the Projector

Grace likes to snuggle with Eden in the morning when we let her.

Thanksgiving

ONE OF THE MANY BLESSINGS OF THANKSGIVING!

Blogging Blues

I've decided it's a good thing I'm not a journalist. I would probably be fired. We've been busy and I haven't been motivated to write. Rustin has been at his new job of hauling combines/tractors for Amundson Peterson in Benson for a month now. He likes it best when he's in the truck. I like his hours ALOT better. And he is gone overnight very little. The girls and I vacationed in IL for two weeks in October. It was a lot of fun and unrushed, but of course I took no good pictures. Greg and Mary and fam came up the other weekend. Wii had a lot of fun playing Rustin's new Monopoly game. The only px I took was of the kids in the tub. As you can see Eden was not impressed. Soon after it was taken Grace tried to pawn her off on Max. Eden's bathtime was done:)

Starting January 1 I won't be working any more. I am excited to spend more time at home with the girls but am also a little nervous how the winter will go. I have never not worked! The girls are interacting more each day. Usually it is short-lived with Eden crying and Grace in timeout but I will leave you with a video of our entertainer.

CAN YOU GUESS OUR MOST RECENT NEWS?

3 days to Tremont!!!

August Days

Grandpa and his girls

Grandma and her girls

Wow! I can't believe that Eden is 1 month old already. I also can't believe that my Mom has been gone for 2 weeks. She did so much for us while she was here and we really appreciate it. Thanks, Mom! She and Grace read ALOT of books. Grace's favorite one was the 'Grocery Store' book. They read it multiple times a day. Since Mom has left we have only read it twice. Nothing is quite as fun unless it's with Grandma. We also froze corn and peaches while Mom was here. One night it stormed through the night so the next day, the three of us picked up sticks in our yard and our neighbors' yards. I don't think my house has ever been so clean, (and probably won't until the next kid:))

The day Mom and Dad were leaving Grace happened to be spinning around in church. She went to her dad and promptly puked all over him, her, and the assembly floor. I got the cleanup duty and we made a fast exit. Thankfully she wasn't sick, but unfortunately the Koch stomach lives on.

Grace has been riding her bike around alot lately. If we are outside, all she wants to do is go on a bike ride. This works out great for me since I need the exercise. We have also been working on potty training which is going okay:S Feel free to let me know if you have any great advice. I've noticed lately that although it may be hot during the day, the nights are cooling off quite a bit. This saddens me a little that winter is coming. Seasons come and seasons go

Summer Days

Nothing beats Summer days like fresh corn on the cob!


Grace loves feeding Eden, but I'm not sure the feeling is mutual.

Matching dresses that Aunt Jenny made.

So Cute! They wore them to church for Eden's first Sunday and received many complements.

Today we went to the Splash Park in Morris with the Grandmas and the Cousins and Jody. It was a good, hot day for this.

Eden cashed out in Jody's arms.

Tiff and Grace - typical girls sunbathing

Tory Tiff Grace and Luke

My mom is here for another week. We sure are getting spoiled by having her here. It has been so nice though, and much has gotten done. Rustin left for Colorado last night so we are extra thankful that Grandma is here. Reality will hit next week when Grace won't have undevided attention and I won't have a 24 hour nanny!

Eden Rose Schmidgall

Eden Rose
7/26/10 7:58 am
8# 2 oz.
20.5 in.
strawberry blonde/brunette hair

What a stud in scrubs!
The week before the due date we decided to have a C-section due to complications from Grace's birth. It went pretty good besides the fact I couldn't swallow and was having drainage. (Notice the suction tube in my hand.)


We think she looks like Rustin and a little like Grace did.



Grace is such a ham! She loves being a big sister and holding Eden as much as possible.



Grace smothers Eden with kisses quite frequently.

This is my little homie! We skyped my parents and my Dad caught this at the perfect moment. This shows that my girls can have hair at birth!

Life at home has been going slow but well. Rustin has been having short loads and is able to help out. Each day the pain is less and I am looking forward to the next couple of weeks when I can do stairs alot more comfortably. My Mom and Dad are coming up today, and Mom is going to stay for two weeks. This will help out a ton! Life is different with an almost 3 year old and newborn, but hopefully we will all adjust in time.

