I learned to use my sewing machine to make some Christmas presents, got my body checked by a dermatologist, and made a gingerbread house with the little one. My favorite Christmas gift was an amazing hard-bound book from Jason that documents the first 2 years of our blog. Any day now, I should be able to mark off "Have a Second Baby" and am contemplating getting a pedicure tomorrow to help with that whole process!

Learning Things
1. learn to Knit
2. Learn to sew on my new sewing machine 10/09
3. take a pottery class
4. take a yoga class
5. learn to make a scrabble tile pendants
6. knit Amelia a hat
7. make a painting for Amelia's room

Travel Things

8. Bet $20 on red in Vegas

9. Dress up and go somewhere fabulous for New Year's Eve (preferably out of town)

10. Take Amelia to Disneyworld (2/09)
11. Go to the Grand Canyon
12. Visit family in TX
13. Visit family in KC
14. Visit family in Spokane (7/09)
15. Take Amelia to the beach (7/09)
16. Take a family vacation to Chicago
17. Take Jason to Spa Shiki for a couple's spa day

Sport Things
18. Bike the entire Katy Trail
19. Attend a family member's school sporting event
20. Attend a local high school softball game 9/09
21. Run 5, 5K races (2/5) (St. Patrick's Day 7K 3/2009), (Hazelwood PTA Scholarship Run/Walk 5/2009)

For Other People Things
22. Send a 'just because' care package to someone
23. Pay for the car behind me in the drive thru lane
24. Give my parents an outstanding anniversary gift
25. Donate $5 to charity for every item not completed by day 1001
26. Get over my fear and donate blood again (anyone want to come hold my hand?)
27. Continue to support platoons by sending monthly care packages until the end of the war (I changed this to in-progress since it is ongoing).

28. Make a blanket to donate to the Linus Project
29. Write a love letter to Jason
30. Write a love letter to Amelia
31. Inspire someone else to do a 101 things list (Hooray for Erin! 7/09)
32. Send someone flowers for no reason
33. Make Jason an amazing breakfast in bed
34. Plan and execute a fancy picnic for Jason and Amelia

Finance Things
35. Build up a 9 month emergency fund (in progress, but still have a ways to go)
36. Change our retirement contributions to be more aggressive (3/09)
37. Become debt free except for our mortgage (car and student loans)
38. Max out my Roth IRA one year (Hoping this will be the year).
39. Get a living will made
40. Rollover retirement money from state job

Organization Things
41. Organize laundry room closet (9/09)
42. Combine favorite recipes and compile into printed book
43. Print out and organize 2006 photos
44. Print out and organize 2007 photos
45. Print out and organize 2008 photos
46. Print out and organize 2009 photos
47. Add captions to 2006 photos
48. Add captions to 2007 photos
49. Add captions to 2008 photos
50. Add captions to 2009 photos
51. Bring Amelia's baby book up to date
52. Organize basement so that everything fits on two shelving units
53. Replace bathroom carpet with ceramic tile
54. Repaint Amelia's bathroom
55. Have a garage sale (CF Yard Sale-5/09)

Food and Drink Things

56. Host a fondue party
57. Host a dinner party (minimum 6 people)
58. Visit 5 new restaurants (3/5) (The Vine 3/09), (El Scorcho 4/09). (McGurks 11/09)
59. Try out the Melting Pot (9/09)

For Me Things
60. Contact my favorite teacher to thank her for her influence on my life
61. Identify 100 things that make me happy
62. Have a second baby (Should be marking this off 12/09).
63. Send a secret to postsecret.com
64. Read 100 books (27/100)
65. Attend Easter vigil
66. Attend Stations of the Cross during Lent
67. Apply to graduate school (1/09)
68. Take the GRE (2/09)
69. Go one week without logging in to Facebook
70. Give up TV for one week
71. Eat only at home for an entire month
72. Have my body checked by a dermatologist (12/09)
73. Get a manicure
74. Get a pedicure
75. Get a massage
76. Get a facial
77. Have 2006 blog entries made into a book (12/09)
78. Have 2007 blog entries made into a book (12/09)
79. Have 2008 blog entries made into a book
80. Have 2009 blog entries made into a book
81. Bring tree skirt project up to date
82. Finish an entire Sudoku book cover to cover
83. See all 5 Best Picture nominees either in theater or DVD (3/5)
84. See a local high school play
85. See Mason Jennings live again
86. See a Second City show in Chicago
87. Go to see a movie solo
88. Hand the camera over and get more pictures of Amelia and I together
89. Pick up trash around a local park we frequent
90. Finish a certain "craft project" I started in college (it was meant to be a Christmas present for someone who reads this blog)

Amelia Things
91. Start a garden with Amelia and grow flowers and/or vegetables (4/09)
92. Build Amelia a dollhouse (first step is done, hoping to have it completed by her birthday?).
93. Take Amelia camping
94. Introduce Amelia to the fun of a photo booth (6/09)
95. Play in the rain with Amelia
96. Fly a kite with Amelia
97. Get Amelia a passport (6/09)
98. Decorate a gingerbread house with Amelia (11/09)
99. Catch lightning bugs with Amelia.

