Tumbling Tots

Today was Sofia's last day of Tumbling Tots. This was her first class on her own at the Y since the kids have to be 2 to do the non parent classes. I am SO glad she did this class. Her confidence has increased so much with trying different things at the playground and being in larger groups of kids. There were 7 kids in her class and it has been so much fun watching them all grow. The other parents and I sometimes spy on the kids from the upper area. Here is a picture of Sofia with her teacher right before we left. It's pretty blurry but I accidentally took a video the first time and after this picture the boys started protesting to leave.

Sofia and her instructor

This summer I signed Sofia up for "Movin' and Groovin'" which is a music/dance class. I have a feeling she is going to LOVE this class. The great part is that this class runs while I'm in Body Pump so we each get to have fun. The boys will go to Kid Watch like normal but they love climbing on all of the different toys and objects there.

 I am also excited that I got Sofia into the Cedarburg 1 & 2 year old story time. The Cedarburg Library story times are by reservation only because they like to keep the numbers small and the kids complete a craft every week and they need to have enough supplies for everyone. Yesterday at 10am registration opened and it normally fills up within about 10 minutes. I may or may not have called at 9:57 to secure a spot for Sofia ;) My only challenge will be bringing the boys. I'm hoping my Mom can come every now and then to help out since she will have the summer off. I want to keep Fridays for beach/pool days with Tim and the boys and I like keeping one day a week free so we can do whatever we feel like. So I'm trying to think about one more fun activity to sign Sofia up for. The boys are too young for any classes but they do have their own story time at the Port Washington library so we may count that as our last activity.

Our weekends are almost entirely booked with Tim's work, weddings, triathlons, our 10 year class reunions, and camping trips. This should prove to be a busy and fun summer!

Catching up...

The past few weekends/weeks have flown by. We have been very busy biking, hiking, planting and doing housework and yard work. I'm happy to say that our vegetable garden is pretty much complete! Some of our seedlings survived the transition but others didn't fare so well. Tim and I are to blame for most of the seedling fatalities as we forgot to bring them inside one night after we had them outside for a day adjusting to the temperature change/wind etc.  We also learned that starting our seedlings as early as we did may require us to transfer them to larger pots. Many of our seedlings ran out of space to grow. Here is a recent picture of the garden. In the actual raised bed garden we are growing bell peppers, green beans, three different types of tomatoes, lots of kale, jalapeño peppers, red tamales, cucumber, cilantro, and green beans. We planted strawberries and raspberries outside the garden because we were afraid they would take everything over. Last weekend I finished planting annuals in the boxes around our porch and we need one more perennial bush or plant to fill a space in the front. I really enjoy watering and tending the garden during nap time. If I can't get all three kids to nap at the same time I strap a baby in the Ergo or Sofia helps me water. She loves to spray Frodo. Here is a picture of our garden, I can't wait to see how it looks in a month or two. Tim built the garden using the plan from this article.

Our vegetable garden, Tim built the actual garden.

One of my garden helpers

This past weekend we traveled to Baraboo to visit Tim's parents and his Granddad. I forgot my camera because we were rushing to get all of the kids loaded and packed for the drive in time for nap time. The kids enjoyed hanging out with their grandparents and going for hikes at Devil's Lake. We didn't get a chance to take them out on the sailboat this weekend but I'm sure we will soon. Then we spent a day in Janesville for our friend's son's 3rd birthday party. Charles' Dad brought over new chicks from their hobby farm and the kids just loved playing with them. On Memorial Day we slept in, our at least did our version of sleeping in which is about 7am. Then we biked downtown with the kids for the Memorial Day parade and spent the rest of the day gardening and doing some spring cleaning and organizing. Here is a photo update from the past few weeks.

Sofia notices EVERYTHING on our hikes, including tiny little insects.

Skipping rocks into Lake Michigan with Granddad

Sully taking a nap during our hike

Everett and I

Getting ready for the parade, and yes, we fit all three of those chairs plus our kids into the trailer that Tim pulled.

Our family

Everett fell asleep on the way home and Sully was ready to get his helmet off.