Sunday School Fun and MattSusan visit

On July 15 Jodi S. and I took our SS class to their hunting club for some food and fun. We did numerous relays, some of which Jodi found on the internet. I thought they were hilarious. We played kick ball, and of course a water balloon "toss." I think Jodi got the wettest at that one. I kicked the ball twice and ran around the bases and decided I better stop before starting labor. The kids got to ride the golf cart around the property, and I think this was the highlight of the day. Rustin, Grace, and Keith came to help with a weinie roast and then we packed up and went home. It was a fun day, but I don't know why anyone would purposely have octuplets.


the girls smothering Grace


the entire class


the boys in an all out water balloon war



This was one of the games Jodi found on the internet. Thankfully Paige and Lauren obliged to be the targets. It was a disgusting but fun time.

Susan and Matt showed up later that evening and this marked the last of our summer visitors before the baby. Friday we went to Alex to find Matt a water bottle and finish getting groceries for church serving. We ate lunch at Culver's which was delish. I take every opportunity to eat there I can because Rustin doesn't care for it. That afternoon and evening I browned 15# of hamburger in the crock-pot for taco salad. This was a first time experience and it actually went pretty smooth. Saturday we went swimming at the Benson Pool with Tommy, Amber, and Kylie. The girls had a blast in the kiddie pool. Grace tried to surf down the slide on her feet but didn't quite make it. I still have an issue with no life preservers at the pool because guess who wanted to be in the big pool all the time, and guess who was watching her while everyone else went on the slides and diving boards :S Saturday evening we ordered in Pizza Hut and crashed. Sunday we arrived to church at 8am and started getting ready for taco salads. Prep was done by the time church started, and I think lunch went pretty smoothly. I am thankful where we are located Grace can run outside and I know she will come back and not get hit by cars. Usually I watch her closer, but I was a little busy on Sunday. One lady at church thought Matt and Susan were a couple. I laughed but I don't think Matt was impressed. In the eve we went to Rustin's parents for supper and 4-wheeler rides. We went to bed early because everyone was a little short on sleep. Susan went with Rustin on his Monday run to Northern IA. I hear she slept a lot of the way. Matt, Grace and I just lazed around home all day. We ate at Buddies for supper. Oh so good!

They left Tuesday morning, and it has been a week of Dr. visits. 2 weeks left!!!

June and July 4th

We have been having many visitors lately, hence less time for blogging. ha ha Michelle came up in the middle of June and Grace (and us) had a blast. Rustin had to work all day Saturday so us girls hung out. We ate at Pizza Ranch for lunch. It has been quite awhile since we've eaten there because we'd almost forgotten about our special 3-D pizza. Half pizza, fourth cheese bread, and fourth dessert pizza. Oh so yummy! Except we ordered pepperoni, green pepper, onion, and mushroom and it came out with alot of mushrooms and aLOT of green and black olives and none of the other ingredients. Maybe next time will be better. Saturday night we just hung out at home. Grace is into matching colors or styles of clothes or pretty much anything, so Sunday she had to wear a teal dress to church because Shell had on a teal top. We went to Rustin's parents for Father's Day. It was nice except Grace was freaked out of the fire crackers. Monday Michelle left for a vacation in Duluth. I'll have to admit I was a little jealous.

The rest of June flew by. I helped at getting the town ready for the 4th celebration. I am very thankful I am pregnant in Mn and not Il this summer. The few days it has gotten hot I get pretty beat. Lots of water!!! Don't worry, this week is my last week of work before #2 comes.

Bob and Jenny came up for the 4th weekend. We hauled the poor people out of bed at 8:30 for the pancake breakfast on Saturday morning after little sleep the night before. For the parade we sat in front of Meadowland which was a bad idea for sun/heat. At least we had an endless supply of drinks. Afterwards we crashed in the AC until later. At 10 we headed out to watch the fireworks. Grace sat in her car seat most of the time with her ears covered and a blanket over her. She wanted me to shut the windows but with it still being upper 80's I figured that might not be a good idea. Sunday we went to church and to Rustin's folks afterwards. Grace liked riding the 4-wheeler with Bob the best because he would let her hold down the throttle. On Monday morning Bob and Jenny left for Il. Besides wanting to "match" Jenny all weekend, Grace would go up to Bob, wrap her arms around his legs and say 'My Bob.' She of course made sure Jenny was watching. When we were kids we had a Commodore 64 for a computer. Some of our favorite games were Pipeline and Ugh-lympics. Bob found a website with these games on it, so we spent some time playing from our past. The only downside is the keyboard is a lot harder to catch the hang of than the joycestick we used to have. Such problems!!

the only px I have of the last 3 weeks. Grace in the car during fire works

After Bob and Jenny left we went shopping in Alex and met Keith and Lois for counseling:) and supper. We hadn't chatted with them in a LONG time so it was very refreshing. Next week Susan and Matt are coming up for a while, so we are excited about that. I'm guessing that will be the end of visitors until the baby comes. Hopefully August 3rd still!