100. Make a doll for Amelia

101. Work on the next 101 things to do! (3 ideas so far!)

101 things: 6 month update

I think you will notice a lot more pink this time (which will hopefully translate to bold print soon)! I feel good about where I am and where I am going with my list. I think my friend, Erin, who dove right into hers helped motivate me a bit!

101 Things to do in 1001 Days
Official Start Date: January 16, 2009
Official End Date: October 14, 2011
Official Progress Report: 11 items completed, 14 items started, 90 items to go
(Anything that has been completed is marked in bold, items in progress are pink)

Learning Things
1. learn to Knit
2. Learn to sew on my new sewing machine
3. take a pottery class
4. take a yoga class
5. learn to make a scrabble tile pendants
6. knit Amelia a hat
7. make a painting for Amelia's room

Travel Things

8. Bet $20 on red in Vegas

9. Dress up and go somewhere fabulous for New Year's Eve (preferably out of town)

10. Take Amelia to Disneyworld (2/09)
11. Go to the Grand Canyon
12. Visit family in TX
13. Visit family in KC
14. Visit family in Spokane (7/09)
15. Take Amelia to the beach(7/09)
16. Take a family vacation to Chicago
17. Take Jason to Spa Shiki for a couple's spa day

Sport Things
18. Bike the entire Katy Trail
19. Attend a family member's school sporting event
20. Attend a local high school softball game
21. Run 5, 5K races (2/5) (St. Patrick's Day 7K 3/2009), (Hazelwood PTA Scholarship Run/Walk 5/2009)

For Other People Things
22. Send a 'just because' care package to someone
23. Pay for the car behind me in the drive thru lane
24. Give my parents an outstanding anniversary gift
25. Donate $5 to charity for every item not completed by day 1001
26. Get over my fear and donate blood again (anyone want to come hold my hand?)
27. Continue to support platoons by sending monthly care packages until the end of the war (I changed this to in-progress since it is ongoing).

28. Make a blanket to donate to the Linus Project
29. Write a love letter to Jason
30. Write a love letter to Amelia
31. Inspire someone else to do a 101 things list (Hooray for Erin! 7/09)
32. Send someone flowers for no reason
33. Make Jason an amazing breakfast in bed
34. Plan and execute a fancy picnic for Jason and Amelia

Finance Things
35. Build up a 9 month emergency fund (in progress, but still have a ways to go)
36. Change our retirement contributions to be more aggressive (3/2009)
37. Become debt free except for our mortgage (car and student loans)
38. Max out my Roth IRA one year (Hoping this will be the year).
39. Get a living will made
40. Rollover retirement money from state job

Organization Things
41. Organize laundry room closet
42. Combine favorite recipes and compile into printed book
43. Print out and organize 2006 photos
44. Print out and organize 2007 photos
45. Print out and organize 2008 photos
46. Print out and organize 2009 photos
47. Add captions to 2006 photos
48. Add captions to 2007 photos
49. Add captions to 2008 photos
50. Add captions to 2009 photos
51. Bring Amelia's baby book up to date
52. Organize basement so that everything fits on two shelving units
53. Replace bathroom carpet with ceramic tile
54. Repaint Amelia's bathroom
55. Have a garage sale (CF Yard Sale-5/09

Food and Drink Things

56. Host a fondue party
57. Host a dinner party (minimum 6 people)
58. Visit 5 new restaurants (2/5) (The Vine 3/09), (El Scorcho 4/09).
59. Try out the Melting Pot

For Me Things
60. Contact my favorite teacher to thank her for her influence on my life
61. Identify 100 things that make me happy
62. Have a second baby (Should be marking this off 12/09).
63. Send a secret to postsecret.com
64. Read 100 books (11/100)
65. Attend Easter vigil
66. Attend Stations of the Cross during Lent
67. Apply to graduate school (1/09)
68. Take the GRE (2/09)
69. Go one week without logging in to Facebook
70. Give up TV for one week
71. Eat only at home for an entire month
72. Have my body checked by a dermatologiest
73. Get a manicure
74. Get a pedicure
75. Get a massage
76. Get a facial
77. Have 2006 blog entries made into a book
78. Have 2007 blog entries made into a book
79. Have 2008 blog entries made into a book
80. Have 2009 blog entries made into a book
81. Bring tree skirt project up to date
82. Finish an entire Sudoku book cover to cover
83. See all 5 Best Picture nominees either in theater or DVD (1/5)
84. See a local high school play
85. See Mason Jennings live again
86. See a Second City show in Chicago
87. Go to see a movie solo
88. Hand the camera over and get more pictures of Amelia and I together
89. Pick up trash around a local park we frequent
90. Finish a certain "craft project" I started in college (it was meant to be a Christmas present for someone who reads this blog)