My garden helper who only needs a 45 minute nap in the afternoon

Visiting Dad for lunch at Waubedonia Park

Sofia swinging with her Daddy

Sofia showing Everett how to pick up the chicks, Everett wasn't allowed to hold them for long though because he just loved them too much (aka squeezed them a little too hard)

Everett enjoyed chasing the chicks around

Spring/Summer Training

I have been pregnant or in between for the past 3 years. So this summer I am so excited to actually train a little more seriously. I did complete a half marathon between Sofia and the boys but I found out I was pregnant with them the day I ran my race so I haven't been able to do anything since. I'm the kind of person that is more productive with running/working out when I have something to train for. This summer I am training for a relay triathlon, a few fun runs and a sprint triathlon. I'm doing the High Cliff relay triathlon with some of my friends from MOPS in June. I'm part of the Ozaukee Multisport Club at the Y and they wanted us to all do the High Cliff tri as relays so we could get to know people from the club better. I really wanted to do the Elkhart Lake triathlon but that happens to be the same weekend as a wedding we are attending. In August I will be competing in the Port Washington City of Seven Hills triathlon. I'm contemplating doing another half marathon this fall. Anyways, it's been a lot of fun and exhausting training.

During the week I run regularly, bike, and I take a Body Pump class. All of these are a ton of fun and have allowed me precious time to either be alone with my thoughts (running) or make friends in our new town. I bike with a friend from my Body Pump class who also has a two year old and is training for her first half Ironman. We meet early and bike anywhere from 15-25 miles.  It's nice biking early with a friend because we really hold each other accountable and we can get home in time to allow everyone to get to work. I do miss biking with Tim though, that is simply one of our favorite activities to do together. We can do rides under 10 miles with the kids but we can't go at training speed or go out on country roads with them. Body Pump has been a phenomenal training tool for me. Our instructor is so motivational and the music is great and it really is an amazing workout. Body Pump is becoming very popular across the country, the only problem is that I have to work very hard to get out of the house on time to get a spot in the class, it fills up 15 minutes before it starts. Any moms out there who are looking for an awesome class should check out Body Pump. Lately I've been adding more pool time into my routine. Last night I attended a swim workshop to get my stroke analyzed and I'm so glad I went. I got some great tips to improve my swimming and make me more efficient in a triathlon.

I think it's really important to keep personal interests and hobbies when you have kids. It's easy to get lost in your kids and their needs. I am blessed with an amazing husband who makes sure that I get out on my own regularly and doesn't mind wrangling the kids by himself in the morning when I ride. I can't wait until my first race!

10 months old!

On Mother's Day the boys turned 10 months old. There are less than two months until their first birthday, wow! I tried two different photo shoots but the boys are becoming increasingly difficult to capture for their monthly photos because they really don't want to sit still on the couch. I always have to be ready to throw down the camera and catch not one but two babies.

At 10 months old the game is changing. Everett has been getting around well for a while now but he now has the official crawl down and is even climbing some things. Sully is able to crawl backwards and scoot around. Both of the boys can get to a sitting position from crawling. Both of the boys are standing against furniture and tables and Everett has started to take a few steps when he's holding onto his walker. The boys are also very interested in Sofia's toys and whatever she is playing with. After some practice Sofia has the "taking turns" idea down and is a great big sister and makes sure everyone takes turns. We have been outside a lot lately with the nice weather finally here for good. The boys start on a blanket when we are in the backyard but Everett always crawls away. We take a lot of walks and bike rides to the park. This month we had our last MOPS meeting for the year, I think you guys will really miss the ladies there. You were well loved throughout the year. I have no idea how much you guys weigh this month, I am pretty sure you guys are still quite a bit smaller than your sister was at this age.

Everett, at 10 months you are a wild man and the happiest baby I've ever had (out of the three). At one point (I think around 16 weeks) we never would've guessed that you would be the easy going, happy go lucky guy. If I take my eye off of you for a minute you disappear. I tend to find you behind furniture, inside the shelf of the coffee table, in the bathroom, closet, etc. I have started putting you in the pack and play if I have to use the bathroom because I don't want you to hurt yourself while I'm gone. I love watching you play, you are so intensely focused on whatever you are working on. You love to figure out how things work. Once you've figured something out you scan the room for something else to work on. You seem to have memorized the sound of a crayon dropping because when Sofia drops one you speed crawl over and try to eat it. You sing, coo, giggle and laugh constantly. You still love to try to hold Sully's hand while you eat and you try to climb out of your high chair to get to Sully. You can eat almost anything we eat now and have been sleeping through the night for the past four nights, yahoo!! This month you said your first word. We were eating lunch and everyone had apple slices. Sofia and I were chatting about the apples and then out of the blue you said, "Apple". I prompted you to say it again and you repeated it several times. I told your Dad and he said it was a fluke until he asked you to say it and you said it three more times. You said dog a few minutes after you said apple. Lately, you have been the first to wake from nap time and you and I spend time reading books and I usually kiss you about 100 times after you wake up, I just love listening to you giggle and squeal when I kiss you. Everett, you are such a sweet and fun little boy. I love having you in my life.