Serenity Lake

What great family shots. Thank goodness for the tripod and double px take on the self timer. For the complete show go to my Photo Gallery.

I had a great time in Wisconsin. It was the most relaxing vacation I've ever taken with the least amount of traveling and the least amount of things to see and do. I anticipated getting more reading done but forgot what it's like having a 2 year old around. The weather was almost perfect with having only one full day of rain. We all went stir crazy that day except for maybe Bob and Matt. They did their best to master the Wii game Tanks. One day Susan, Jenny, and I took a walk and realized the ticks were thick. We had to do thorough body checks when we got back so that put a damper on walks. I think we were still finding ticks around the cabin and vehicles days later. Dad rented two canoes so there was much time spent on the lake. The lake itself was black due to the pine needles in it. It was extremely cold so the only swimming we did was in the hot tub. Grace loved this. We used our new fry daddy on cheese curds, onion rings and of course fish. The fishing rules were very strict so we mainly only ate 4-6" bluegill. They were still tasty, just small. I didn't get any px, but there was a momma duck with 8-10 ducklings that waddled through our camp quite often. Grace loved this. After the lake we went to Baraboo for a night. We toured the Ringling Bros. circus where they stayed over winter. It was a great place for kids. We were disappointed to find out our motel only had an outdoor pool that I think was colder than the lake, so once again no swimming for Grace. On our way home we stayed a night in the Cities at a Holiday Inn. Grace got to go swimming twice so I think this appeased her. It was all she could talk about. This week has been back to work and trying to catch up. Only a few minutes for blogging!

Graceless

Wow! This is called service. Where else can you go 600 miles and get a free car wash without asking? I believe Grace was the first one to get wet by Grandma of all people. Good thing it was a hot day. Grace Susan and I had a water balloon 'toss' afterwards. Grace was scared of them at first because she thought they were fireworks. I think 4th of July won't be very fun for us this year. Grace travelled the best she has yet to Grandma and Grandpa's only asking 900,000 times if we were at Bapa Koch's house yet. Saturday night we had supper at Bob and Jenny's. It was delish, especially the volcano cake. After was Susan's testimony. One memorable question was how Susan typically made friends. She answered: by showing off. I inwardly chuckled, and groaned later on when Grace was the main attraction of the young group that night at lunch call at my parents. Maybe I made friends the same way when younger:S I choose to forget certain parts of my childhood and some of it is reliving through my daughter. Monday morning we left at 5am (and in IL it is not light yet at 5am.) I was pretty tired but got voted for first shift driving. Grace got to stay at Grandma and Grandpa's all week. I think they all forgot what it is like to have a 2 year old around, but I know she is having a blast. Every time I call she has little interest in talking on the phone especially if she is going to be around Jessie soon. Rustin left Monday night for Colorado and didn't get back until Thursday night. Let's just say I was ready to see a human being in the house. I worked for the city all week so was able to stay busy. Today I have been running errands and packing and getting the house ready for when we go on vacation next week. I'm excited to see my little peanut and my family of course.

I have to share a revelation I had the other day. I was mowing at one of the parks and came upon a bird nest that had fallen from the picnic shelter rafters. One of the baby birds was dead and the other looked and sounded like it was going to die soon. At first I mowed farther away from the shelter, but when I came nearer I noticed the mother was laying on top of the dying bird sheltering it from harm and showing it she cared. It just hit me that no matter what race or species, a Mother's love is universal. Maybe I was missing Grace or maybe I'm just plain weird but this experience even brought a tear to my eye. A few minutes after, a bunch of kids came over and were looking at the bird, so I never saw the Mom again and don't know what they did to the bird. Not every day I have revelations on the lawn mower. I do find it is a good prayer time!

Sunday Afternoon 'Drive'

We took a Sunday afternoon boat ride on Minnewaska with my co-worker Stef and her family in their new boat. Grace wanted to drive it.



It was a little windy on the lake, but perfect temperature.



After grilling hotdogs and hamburgers the kids played on the beach and around and in the boat. During the ride they all fell asleep except for Grace, who slept on the way over.

