goodbye 2010...hello 2011

Sounds kind of the like the Target commercial...hello, hello, hello, hellooooo! I know that you just sang the jingle in your head just like I did :)

Are you ready for the NEW YEAR?! Holy smokes, I know that the MN weather is really snowy and slushy, and it would be *really* nice to be somewhere warm and sunny with a cold iced drink w/ a little umbrella in it! Think warm thoughts! Only 3 (or so) more months of this uck and then yay! for spring weather! I'm already looking forward to painted toenails, tank tops and bermuda shorts!!!

As I look back and reflect on 2010:
***I am proud to be a mama to a very special little boy who warms my heart inside out and upside down
***thankful
***surrounded by family & friends - your love and support is simply amazing
***I discovered that its OK to take a time out and slow down and enjoy the moment

Some (not all) of my personal goals for 2011 are:
Eat clean every.single.day
Watch less TV
Promote a contagious positive energy to others
Grow + donate my hair to locks of love (this will be a year+ goal and I'm ok w/that)
Make more time for me
Run a 1/2 marathon
Blog more

There, I did it - made them public! Whew. Glad that is over :)

Are you setting yourself some SMART goals this year? I've found that taking time to write down where I want to be and when I want to be there has really helped me provide a road map to guide me to get there. And...that knowledge is power!

Happy NYE, everyone! All the best in 2011!

merry merry 2010!

What a Christmas! Parker loved opening his gifts. He piled them all up and after opening one would say..."hey Grammy, do you want to open one...or should I open one more?" So cute! He loved every minute of it!!!

Bionicles!

Raffie puzzle for Auntie Kels!

A new robe + pausing for a photo w/ mama!

iPod docking station!

Baseball YO-YO!

New outfit from GK!

We're home, still putting things away, and getting BACK into the swing of things. What a great way to spend the season with family and those we love.

Cheers to you and yours for a fabulous 2011!!!

3 days till christmas

Whoa...where did the time go? Parker kindly reminded me this morning "mommy, only 3 more days till Christmas". After I heard him say that I thought to myself, OH CRAP, have I crossed everything off my list? is all of my shopping done? what am I forgetting?

I missed the annual phone call from my dad this week where he says "hey Ab, I need you to go to such and such place and pick up such and such gift for such and such person". We actually got AHEAD of the game this year and did our shopping early! So, in the spirit of the season, I picked up the phone and called him this morning just to double check and make sure he really didn't need me to do any shopping for him :)

I was reminded in my conversation this morning w/ my dad that I am supported. loved. thankful. grounded.happy.healthy. I love that my dad is so laid back, easy going, and low-maintenance. I love that my mom is caring, full of love, and always has open arms for a hug. Through all of the "stuff" I've been through (and going through now) both of them just LISTEN. Love that about them!

We're gearing up for the trek to spend the holidays w/ family and couldn't be more excited to see GK+BB and Grammy + Papa!!!

holly ball 2010

Had a blast at Holly Ball! And am SO proud of myself - not one glass of champagne, wine or beer! H20 was my friend :)

Oh - yes, and to fill you in: I've given up alcohol. All forms of it. :( Sad, but it's what I need to stay on track with my health/fitness goals! That and many other things I've sacrificed for this journey.

Enjoy the the pics!

The night was full of glitz and glam - thanks Julie for having me as your date :)

happy WINTER :)

Yes, I know its been ages since I've blogged. Sometimes...life just gets crazy and other more important things get in the way. Thanks for understanding (for those of you who check and still see that summer post up and NO update since then sorry!). With that said...I'm back!

Brrrr, it's cold outside! It's quite a change to have to bundle up mister man every morning. We're getting in to the "habit" of hats/gloves. Man, are all 5 year olds that stubborn or is it just mine?!

Anywho...been busy working on our Christmas card. Had the one below all ready to go (mind you - I spent a good 2 hours designing it), uploaded to Walgreens, went to pickup and come to find out they converted my file and it was REALLY poor quality. Thanks, Walgreens for stealing my thunder. Back to the drawing board. If you're fortunate to be on our list of recipients, look for yours to arrive sometime early next week :)

I'm going to Holly Ball this weekend with my girlfriend, Julie. I scored a cute LBD on clearence (love that!) at JCPennys last week that I'm looking forward to getting decked out in!

In other news, Parker's first report card came home & he is doing FABULOUS as a Kindergarten student! I'm so proud of him and his accomplishments. We need to work on listening/following directions + making good choices w/ freetime. Other than that, he had all "M's" (MASTERS) for the most part and is really excelling with his learning. Watch out next year, first grade!

One more thing, I've completely fallen in love with + adapted to a new healthier lifestyle. Tosca Reno is my hero. Stay tuned, I cannot WAIT to share my success with you!

We're very much looking forward to next week - well I am anyways! Santa has some wrapping to do...and a dolphin pillow pet to locate yet for a very special little boy.