Amelia Things
91. Start a garden with Amelia and grow flowers and/or vegetables (4/09)
92. Build Amelia a dollhouse (first step is done, hoping to have it completed by Christmas).
93. Take Amelia camping
94. Introduce Amelia to the fun of a photo booth (6/09)
95. Play in the rain with Amelia
96. Fly a kite with Amelia
97. Get Amelia a passport (6/09)
98. Decorate a gingerbread house with Amelia
99. Catch lightning bugs with Amelia.

100. Make a doll for Amelia

101. Work on the next 101 things to do! (3 ideas so far!)

Harvest time!

We have been really benefitting from our garden in the last few weeks. Before we left for vacation, we picked the few things that were ready including a couple of zucchini, some carrots, peas, and green beans. Jason grilled it up with what was leftover onions we wanted to use before our departure.

When we got back in town, there were some veggies waiting for us! A couple more carrots, some cucumbers, a couple more squash, and our first tomato (we were thrilled they waited for our return to be ready!) .

Since then, I've stopped photographing the food we've retrieved from the garden--mostly because I didn't think that 37 pictures of tomatoes and carrots would not interest my readers too much. We've been fortunate enough to be able to pick at least one or two things everyday (sometimes more!). The tomatoes are coming in nicely (the yellow variety are the best!) and so are the cucumbers. We even planted another round of a few veggies in some spots. We are trying to take careful notes for next year so we can have an even more productive garden.

Spokane: Day 4

(In case you were wondering, I am about done with the vacation updates. We are in the final stretch people!)

Day 4 in Spokane was definitely my favorite day--possibly of the whole vacation! There was a lot of back and forth discussion about what we should do and we finally decided to return to Idaho--this time to a place called Sandpoint. I feel so lucky to have family that knew about this little gem because it was so beautiful and I know I would have never found it without them!

Coeur D'Alene was nice, but this place was even better! The hills were more mountain-like, the beach less crowded, and the weather warm with a slight breeze. Again, Amelia immensely enjoyed her beach time. She spent several hours swimming, digging, and playing with some other children that were visiting the beach too. Luckily, Idaho beaches do not have coral sand (which Jason seems to be allergic to), so everyone was happy. We had a little picnic lunch and then it was beach time for everyone!

Again, it is hard to get the beauty of this place on film, but it was truly breathtaking!

The older folks chatting it up.

Everyone LOVES the beach!

As if the beach wasn't enough, my aunt and uncle took us to a ski lift to the top of nearby Schweitzer Mountain. On the way up to the ski lift, we spotted a moose crossing the road just ahead of us. Apparently this is extremely rare and was a pretty cool occurrence. Amelia had lots of questions about where he was going and where his family was.

I have never been to a ski resort before (other than Hidden Valley and I'm pretty sure that doesn't count), so I was pretty taken with the atmosphere. I think I am one of the few people that would enjoy a ski resort more in the summer than the winter since I don't really like to be cold. There were cute restaurants with amazing views and some nice shops. Not to mention, lots of hiking trails, tennis courts, and even a life-sized chess game!

The view from the parking lot of the resort.

Here is the ski lift that we took up to the top.

Heading up, Jason and I were extremely nervous (the lifts are pretty open and Amelia is one squirmy little kid). I originally thought she might not want to ride, but she LOVED it! I was brave enough at one point to turn around and snap a picture of my aunt, uncle, and mom.

We made it to the top! The view was worth the anxiety attack! The lake you can see in the picture is where we had just enjoyed our time at the beach.

The view from the top with the ski lift.

We walked a bit on top of the mountain and from one angle could see the Canadian Rockies. They were only about 40 miles away if I remember correctly.

Amelia could have cared less about the Canadian Rockies, but was completely taken by the flowers available for picking instead.

Heading back down, one heck of a view!

This time, Amelia requested to ride with me and GG. I, again, snuck a picture of those riders behind me. It seemed much less scary heading back down.

The view after I was safely back on the ground. Getting on and off was the hardest part since the lift never actually stops and you kind of have to jump on and off.

Once at the bottom, we checked out some of the shops while Amelia danced to the piped in music that filled the resort.

After that, it was rock climbing with Uncle Jerry.

It was a fantastic day and I fully support my aunt's desire to move to Sandpoint down the road. I guarantee we will visit often if they do!