Grace pretty much stayed on the beach since A: the water is still freezing cold, and B: she fell off a rock and face-planted in the water. She was not real impressed with that, but I was thankful she had on her life jacket. I'm hoping she remembers this experience in a couple weeks when we to the lake in Wisconsin. It seems she has no fear of water, but this might have broke that!

This week has been in the 80's and I'm loving it. It's so nice to feel some summer weather. Tomorrow we head to IL for Susan's baptisms and Memorial Day weekend. I'm ready for some R&R!

Is it April or May?

We definitely were spoiled in April with nice 60 degree days. So far May has been dreary, cold, and rainy. That's life, so I'll quit complaining:( I have 3 months to go until baby #2 arrives. I find I am more tired and more whimpy with this one. Grace is excited about "her" baby coming. It will be interesting to see how she interacts with him/her.

Mom and Dad came up the last weekend in April. Unfortunately Grace was sick with fever and flu all weekend. You know that Grace is sick when all she wants to do is sit on your lap and snuggle. Poor thing. One of the blessings of daycare! It was rainy most of the weekend so we sat around and relaxed alot. One great thing about when my Mom is here is that the dishes get done after each meal! I can't say that happens all the time otherwise. They left Sunday night and the next day I got a fever and pounding headache. I layed around for 2 days and popped tylenol. It was bad enough that I sent Grace to daycare for a little peace and quiet.

Thankfully we are all healthy and looking forward to some warm weather. This Friday is the Hancock City-wide garage sales and we are doing one with Brent and Susie Wulf. I am ready to unload my junk! Hoping for no rain:)

We are anticipating Susan's baptism on Memorial Day Weekend and then a week later going to Wisc. with the family for a week on the lake. We'll see if our family can handle the outback!

Mid-April Madness

So I've been feeling a little guilty that all I do is check blogs and don't update mine. I feel like my updates are boring and I am not a good picture taker, but I'll try and catch you up.

Busy would be the best way to describe us right now. 2 weeks ago the City called to see if I would work Monday and Tuesdays until summer. During the summer I plan to work 4 days for them, so it will be a little less hectic to just have one job. The thing is, when it's nice I love working for the city and can hardly turn them down. I've decided that being pregnant really slows a person down. Oh well, it's probably good for me. Rustin's loads have been steady so that's a good thing. Last week he went to Colorado. He had to take two-lane out there because of bio-security. That was somewhat annoying, but you gotta do what the farmer says. His bonding day with Grace is Saturday if I have to work. We have had amazingly warm weather lately so they spend alot of time tinkering in the garage or taking 4 wheeler rides. She loves 4 wheeler rides. She has a little one of her own, but for some reason the knack of steering hasn't set in yet. Grace loves to be outside playing, but if we are inside she entertains herself by reading books outloud or dancing to the piano, or messing with play-doh. She also has a doll that she yells at. Sometimes I hear sayings to that doll that I think I've said to her:S

Sundays are somewhat of a challenge because we have a very active, loud daughter. I teach Sunday School in the morning so Rustin has her most mornings. There isn't really a baby-room to take her so sometimes they have to visit the car for 'gentle' reminders. Everyone tells us they don't care and love having her around so I guess I have to get over my own complex. She really is a joy and some of the things that come out of her mouth are down right hilarious. The other day she told a group of ladies she was three. I didn't even know that she knew that 3 came after 2. I guess she's practicing for November.

Sunday eve. we went to Russ and Beth Koehl's for pizza and the evening. Dawn and JR and Mike and Carmen R. were up for a visit. It was so good to see Tremont folk. The highlight of the night was Beth calling her girls Pekin kids when they imerged from the sandbox. I could've taken offence being one myself, but rather found it amusing. Many laughs and a few squabbles constituted a nice evening. Grace thought she was queen-bee being pulled around in the wagon all night, but didn't like to be told that she had to take her turn in pushing. I of course forgot my camera but I'm sure Beth and/or Carmen will have some on their blogs.

On Friday my parents are coming for the weekend. We are anticipating a nice time with hopefully the nice weather!!!