Happy December!

A

summer!

We've been soaking up the summer sun! Parker loves his days at KIDSTOP and is really getting into the routine. He also started baseball...and kindly reminded me that the only thing he was missing from his outfit was the helmet + cleats :)

pre-school graduation

It's SO hard to believe that Parker is officially done with pre-school! There was a graduation ceremony tonight at New Horizons - caps, gowns, pomp & circumstance, programs, a slide show, songs and the whole 9 yards. It was FABULOUS!

Kels was on camera duty so I'll post pictures after I receive them. (ps - she is SO much better at 1-blogging and 2-pictures. that secretly makes me jealous).

We are truly going to miss the wonderful staff and friends. They have all stamped memories on our hearts that will last forever. Feeling so very thankful for Parker to have been surrounded with teachers that not only "teach" but also love and care so very much. There was...needless to say, tears of joy and sadness sreaming down my cheeks during the ceremony. So many emotions. Such a great last 5 years and a wonderful chapter in our lives.

We are already planning play dates this summer with Tommy + Olivia = Parker's BFF's. They too, will be a missing part of his day. But my wish for them is that they stay friends even though they are going separate ways to attend grade school. As I reflect on the future - I think about how cool it would be for the 3 of them to still be friends when they graduate high school. They would be able to say "we've known each other since we were 6 weeks old". Very special. I am going to make it a priority to keep those muskateers together :)

After the diplomas were received, football played on the playground, cupcakes + photos we went to DQ for a little treat. Yum - that ice cream tasted really good. The first cone that mom, dad, Kels, Parker and I enjoyed outside together. The only thing we were mising was Graham, Bodde and Berkley :)

I am so very thankful today for such a supporting, loving family. That word "family" has taken on such a new meaning now that I am a mom. Its so much more than I ever imagined. To my family (you know who you are) = THANK YOU.

5k

Did it! It felt GREAT. My offical time as 37:06. So proud of crossing the finish line. Parker was there to cheer me on :) Here are my results. My head looks funny in this photo.

It was so "different" running outside and having all of the people. There were approx. 1200 runners on the day. The encouragement and noise definately helped. The first part of the race was the most difficult for me - hill right off the bat. I only ended up walking up the hill, and then a stretch on the backside of the river. It felt pretty darn good.

There are a few races coming up in the area the next few months that I am going to sign up for. This running thing has me hooked!

My goal for next year on the Earth Day 5k is to run it in under 30 minutes. I surpassed my goal this year to finish under 40 min. Now the next year I just need to work on my SPEED.

Happy 5th Birthday Parker!

Enjoy your day, buddy - love you lots and lots!

~Mommy

3.1 feels so good!

Today was the day - I ran 3.1 miles! Totally going to feel it tomorrow :) But, what a great accomplishment!!! I will be sending in my registration for the Earth Day 5K at SCSU on 4/16...once it is mailed there is no turning back!

Parker and I had a "home" day that consisted of: trip to the gym, laundry, grocery shopping, games of Connect 4, making brownies, and jamming to some good tunes while picking up the house. I am beginning to enjoy weekends that have no real 'plan'...

The first payment for Kindergarten is due on Friday -- eek! It will be here before we know it. Parker reminded me again today that the thing he is most looking forward to is riding the bus. We were snuggling up in his bed reading some books tonight and having a conversation about our day. He read me 'Big Dog, Little Dog' from cover to cover. La, La, little dog. Big D-d-dog. He's recoginizing all of those letters and speaking the sounds they make. I have a feeling he will be quite the little reader. He DEFINATELY does not get that from his mama.

Daylight savings time, why must you take that precious hour of sleep from me?

28

minutes. 28. thats how many I ran tonight at the gym. it was incredibly painful. the last 4 were excruciating. total of 2.8 miles. i'm inching my way the 5k mark and it feels GREAT!

happy 1st day of march :)

Well...here we are, first day of March. I love thinking about warmer days ahead.

Parker is wonderful. I pulled out an old hat trick tonight on an infected finger of his: bread + milk. I was a terrible nail biter when I was little. My dad used to hook me up with one of his "remidies" of this sort. And the next morning those tender fingers would be all better. I guess its something with the yeast drawing out the infection. Anyways, dad - you'd be proud of me. Even though Grandma Esther doesn't remember this (it really is one of those things that will stay in our family)...she tought you well!

So about a month ago someone posted a REALLY annoying comment on my blog. Anonymous to boot. Just want to clear the air on this incident, becasue it really has not sat well with me. So, Anonymous person, this is for you:

• Notice the title of my blog? It says: Abby + Parker, pretty sure that means this is not JUST a blog about Parker.
• Notice that it is now a requirement to publish your name with a comment? Thanks for ruining it for everyone.
• Notice how this is a PUBLIC blog and I can post whatever, whenever I want to?
• Notice that you have a choice on whether or not you want to read what I post about. This is America, after all, a free contry to do whatever we please. I'm pretty sure the last time I checked I didn't need anyone's permission about what this blog consists of.
• Notice that I am really bitter about this whole thing?

