Update

Olivia & Violet are quite characters. Olivia is now waving hello & goodbye. She holds her hand up by her forehead and flicks her wrist up and down. It is so cute! Apparently she waved at everybody all day today at daycare. Olivia has also developed a love of pulling Violet's hair. Maybe she is reminding Violet that she is the older sister!


Violet is such a lover. She has been dishing out wet kisses constantly. She will crawl across the room with her mouth open in order to plant one on you. She also loves her food. When she eats, she takes a bite and goes "mmmmmm."

They both love to stand up now. They are pulling themselves up on everything. They will walk along the couch and the coffee table. It won't be long until they are walking on their own!

News

Some Thronson family news....

1. My sister Terri & her husband Aaron are expecting their first child! We are very excited. I am happy that I can finally share the news. We've had to keep it a secret for several weeks, which has been very difficult! Their due date is May 3rd, 2009 (one day before our 7th wedding anniversary). We are excited to have cousins on both sides of the family that will be so close in age to Olivia & Violet.

2. My Dad found a buyer for his cows. So as of mid-October, there will not be any cows on my parent's farm anymore. I think he is excited, but also a bit nervous about what he will do with his time during the winter. I am happy for my parents, hopefully they can have some fun with their free time over the winter...and maybe come to visit us more often!

Where's My Sister?

The girls spent their first full day apart today. Violet was not feeling well when she woke up, so Olivia went to daycare and Violet went to the doctor. We found out that Violet has strep throat. The doctor was extremely surprised, he said it is rare for kids under 18 months to get strep. So I stayed home with Violet today while Olivia went to daycare. Violet actually acted pretty normal most of the day, her sickness didn't seem to bother her too much. She has to be on antibiotics for 24 hours before she can return to daycare, so I have to stay home with her for a few hours tomorrow morning and then I will bring her back to daycare.

Jamie stayed home with Violet while I went to pick up Olivia from daycare in the evening. It was so funny when Olivia & I came in the house and the girls saw each other. They both went crazy with smiles and started giggling. We put them on the floor so they could say hi to each other, and Violet kept giving Olivia kisses. She would crawl across the room with her mouth open and plant one on Olivia. It was so cute. I think they missed each other!

Long Update....

It has been awhile since I have been able to post, so I will try to update the best I can. Last Saturday, September 13, the girls went to their first volleyball game. We went down to Chaska to watch the high school varsity girls team, who is ranked #1 in the state. One of my college roommates, Heather, is an assistant coach so we wanted to go watch a game. The girls behaved really well during the game, and had no problem sitting with us for the 90 minutes of game time. After the game, Heather & I went to the mall while Jamie went home with the girls. It was nice to have a few free hours to spend shopping with Heather.

On Sunday morning, Jamie left early on a golf trip with a couple of guy friends. They went up to Breezy Point Resort in Brainerd for two nights. I brought the girls to a babysitter and then went to my company's annual golf tournament. We played 13 holes in the rain, and when we couldn't feel our hands anymore we decided it was time to call everyone in. I didn't feel the best when I woke up that morning, and after being out in the rain for 3 1/2 hours, I headed home without staying for the meal and prizes. I picked up the girls from the babysitter at about 6:30, and when we got home we all went to bed early. Thus started the very long part of the week!

I was supposed to work at a tradeshow in St. Paul on Monday. When I woke up, I felt just terrible. I managed to somehow get the girls to daycare and went down to the tradeshow for a few hours. I came home at about noon, and slept for most of the afternoon. Somehow I made it through the next few days while feeling terrible. The girls were very good, but it was hard to take care of them alone when I wasn't feeling well. I guess your maternal instincts kick in and you somehow find a way. When Jamie got back on Tuesday evening, I was so relieved! I still did not feel any better, so I went in to the doctor and found out that I had a sinus infection. Ugh. I hadn't ever had one before, and I hope I don't have one again! The doctor put me on antibiotics, so I felt much better within a day and managed to make it through the rest of the week. I was never so happy to have a Friday come!