Sullivan, my little Sully bear. At 10 months you are still pretty chill but this month you decided that you would like to be perched on my hip or in the ERGO as much as possible. You are just one snuggly little guy. This month you've been a bit fussier, mainly because I think you are frustrated with crawling. You watch Everett work his way around the entire house and I know you want to do the same. You have definitely progressed with your crawling and I think you'll be catching up to Ev in no time. You love going for bike rides and hanging out in the swing with your brother. You are an expert eater, you have totally mastered the pincer grip and you eat anything and everything. When we go grocery shopping you sit in the child area of the cart and I usually give you a bagel to munch on and you just love to sit back, eat and observe the store. You are steady as a rock when you hold on to furniture and tables. Today when I went in your room to get you from your nap you were almost standing on the edge of your crib, it's time to lower them to the final notch. Sully, you just love to be cuddled, held, and talked to. I'm enjoying this stage a lot because I know once you are on the move my cuddle time will be shortened. I love how different your personality is from Sofia and Everett, you do things your way on your time. I also see you observing very small details in life, I have no doubt that you are going to be one very interesting little boy. I love you to pieces Sully bear!

Here are the pictures from our two photo shoots.

You think you're going to get both of us to sit still for a picture? Hahahah!

I LOVE these boys!

Escape artist #2

My teeny tiny baby boys are 10 months old.

And the boys decided they were done.

Changes

We are definitely experiencing some changes here in the Ruder household. First of all, the weather has started to get really nice again. We've been doing a lot of biking, playing outside, walks, and trips to the park. Starting last week I made the decision to really curb Sofia's pacifier use. She was really not using it much for a while and then all of a sudden I noticed she had it in constantly, and it really affects her speech. I sat down with Sofia and talked about how it was hard to understand her with her nuk in and that from now on she would only be able to use it for nap time and bed time. Of course she smiled and said ok because I'm sure she thought we'd cave. It's been a week and I've held strong, thankfully my five years of teaching has given me the ability to tune out whining pretty well. Sofia still talks about her nuk during the day but I remind her when we are going to use it (but only once) and then I ignore her if she continues to talk about it. I'm SO happy I won't have to deal with this issue with the boys, they have never used a pacifier.

The other big change we have noticed is that the honeymoon period between Sofia and her brothers seems to have ended. Now that they are very mobile she has realize that they can play with toys and her things. We have been working very hard on teaching the concept of "sharing", which I know is extremely hard for a young two year old to grasp. We try to encourage Sofia to offer her brothers a different toy if she wants the one that they are playing with. Besides toys, the love between the three of them continues to grow. Especially now that Everett is so vocal. Whenever he baby babbles Sofia laughs and repeats it back to him or says something else. Sofia also loves to describe what each of the boys are doing during the day. She gets very concerned when she wakes up from her nap and only sees one brother, she always asks about the other. Sofia also loves to give suggestions about what they should be doing (eating, play on floor, walk, etc).

Tim's mom was able to come visit for the day yesterday and boy was it nice. I was able to spend the morning on a date with Sofia. We went a toy shop in Cedarburg, we actually intended to go there for a story time but I got the time wrong. This happens to me a lot since having the twins. I swear my brain is only working at 70% right now. Sofia and I got coffee together and walked around town, it was so sweet. I love my dates with Sofia, I can't wait until we can go get pedicures together and other fun girly things. This morning Tim was home and the boys weren't feeling themselves so I got to take her to another event just the two of us. We went to Cedar Grove for a kid's dance party. A bunch of moms and kids get together once a month at a coffee shop with a big community room and a very energetic story-teller/singer/dancer comes to do a program with the kids. Sofia absolutely loved all the dancing and songs, I think she really enjoyed watching the older kids too.

My boys don't have a chance of being anything but tough. Sofia is actually hugging them in this picture :)

28th Birthday!!

Last week I celebrated my 28th birthday! I have to say that year 27 was one of the best years yet. The weekend before my birthday we traveled to Waukesha for a birthday dinner with my family, my sister celebrated her 21st birthday the day before my birthday. Then on Saturday Tim and I had a night away at a bed and breakfast in Cedarburg, Wisconsin.  We enjoyed walking around Cedarburg and taking our time in little shops and the winery. In the morning it was really nice to eat breakfast and have a coffee while it was still hot. My Mom and sister watched the kids for us and it was really nice to get away for a night. We weren't gone too long since we were really excited to see the kids in the morning. 