So for what it's worth, I feel better after getting that off my chest.

Ok - moving on. I'm feeling a bit better, but not 100%.

Went to the dentist this afternoon - found out that I have 2 cavities, 2 wisdom teeth that need removing, and an implant that my dentist HIGHLY recommended I start saving up for. Ouch. On a brighter note, my teeth feel sparkly. I love that "clean" feeling I have when I leave the chair.

For all you Bachelor fans out there -- did anyone other than Jake like Vienna? Sheesh...

GK - hope your honeymoon is wonderful. So jealous you are where it is warm! Glad you are safe from the scares of the tsunami (had to look up the spelling of this word an read up on what this acually is...thanks for the history lesson, you 2 :])

Its late, the morning will be here before I know it. And the pitter patter of Parker's piggies will start my day off with smiles, as always!

Week 8

What was supposed to be week 8 turned out to be a "maintain" week...I got the wind knocked out of me with a terrible cold. Talk about being run down, literally. But, I persisted and still made it to the gym 3x this week. Monday I'll get back on track :)

I love that the snow is melting today. And, these just make me happy!

Week 5 wrap-up + Eli's turns 1!!!

I finished up the week by running for a to total of 20 minutes (no rest, no walking)! It. felt. great. Week 5 done, onto week 6.

Look at how big my little boy is getting :)

We got to celebrate my godson Eli's 1st birthday this weekend! The kiddos had a blast. And needless to say...the cake was a hit with the birthday boy :)

Anonymous comment...

person of said posted comment below, please reveal yourself...

Anonymous said...
We don't wanna read about you. We want to read about Parker Boy!

Week 5

Let me just start by saying this has been one TOUGH trainig week. Here's what my schedule has consisted of...

Workout 1:
Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then:
• Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
• Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
• Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
• Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
• Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
*** DONE ***

Workout 2:
Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then:
• Jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes)
• Walk 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
• Jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes)
***DONE***
side note: it was brutal to run 8 minutes at a time

Workout 3:
Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog two miles (or 20 minutes) with no walking.
***not looking forward to this tonight!***

Hard to belive tha 5 weeks ago I could hardly even run 90 seconds!

Modeling Audition

Parker has been selected for an audition tomrrow morning for Starkey Hearing Aids - wish him luck!

Week 4 progress + Parker update: Kindergarten Round-Up

I'm happy to report that I've completed 2 of the 3 workouts for this week so far. Man, let me tell you running 5 minutes at a time is REALLY TOUGH! But, I managed to get through it :)

I didn't know how much I'd actually "like" training for this sort of thing, but so far it has really defined some key areas in my life: commitment, perseverance , and dedication. It's funny how I never really thought I'd be 'one of those' runners, but sadly...I have turned into one. For all of my fellow runners out there -- you know what I'm talking about!

We attended Kindergarten Round-up on Tuesday evening for Parker. MAN is it hard to get my head around him attending school full time already this fall. He will be attending Pine Meadow Elementary this fall and is *really* excited about it! We got to meet the principal, teachers, nurse, food director, transportation director, and get a tour of the building. And, Parker's favorite part of the whole experience was riding the school bus. He talked the entire time we were on our ride -- and pointed out to me how very fun it is going to be for him when he gets to ride it every day. I'm not certain why it's such a big deal - but think it is awfully cute that he enjoys it so far :)

There are a few more forms (+ the dreaded tuition payment) that need completed before he will be all set. PME offers looping - which essentially means that he would have the same teacher for Kindergarten AND 1st grade. I'm contemplating this decision.

Parker requested the movie: Night at the Museum for our Friday night snuggle party tomorrow -- I'm looking forward to it, as I always do!

Week 4

Here is my training schedule this week:

Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then:
• Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
• Walk 1/4 mile (or 2-1/2 minutes)
• Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
• Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds)
• Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)

Yikes - running for 5 minutes at a time scares me. It frightens me, actaully. One. Step. At. A. Time.

18 workouts/5 more weeks to go :)

Training for 5K...week 3

One of my goals this year is to run a 5K this spring. And, there's no time like the present! Parker and I re-joined Gold's Gym at the end of December and have been *faithful* about getting there 4-5 times during the week. I've started week 3 of my training...only 6 weeks left to go. It's pretty neat to think after tomorrow I'll be 1/3 of the way finished.

This week the schedule is:
Run 90 seconds
Walk 90 seconds
Run 3 minutes
Walk 3 minutes
REPEAT 2X

So far so good - I have to admit, I actually LIKE going to the gym and look FORWARD to it at the end of the day. It keeps me motivated.

Parker loves spending time at the Kids Club.

Last night I took the step class and wound up sweating like a pig. Loved it. What is it about sweat? I think its the sense of accomplishment that I enjoy the most :)