Saturday was such a beautiful day that we spent time with the girls outside on the swingset. They LOVE to swing! They can be in the worst mood, but if you put them in the swing they smile immediately. Last night, Jamie & I were actually able to enjoy a night out on a double date with Jamie's cousin and wife. We went out to eat at Wasabi, a sushi restaurant in Minneapolis (chosen by Jamie's cousin's wife). I am not a very diverse restaurant goer, so I had to have help with the ordering process! The food was very good though. I tried crab sushi and some asparagus rolls, Jamie tried the eel sushi. I couldn't get myself to try the eel! We also had a main course of steak. After our meal, we went to the new Guthrie Theatre and saw "Little House on the Prairie: The Musical." It was pretty well done...not the best musical I have ever seen, but it was entertaining. My sister Terri & her husband Aaron, who were in town from Madison, babysat for us. We were quite thankful that they were in town to watch the girls so we could go out.

Today we got together with some of Jamie's relatives for the Vikings game. The girls had their Vikings outfits on (see below). It must have helped because the Vikings got their first win of the season! It was another beautiful day, so we spent more time outside. Some of the neighbor kids came over and played on our swingset with our girls.

Here are some pictures from the last week:

Minnesota Twins outfits from Heather:

Papa pushing his girls on the swing:

On a walk with Aaron & Terri (she took the picture):

Terri & Violet:

Vikings Fans:

What Olivia Has Learned.....

Here is a video showing Olivia's new talent. It is her new favorite thing to do. Make sure your volume is up!

Day of Reflection

Since today is 9/11...I can't help but reflect and remember the events that happened seven years ago....including where I was and what I was doing. It is hard to believe that so much time has passed. At that time, I had only been out of college for 4 months, working the same job I have to this day. Jamie and I were not even engaged yet and babies were not anywhere on our radar screen. My how things change and how fast time goes!

Hope you take some extra time today to appreciate your loved ones, and think of those who were lost on 9/11/01.

Toilet Time

The girls discovered the toilet this morning. They are pulling themselves up to a standing position on EVERYTHING, which now includes the toilet. They were in the bathroom with me this morning while I was getting ready for work and when I looked over, they were both standing and looking into the toilet. Then Violet decided to drop her pacifier in. Yuck. Needless to say, that pacifier went straight into the garbage. We call the girls our "little monkeys" because they are crawling all over everything and trying to stand on everything. There is never a dull moment around our house these days!

Weekend at Home

We had a nice and pretty relaxing weekend at home. We went to a car dealership at 9:00 on Saturday morning and traded in our Ford Ranger for a used full-size 2005 Dodge Ram truck. We have been looking for a full-size truck because we would like to be able to fit all four of us in the truck when we need to use it, and we couldn't do that with our Ranger. We think we got a pretty good deal, there wasn't a whole lot of cost difference between our trade and the price of the used truck. Trucks have come down so much in price, we actually paid less for the Ram than we paid for our Ranger over five years ago. Crazy! Jamie was pretty happy, it has been one of his lifelong dreams to have a full-size truck. The girls came with us to the dealership. They were very good even though they missed their morning nap, and we were there for almost two hours doing all of the paperwork.

Jamie's parents and his sister Jill stopped by for a visit in the afternoon. One of Jamie's Dad's friends passed away, so they came down to the cities for the visitation. Jill took the girls for a walk in their wagon, and Grandma Suchy helped give the girls a bath before they left. Otherwise we pretty much just relaxed and visited.

On Sunday, we spent most of the day just relaxing at home. The girls were a little fussy, so I took them for a walk in the wagon around 3:00. As soon as they got outside, their moods changed instantly. They were as happy as can be on our walk. We had some more company stop by around 4:00. Jamie's cousin Kraig came over with his wife and two-year-old daughter. They live just down the road from us, and we had not seen them for awhile. Jamie made chili for supper, and then we just hung out and watched some football. We had a nice visit! They left about 7:30 and then the girls went to bed. Jamie & I were pretty tired too, so we were in bed by 9:00. So much for being able to stay up late anymore!

Violet's new favorite thing is to shake her head back and forth as if she were saying "no." If you ask her a question, she will shake her head "no" and smile. She thinks she is pretty clever. She also loves to smack her lips while eating her food. Olivia's new thing is to blow a raspberry and spit everywhere. She thinks she is being funny. They both love to clap their hands together and play patty cake. Violet has been clapping her hands together for awhile, but Olivia just started a few weeks ago. They are at a very fun age!