Tim really went out of his way to make it a special day. On the day of my birthday he woke up early and made a big breakfast and let me sleep until 7! Sleeping until 7 is amazing when you have three kids 2 and under. When Sofia and I walked out into the kitchen she said, "Whoa" and ran to her seat at the table. Tim had to work on my birthday but I had a wonderful day with the kids. We went to the YMCA and I took Sofia swimming and worked on somersaults with her. Then we all went for a bike ride to the park. When Tim came home we took the family out to dinner and we successfully ate out as a family of five! We are learning that we can eat out with the kids as long as we time it right and are well prepared. We came home and put candles in the fruit tart that Tim got me. Tim sang "Happy Birthday" and our three beautiful children just watched and smiled. It was such a sweet moment with our little family. Sofia was so excited during the entire birthday cake/singing/blowing out candles ordeal. She likes to give play by play descriptions of what is happening. "Mama is eating birthday cake", "Mama blows out candles", etc. It's adorable. Then we gave the kids a bath, read books and put them to bed. Normally we clean like crazy after putting the kids to bed. But on my birthday Tim told me to sit down, put my feet up, and he brought me a glass of wine. It was so relaxing!! The only present I wanted was to have my road bike tuned up which Tim did. I also wanted a light so I could go on early morning rides with other members of the Ozaukee Triathlon club that I joined. The only thing I need to do is get one of my wheels trued and I should be ready to roll! The first triathlon I'll be doing this season is a team triathlon with two of my friends from MOPs.

The other great present Tim gave me was a day all to myself. On Friday I left the house around 8am and went out for a coffee, spent an hour in a bookshop and bought some new clothes. I have spent the last 3 years pregnant or in between pregnant so it was nice to buy some clothes that actually fit and aren't 10 years old. Normally I don't like going shopping because I'm not happy with the way things fit etc but I've been working out a lot and it was so fun to have to go down a size and like the way things fit. I managed to get 5 new tops and new pair of pants for $99.73. Just under my allotted budget of $100 that had been given to me by my parents as a birthday present. Tim's parents also gave me some birthday money and like the nerd I am I ordered some new parenting books. This past weekend one of my best friends that I've known since middle school came over with her fiance. They spent the night so we were able to hang out and play cards after putting the kids to bed. I'm also excited because I was asked to be in their wedding!! I can't wait. So all in all, I had an absolutely wonderful birthday week. I feel so blessed to have such an amazing little family.

The boys getting ready to sing "Happy Birthday"

My cake!

It was delicious!!

My friend Steph feeding Sully

Brad feeding Everett

They LOVE bath time!

Everett seriously does laps around the tub while Sullivan plays with whatever floats his way.

The itch

Lately, Tim and I have started to feel the "itch".  The itch to travel, move and explore new places. This itch becomes a little harder to scratch with three little ones. We are having a hard time deciphering if this is just an itch for a trip or to actually move and explore new places. I know people think we are crazy, we haven't even been in Wisconsin for a year yet. Besides the fact that Tim has to work every Saturday we are quite pleased with our current living situation. Although our families aren't as close as we'd like, we still see them fairly often. It is so beautiful to see the relationships develop between our children and their grandparents, aunts and uncles. And Tim and I have been blessed with so much help and support with our families during what has been a very challenging year with so many new variables thrown into the mix. Our families are constantly helping us with house projects and taking care of the kids so Tim and I can get out on our own.

I think weather is another big contributor to our "itch". We were lucky that Wisconsin had a really mild winter but spring has been really unpredictable so far.  But sometimes we both just yearn for warm weather year round, but not unbearably hot summers like what we had in Memphis. I like weather that allows you to run outside in shorts and a long sleeve shirt year round. Tim and I both love outdoor activities and sometimes it gets really frustrating not being able to enjoy the things we love most because of the weather. I think we would enjoy a climate like Northern California or parts of the Southwest. We've also thought it would be fun to pick up the family and live in another country for a year. This is a little more complicated because of Tim's optometry license and owning a house etc but it's fun to think about. If we didn't have kids we would've moved out west after Tim graduated but family has always been very important and a major priority for us.

We have always thought that we need to be more permanently settled by the time Sofia turns 4 so she can start school with the kids she will grow up with. If we end up staying where we currently are I know we would be in excellent shape. We live in one of the most gorgeous areas of the state that is known for being a wonderful place to raise a family. Tim has a good job and when I decide to go back to work I know hope I'll be able to find a good job in the area. There are so many family friendly opportunities and activities for kids. We like being within reach of Milwaukee and a major airport yet we get to enjoy the perks of living in a small town. Wisconsin is our home, Tim and I were raised here and for the most part we agree with what the state has stood for. If you follow politics you'll know that Wisconsin has faced some major changes in the past year. Anyways, it's hard to know which way to go. Staying in Wisconsin would be great, very comfortable and close to family. But Tim and I love to stretch and challenge ourselves and we actually really enjoy getting to know new cities. Although it can be tough not being able to keep the same set of friends when you move around a lot. We'll see what the next year brings for our family.