Another sad, sad, day

It's days like today that make it really difficult being a parent. There were two explosions near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. A run, like so many others that bring people together  from every state and many nations to compete in an endurance race in a historical American city.

What should you do as a parent? Do you talk to your children about the horrors endured on this day? Do you put them in a bubble in an attempt to keep them innocent to the dangers that lurk

around every corner? It's difficult to know what to do. I don't want to scare them and make them leery of mankind, but you know they'll hear the story from their friends at school and misunderstand the message. I certainly don't want her to think marathons are bad!

I haven't run a marathon before, but having run other races I know that runners all have something in common. The thrill of pushing yourself both in body and spirit to overcome the fatigue, the pain and fear of failure and crossing that finish line. The time on the clock doesn't matter - as most people will ask after a race, "did you finish" and rarely "what was your time". It's a camaraderie like no other.

What will I decide?

While I plan to keep the television off to avoid the coverage, I will talk to Teagan about what happened - only to the extent that she is aware that it is a terrible day in our history. And to show her that there still is good in the world. The first responders and common citizens who ran into the smoke this afternoon without knowing what is coming next will forever be heroes of this day and evil will never win.   To my children - look for the good; look for the helpers and know that in the face of evil - good will overcome and win every time.

...and when you get the chance to sit it out or dance, I hope you dance - but running is exhilarating as well!       

Happy President's Day!

Four score and seven years ago our fathers...established a day where kids didn't have to go to school, government workers could take the day off and retailers promoted the "Biggest Sale of the Year!" And how do we celebrate...?  Playing in the snow of course!!

 Ryan and the kids had a great afternoon playing at Hypoint Park. The sledding hill was fast and the snow was great for rolling and snowball fights!

Happy President's Day to our founding fathers and the others who have followed. Now, it's time for some hot chocolate.

If we could just clone Teagan...

As a parent these words are music to your ears. Especially when they are the first words said during parent teacher conferences. WE know Teagan is special but you always wonder how your child is received when not at home. Turns out our little girl is true to herself and her values when around her friends. Need more...?
Respectful
Kind
Smart
Energetic
A good friend to all
The one thing we need to help Teagan with is her confidence. She needs to have the faith that she is all of the above and we need to help her erase any self-doubt she still has. It is my mission and goal to boost her confidence and to teach her not to be so hard on herself.
But until then...I couldn't have asked for a better daughter, a better sister to Nolan, or a more beautiful and amazing little girl. She's exactly what I asked God for and he delivered.

You are amazing and beautiful Teagan, on the inside and outside.

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Happy 3rd Birthday Little Boy Blue!

It's so hard to believe that it's been 3 years since little boy blue was born. He's been such a joy that it hardly feels fair that I get to be his mom. God certainly knew what he was doing when he blessed our little family with this boy. And how lucky are we to raise two amazing and loving kids. I'm just beaming with pride!!

If we put three years into perspective, what it really represents is:

1,095 days. That's it. It's been just over 1000 days that we've been a family of four and it's been amazing. The sleepless nights, the feedings, the diapers, the fevers and dr visits. But I wouldn't change a thing...why? Because more importantly there have been smiles, hugs, sloppy kisses, cuddles, laughter the undeniable look of love in his big brown eyes when he says "Mommy, I LOVE you!"

We had a fantastic week of celebrating. It all started in Duluth the weekend of Teagan's skating competition. All the grandparents came from Marquette and rented rooms at The Edge Waterpark. After a morning at the cold DECC and Amsoil rinks we made our way to the warmth of the waterpark. It was such a great time!!

Then after the competition was over we headed back to the cities for a Superbowl Celebration with the Klein's and Young's. Of course, the halftime celebration was not just Beyonce but also for Nolan. Such a lucky little boy!!

All this fun and it was YET to be his birthday! Finally, on February 4 we celebrated his OFFICIAL birthday with a birthday cookie and party at daycare and then a celebration with the girls u9 Rebels Soccer team! Thank you Angie for bringing the birthday treats!!

All in all, it's been a successful birthday week! Happy Birthday baby boy! I'm looking forward for many, many more years and hundreds of thousands more days.

I love you to the moon and back Nolan Ryan Stupsky!!!

My Baby is a STAR on Skates!

This weekend we traveled to Duluth for Teagan's first ever out-of-town skating competition. We left the frozen tundra of the Twin Cities and drove straight north. The temp fell from -3 to -11 by the time we arrived at the Inn on Lake Superior. You couldn't ask for a better weekend to be indoors and watching a winter sport. Really, I mean this with all my heart! :)

First things first, a gift and a door sign from her Secret Skater - who could it be?!

Then we were off to the rink to watch the other skaters. It was so fun to sit in the crowd and cheer on the other skaters and then out of your seats and off to the other rink for more events.

Finally, on Saturday morning it was Teagan's turn to skate in her Freeskate event. She did an AMAZING job. Her goal was to NOT FALL and she didn't fall; in fact, she made it look so incredibly easy! She was rewarded with a 4th place medal for her amazing routine!

Her cheering squad was so proud of her, as was her coach - the one and only FANCY NANCY!

Teagan didn't know her grandparents were in town until after her event and she was SO excited! For the rest of our Saturday we went to The Edge waterpark hotel and celebrated Nolan's birthday. It was a good (and warm) break from the DECC and Amsoil arenas. We had so much fun!

On Sunday morning Teagan had her second and final event - Compulsory. She rocked that event and placed 3rd!! On the podium she goes!!

It was a fun and very successful weekend! I am so proud of my ice dancing princess!! She's a rock star beyond belief with the hardware to prove it!

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What's Tutti Frutti Pink, Black and Zebra All Over?

Why, it's Teagan's new bedroom of course! Now that she's almost 9 it was time to update her room. The room was still the same as when we moved in; minus a few minor cosmetic changes. In the planning stages we discussed quite a few colors. Should we paint each wall a different color? If so, pink, teal, purple and green got the thumbs up. What if we did ALL the walls pink? Would it be too much?

Then inspiration hit! In the size of a sleep eye covering Teagan decided that pink, black and zebra would be absolutely perfect. Hmmmmm, black?! I then turned to Google and searched "Pink and Black Zebra Bedroom" and I found a perfect match. We found a room online that gave me (as mom) the confidence that a black wall wouldn't be too bad!

First stop, Ace True Value to rent a steamer. We had to empty the room and get that stubborn wallpaper border off first.

Then it was time to get that Tutti Frutti and black on the walls! It was a weekend project but so much fun to do with Ryan. I did some edging while Ryan was the paint roller extraordinaire!

Here are the two colors coming together. Not too bad!

And now it's time to put the room back together. SHHHHH - Teagan is sleeping in Nolan's room and won't see it until morning.

She loves it!  And to think an eyepatch was all it took for this inspiration!

I love your new room, baby my growing girl! I hope you continue to have the sweetest dreams each and every night. And remember, I love you to the moon and back!

And onto us a Fish was Born!

Time flies when you're having fun! First of all I cannot believe that my little boy is knocking on the door of turning three. In some respects he's such a big boy and has learned so much and in other ways he's still my little cuddle bug boy. He still grabs me in a big bear hug and in the most caring voice says 'I LOVE you!' It's the most heart-warming moment for me as a mom.

Another special moment happened just last weekend. This little guy is now in swim class all by himself. An adult (Ryan) no longer needs to be in the pool with him. This is what I love about this little guy - he has a GO FOR IT attitude and has the confidence to plop himself down in the pool and show exactly what he can do. Take a look...

Way to go Nolan! You're a rock star in the pool and I love you to the moon and back!