Violet playing patty cake:

Auntie Jill giving Olivia & Violet a wagon ride:

Grandma Suchy & Olivia, Grandpa Suchy & Violet:

A Cardboard Box Will Do

Olivia & Violet borrowed a lot of fun toys from their cousin Emma, which was very nice and generous! They have been enjoying these toys; however, tonight all they wanted to play with was this cardboard box of diapers. They were crawling all over it like it was a jungle gym. With all the toy choices...all they wanted was this cardboard box!

Another Milestone

Last night Olivia climbed up the stairs for the first time all by herself (I was there to help her, even though you can't see me in the picture). She climbed up the 5 stairs from our main level to our upstairs level. She was quite proud. So we have reached yet another milestone! Violet just sat at the bottom of the stairs and didn't really have any interest in following her sister. When Olivia got to the top, she turned around and tried to go back down the stairs face first. So we will have to work on the going down part! :)

Labor Day Weekend

We had a fun but busy Labor Day weekend. On Friday, my sister Nikki came to visit with her husband Brian and their three kids Maya, Alex and Evan. It was fun to watch the girls play with their cousins. They all went to the park by our house and played together for quite a while. We all had tater tot hot dish for supper. The girls seemed to like it…but that’s not surprising since they have liked any food we have given them!

On Saturday, we drove up to Jamie’s sister Jill’s house for the first annual Adopt-A-Highway Cleanup for Jill’s husband Jim that passed away from cancer earlier this year. There was a great turnout and the cleanup went quickly. Jill had a get together afterward at her house, complete with hot tub rental and a nice big tent. The weather was just beautiful. The girls were having so much fun that they did not want to nap. They managed to stay up all day and party, so they were quite exhausted by the time bedtime rolled around. They even sat on Uncle Joey’s motorcycle! Hopefully this doesn’t turn them into Biker Babes. :)

On Sunday, we spent the day at the Suchy farm. We took the girls for a walk around the farm in the morning. Grandpa Suchy showed them his shed full of treasures, including his antique grocery cart. They also sat on the tractor while Grandpa started it up. They took a long morning nap. I actually had to wake them up so we could get to church on time. We found out that we are going to be an aunt & uncle again! Jamie's sister Janell & her husband Luke are expecting a baby in April. We are very excited! Grandma Suchy made a delicious dinner, and then around 3:00 the girls and I went to visit a high school friend of mine. From there, we went to my sister Rhonda’s house by Sauk Centre and stayed there for the evening. Rhonda is having a garage sale next weekend, so I wanted to help her set up for that. The girls had a good time, and even took a bath with their cousin Emma. Olivia was splashing around so much that Emma kept saying “She’s splashing me!”

Jamie stayed back at the Suchy farm (he had his own vehicle) and went to a surprise 30th birthday party on Sunday night for his sister Janell’s husband Luke. He said it was a fun time! The girls and I drove back home early Monday morning because we wanted to beat Labor Day traffic. They did pretty well in the car. They slept most of the time, but when they were awake they pretty much played and talked to each other. We got home about 10:00 and unloaded the car. Jamie got home at about 11:00 and had Grandma Suchy with him. She spent the day with the girls so I was able to get a few things done around the house. Jamie’s sister Jill (who was in the cities) picked up Grandma Suchy around 5:30 and they headed back home. The girls were so tired they went to bed about 30 minutes earlier than usual. It was quite a busy weekend for them, with a lot of traveling! But they did very well. They love to do patty cake now. They clap their hands together all the time! It is quite cute. Here are some photos from the weekend.

Olivia & Violet with their cousins Maya & Alex:

Some pictures from the Highway Cleanup:

Violet & Grandpa Suchy after the cleanup was done:

Great Grandpa Pomeranz & Olivia:
Biker Babes on Uncle Joey's motorcycle:

Olivia in her dress for church:
Violet in her dress for church (she managed to drool on it right away):
Olivia in Grandpa Suchy's antique grocery cart:
Violet in Grandpa Suchy's antique grocery cart (and doesn't she look happy about it?):

On Grandpa Suchy's tractor:

Walking around the Suchy farm with Papa:

Taking a bath with cousin Emma: