Sandwich anyone?

I need your advice...Cate can be a picky eater (shocking, I know!). Knowing she eats her packed lunch from home has been hit or miss. For the past three days, she has brought home the leftover sandwich with only two or three barely recognizable nibbles out of it. I also pack either applesauce (the only "fruit" she will eat) or vanilla yogurt (the only flavor she will eat) and occasionally one other thing, such at pretzels or cookies.

I make sure she helps make the decision of what goes into her lunch and ask her to promise she will eat everything. As you can imagine, the pretzels or cookies always get eaten and I presume the applesauce or yogurt are fairly well taken care of. Since the pretzels and cookies are always eaten, but the sandwich is not, I have taken those out for now. So she is left with two things for her lunch.

I also occasionally send her Spaghettios and meatballs which she does a pretty good job eating. I sent her Lunchables a couple of times and that was an absolute disaster. And I'm not sure she would find anything she would like to eat from the cafeteria selections.

So...do you have any advice for how I can get her to eat the right things I pack in her lunch? Do you / did you have trouble with your kids eating their lunch at school?

Max is a surfer dude no longer...

Generally, I don't care for little boys with long hair. But Max wore it so well. It showed off his summer blond locks nicely and when it's longer, he still has a bit of curl left.

Saturday, Kyle took him to get his hair cut. Here's his before and after. The after was taken this morning. I had nothing to do with it. All credit can be given to Kyle.

And yes, Kyle did use real product in his hair...sheesh!

100 Ramblings on the 100th Post

This is post #100. I started my blog back in January. I wondered if I would even get past February. Inspired by a random blogger I happened across one day, I think I'll take the exercise in jotting down 100 random thoughts. It's something different and who knows, you might learn something interesting about me...

1. My middle name is Ellen
2. I married at age 22
3. I have 2 kids
4. I would like to have another one (or two)
5. But we aren't going to have any more
6. Sometimes that bothers me
7. Sometimes it doesn't
8. Max's new haircut makes him look like a big boy
9. Cate is an incredible little girl
10. I expect a lot from her
11. Sometimes I wonder if I'm too strict
12. I had a massage today
13. I can't wait to have another one
14. My birthday is October 28
15. I LOVE my birthday
16. I almost didn't date Kyle b/c I thought he had a big nose
17. I was 17 at the time
18. I really admire his self-confidence
19. He's an excellent father
20. He makes me want to be an excellent mother
21. I really like my walks to/from school with Cate
22. I love watching golf on TV
23. I wish I would make more time to play golf
24. I should use a babysitter more often
25. I married Kyle because I knew he would be an excellent husband
26. I didn't want to have any children
27. I am not currently motivated to get back to my goal weight
28. I still see myself as I looked over 40 pounds ago
29. I really want a motorcycle
30. I don't think I can wait until my mid-life crisis to get one
31. I hope my dad will sell me his motorcycle someday
32. It bothers me that Kyle doesn't want me to have a motorcycle
33. I hope I didn't bite off more than I can chew with church activities
34. I kind of want to run another 5K
35. I actually read two books this year
36. I do not enjoy reading
37. I am a horrible housekeeper
38. I wish I could hire someone to clean my house
39. It's a rambler
40. I invite people over just to force myself to clean my house
41. I wouldn't answer the door if someone just dropped by
42. I enjoy cooking
43. I follow the recipes to a tee
44. I will never make up something on my own
45. I admire people who can cook like that
46. My favorite color is green
47. Sometimes I wear head-to-toe black just to tease Cate
48. And because I feel skinnier in black
49. I love my naps
50. I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up
51. I worry whether I will ever be able to retire
52. Yet I still spend money
53. And don't save nearly enough
54. I suck at finances
55. Which makes me laugh given my six years of business analyst work
56. I sometimes think about getting my MBA
57. But I don't think I would get anywhere with it
58. I would never be a stay at home mom
59. I think that is the hardest job ever
60. I have no idea how women do it
61. I wish Kyle would stay home with the kids
62. I wonder when my parents will be unable to watch the kids
63. I worry about my Aunt Lola
64. I wonder if she'll be here this time next year
65. I worry that Obama will not win the election for the wrong reasons
66. I am a fair-weather Vikings fan
67. I love watching NFL football
68. I wish I had cable TV
69. But then I would watch way too much TV
70. I would like to sell my elliptical machine
71. I would like to get a gym membership
72. My dream vacation is a Scandinavian cruise
73. I have no idea when I'll take that vacation
74. I was president of my class in 5th grade
75. I went to state in speech
76. I sucked at tennis
77. I would like to take lessons
78. I stayed in track my freshman year so I wouldn't have to pay my brother for the $100 shoes
79. I had crushes on lots of boys
80. I know that Cate will be the same way
81. I can't wait for my kids to become adults
82. I love my adult relationship with my parents
83. I have no idea what I will do if/when my mom dies
84. I always think: "what would Mom think of this?"
85. I enjoy scrapbooking
86. I started Cate's scrapbook when she was born in February, 2003
87. I'm only as far as October, 2003
88. I'm going digital for Max
89. I don't like to cry in public
90. Sometimes at church, I cry
91. I still believe in the sacrament of reconciliation
92. I'm 5' 8-1/4"
93. My mom was 5' 8-1/4"
94. I'm not looking forward to shrinking
95. I love to wear knee length skirts and high heels
96. I don't wear make-up often
97. I think I should wear it more often
98. In grade school I used to put my glasses on the pew during Mass and pray that God would heal my vision and my glasses would disappear
99. People don't believe me when I tell them I'm an introvert
100. I really enjoy looking at the visitor count on my blog.

Ahhh...Spork! Update

Mark this on your calendar, people--
This morning I bought a box of plastic spoons for Cate's school lunches.
I love my daughter.

Ahhh...Spork!

So far, we have been batting 1.000 for packing Cate's lunch for school. It's generally a sandwich, along with yogurt or applesauce and a cookie. She gets her milk and silverware at school.

For whatever reason, Cate really doesn't care for the sporks. Every night she begs to bring a spoon from home. I keep telling her that using a spork is a time-honored tradition in the history of eating lunch at school. In fact, the morning I went with her to the cafeteria to pick up lunch, I got to see the spork in all its "for-commercial-use" glory. I swear the silverware packet is still from the original bulk order shipped circa 1980-something.

Who's the spork dork now?


Got any spork memories you'd like to share?

Another Monday at Home

This is the fourth Monday in a row I am working from home. This past weekend, the colds hit my family. Cate got socked on Friday and was a real trooper making it through the school day. You know she's sick when she asks for Mommy and not Daddy. I got hit Saturday night while on Girls' Weekend, but at least it came on the final evening and didn't disrupt my fabulous time. Then Max fell victim to it yesterday. He sounded so unhappy this morning, I figured that I would stay home with him in case it went to his stomach which has always been the case with Cate. Tomorrow I should be back to 90% and then I'll be ready for Kyle to be sick.

I've got my two laptops set up--one with the VPN access to work and the other for internet access. I am actually productive away from work--go figure. My mom stopped by with homemade chicken noodle soup...yum! She was impressed by the make-shift office atop TV trays in front of the comfy couch.

On another note...
My thoughts have been with my brother Carl and his family living in Houston. While they did not experience any significant damage from hurricane Ike, there will be disruption to the regular day-to-day for a while. They are without power and it is not known at this point when power will be restored. He also doesn't know when he'll be returning to work in Freeport, TX, which is located along the coast of the Gulf. Fortunately, Carl and Claire already had plans to get out of the state for a while and they will be road-tripping it to Santa Fe, perhaps sooner than later.

Girls' Weekend, Here I Come!

Tomorrow evening, I and my best girlfriends from high-school head out on our seventh annual weekend getaway. This evening it occurred to me that Kyle is being left with a lot to do. Cate has swim lessons Saturday morning, a birthday party Saturday evening. He has to try to find someone to watch the kids Sunday morning so he can go to choir practice and sing at Mass.

I can't wait to get away...downtown Saint Paul, here we come!

The Season Opener and Perspective

I missed the season opener for the Vikings against their biggest rival, the Packers. It sounds like it would've been an interesting game to watch, especially during the final two minutes, as is the norm between these two teams. I got updates by someone via Facebook (you know who you are...thanks!) and enjoyed reading them as I started my way to the car after attending an Extraordinary Minister workshop at church.

Generally, I'm not an "evangelizer" of my faith. It's something I just am not comfortable articulating. But I will share this: As the time went by during the workshop, I concerned myself less and less with the game and found myself focusing more and more into the "teaching" Mass. It was as if God's grace showered me and stilled my thoughts for a while. Nothing else mattered for that period of time. Not my sore back, the uncertain condition of my aunt, the thought of going home to over-tired kids, the pressures of the new position at work, the score of a football game. I will remember that feeling of Peace for quite some time and I hope to reflect on it every time I am on the Altar to prepare to distribute the Eucharist at Mass.

It was truly an honor to participate in such a lesson. And I may just be willing to forego watching another sporting event someday to let God grace me again in the way He did this evening.

Squirrels and the Bird Feeder

I'm working from home today and I've got that big bay window that is traditional for a rambler-style home. So I can see the sneaky squirrel climbing up our "squirrel-proof" feeder and clawing seeds out of the feeder and onto the lawn. This time, I caught him hanging upside-down.

Yesterday, a squirrel was clawing up my metal screen kitchen window. Missed the photo-op, though. Next time, my friend. Next time...

Other things from this past week

It's been a while between posts and things have been pretty busy around here.

Monday was our niece Thora Beth Jensen's first birthday party. It was celebrated during a waffle breakfast. She wouldn't even touch the whipped cream on the waffle because she doesn't like to get dirty. I foresee an easy potty-training phase for Kurt and Amy.

Last Tuesday, I attended my first Parish Pastoral Council meeting. I have signed up for a three-year term. Kyle is opting to refer to me as Madam Councilwoman instead of Madam Secretary. Ha!

Wednesday night, Cate enjoyed celebrated her cousin Matthew's 5th birthday by going to the Park at MOA with him. He didn't want to go on any of the rides, so she went on them without him. Afterwards, Matthew's mom hosted a party for him at McDonald's.

Thursday marked Cate's first day of school which was incredibly successful.

Also on Thursday, an announcement was made at work regarding yet another position change for me. I am swapping positions with a counterpart who will take over Email Marketing. Effective immediately, I am now the Manager for Online Programming which oversees the promotional presence and on-site search optimization for our website. I have a team of three which will soon increase to four. I am reporting to a guy I have worked for in a previous position, so I know exactly what to expect in that regard.

Friday night, my back went out while I was hoisting Max into bed by his diaper butt. Fortunately, Kyle hadn't left the house yet, so he helped me out and got the kids to bed.

Saturday, we entertained Kyle's parents and aunt for dinner. It wasn't the most flawless evening in the world. We barely got the house "fake-cleaned"; we hadn't started our food until they arrived; Jane couldn't eat 2/3 of what we prepared; Max played his usual antics of not cooperating at bedtime. After our guests left, I started having back spasms that I was more than willing to exchange for labor pains.

Today we stayed home and watched a lot of NFL at home while eating heartily. I promise to start counting my points again tomorrow.

And here we are, closing out one week and looking forward to another. Hopefully it will slow down soon. But somehow, I doubt it.

Cate's First Day of School

What parent has to wake up their kindergartner on his/her first day of school? Well, I did. But once she finally wiped the sleep from her eyes, she was so excited to get going. I barely could keep her still enough to take the traditional photo in front of the house for the first day of school. As you can see, she forced the smile and wouldn't let me have a re-take. She said through her smiling teeth, "C'mon Mom! I just want to go to school!"

(for the record, she chose her own outfit)

Kyle and Max joined us on our two-and-a-half block walk to school. On our way there Cate told a lady who was walking the opposite direction that it was her first day of school. So we chatted it up a bit and got back to our walk.

Once we got to school, we were greeted by Cate's teacher who remembered her name. I'm always impressed when people can remember names after only one introduction. We helped her hang up her coat, backpack and put her lunch bag with the others. Cate wandered around the classroom and just stopped in the middle of the circle area looking quite overwhelmed. We went over to her, said our good-byes and walked her to her chair where a book was waiting for her.

Most days, after her school day is done, she will go to the after-school program in the same building. Thursday was an after-school program day. I left work early so I could be there in plenty of time. I checked in and Cate was ready to go. We walked out of the building, she grabbed my hand and I asked her how her first day of school went. Her response, "It was GREAT!" which was accompanied with a very enthusiastic thumbs up. I had no problem getting a very chatty report from her all the way home. I don't think I could've had a bigger grin on my face.

(Cate's "Who's Who" Photo for a student handbook project--her first homework assignment)

Clearly not a sports fan

Who, in their right mind, schedules a training on Monday, September 8th at the same time the Minnesota Vikings open their regular season against Green Bay at Packer Stadium? Apparently our pastor does. He's not from around these parts (he's formerly from the Diocese of Arlington), so he just doesn't understand.

Ugh.