I'm back...at least for now

Well in case you were wondering, the month of February is over so hibernation is officially done. I honestly think the the shortest month of the year is the longest one. One thing Grace and I have done this winter to pass our time is go to Nancy Wulf's for quilting on Tuesdays. Grace plays with Kara's kids and Kara, Susie, and I have been knotting comforters for overseas. Then after supper we have been battling out Monopoly Deal. If you haven't played this game I would recommend it, even if you hate Monopoly.
We have had a straight week of rain so the snow is definitely melting. Now we are back to a lake in the backyard. Oh well atleast Spring is in the air!!!
We made a trip to Illinois at the end of February. It was nice since we hadn't been back since Thanksgiving.
Here's a few px from the month.


Grace and Kylie at a calm moment.


Grace has discovered she loves puddles. Good thing for frog boots.

I can't believe Grace and Abbi would sit in the car together without fighting.

Meadowland is branching out to Morris, so we have been busy with stocking that store. Grand opening is next Friday and we are excited.

Happy Birthday to me

28 years ago my Dad and Mom struggled up the icy road, calling neigbors and uncle for help, so they could safely arrive at the hospital and have their firstborn child. It kind of reminds me of the weather we are having right now. Thank goodness for front-wheel drive and 4wheel drive technology.

Also...we are expecting #2 in early August. Maybe on Grandpa Koch's Aug. 6 birthday! Grace is excited as a 2 year old gets. We are excited for some competition for her!

Our little ballerina

It has been a couple of weeks since the last update, so I guess it's time again.

Rustin got snowed in at Sioux Falls for two days and two nights, one of them happening to be our 3rd anniversary. So Grace and I had a romantic evening at home :) We celebrated a day later by eating out at Bella Cocina. I can hardly believe we are already on our 3rd year.

Last Thursday Susan and Erica came up to visit. They helped a little at the store and then we made homemade pizza for supper. Things just weren't mixing, cooking right so it was more a midnight snack. On Friday we lazed around until Rustin got home from his pig run and then we headed to the Cities. Grace talked all day about going swimming, she even wanted to wear her suit around the house. I decided it was too cold for that. We arrived in time for a stuffing Perkins supper and then we swam for a couple of hours. She loved it and I was glad to work off some supper.

On Saturday we met the UofI/ISU young groups at a tubing hill in Eagan, MN. Grace was reluctant after her first time down, but soon she was heading down by herself in a tube. Where was her mother? I think I was warming up inside. When I first heard it I freaked out, but then I stood at the bottom and realized she did fine. We went to the Mall of America in the afternoon for an hour and then headed back to church for a Mexican Fiesta. Great Food!!! We sang in Spanish and then went to the Dill's for the evening. Grace loved playing with their dog, Nan. She did get a little upset when she claims she dropped her apple (but we think she did it on purpose) and Nan took off with it. Thankfully there was popcorn readily available for Grace to feed Nan. We spent the night at Duane and Bonnie Rocke's and Grace slept great once she got there. We have been having sleeping issues lately.

On Sunday after we said our good-byes we stopped a few places and headed home. We were exhausted when we got there so we all went to bed. What a great weekend!

And now for the post title. I don't think she's my daughter. I don't have those moves!

New Year Visitors

Grace and Maria


The week between Christmas and New Year's went by really fast. We finished up Christmases, and Michelle came up on Tuesday. Grace likes it when 'Chelle' comes. We went shopping all day Wednesday. I'm pretty sure Grace was sick of shopping by the end of the day. Thursday I had to work all day so Michelle went to visit cousin Amber. We went to New Year's service in the evening and stayed up till 2:30 talking. We had a few people over, but they left at 1:30. I don't know what I was thinking because going to bed at 2:30 and waking up at 8 don't go well for me. Tom, Dale, Meg, and Maria arrived at 12:30. Grace immediately took a liking to 'Ria' and was very aware of where she was at all times. Over the course of the day we played many games of Euchre and Monopoly Deal. I realized if we are ever a family of 8 a dish-washer will be a must. As you can see in the video we put together our little jumper thing. Grace likes it better now than at 6 mos. While Maria was in it was the only time Grace was fussing around.

We went to the store and to Rustin's truck on Saturday morning. The guys decided it was a good thing they didn't go ice-fishing this weekend since it was -teens the entire time. They'll have to come up some warm winter:) They left Saturday after lunch to head back to the Cities, and the rest of us crashed for the afternoon. We ate Pizza Hut that night and watched the annual classic 'Christmas Vacation.' Michelle left Sunday morning to pick the Koch's up in the Cities and we are now visitorless for a week. We hardly know what to do with ourselves. I guess laundry keeps calling my name! We are looking forward to Susan coming up next week.