Miss Yvette...need I say more?

Home Sweet Home

So we are homeowners once again. And what a wonderful feeling it is. Although the weather and holiday season is not the ideal time to move, we are so so so grateful that we could get in before Christmas. And what a wonderful Christmas it will be.

Yesterday morning we closed. Right away we got to moving. John's parents came to help move and then take the kids back with them. That in itself is a HUGE stress relief....knowing they are safe and happy and NOT in our care (for the moment) is a wonderful gift. Our good friend Kurt helped John haul furniture......in the -10 degree weather. Seriously these men are amazing!!!!! And they did it without complaint....none that I heard anyway.

John and I spent our first night in our house last night. The silence was darn near deafening. We aren't used to it being so quiet. But it was wonderful.

Perhaps I'll get crazy enough to venture far enough away from the house to get a good picture and post it later today...MAYBE. The weather is colder today than yesterday. And considering we are in serious farm country and the wind is strong enough to knock me over, the cold is frigid enough to take my breath away and freeze my nose, well....lets just say MAYBE....IF I'm crazy enough.

Meet My Boy...Hayden...

"Hayden, show me your big dimples. SMILE!"......"NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Meet My Girl.....Yvette

Yvette Mariana Backowski....14 months old. Both These pictures express her character perfectly. ;-)

loving the kitchen...

There is a deep satisfaction that I get when I work in the kitchen and get these kind of results. Easy. Simple. Delicious.

Ode To John

The Father of My Children

The Stealer of My Heart

The Recipient of My Affections

The Keeper of My Joy

The Igniter of My Passions

The Eater of My Cooking

The Hero of My Love Story

The Disrupter of My Sleep

The Subject of My Daydreams

The Fulfiller of My Needs

The Calmer of My Nerves

The Balancer of My Craziness

The Manager of My Remote Control

The Love of My Life
Amen.

Starting again...

This blog has been in existence for 2 years now. However, I have been seriously negligent in posting. So much so that there are absolutely NO posts whatsoever of our 14 month old daughter and her infancy. And we are now on baby #3. Life’s circumstances over the past 2 years have been difficult for us. We miscarried between Hayden and Yvette, lost 2 grandparents, moved 2 times, tragically lost my brother to a car accident, Yvette was born shortly after, etc. Just in the past 3 months has life taken a positive turn for us. A long awaited positive turn. I thought I’d rename the blog, change the layout, and start fresh by regularly posting and including pictures.
Hope you visit often…

August 13, 2008 (meant to be posted...)

Monday night we had torrential rain for about 3 hours. Word has it we acquired about 6-8 inches in that time frame. Crazy, I know. The ditch out front was overflowing. The apartment 2 floors down had 2 inches of standing water in there rooms. Our neighbors/landlords had their basement flood (they just replaced the carpet less than 1 year ago). It was bad. Early on in the storm John had to run to the store to get some diaper cream for Hayden. No problem. Within 20 minutes of him returning, we got Hayden to bed and put a movie in. John looked at me and said, "Beer sounds really great. You want beer?" It didn't make any difference to me. But the weather wasn't exactly peachy for venturing out. But I figured, okay...if he wants to go get it. Less than 10 minutes later John comes in and tells me he needs my help...the car stalled and it needs a push. Great. So we get the car onto high ground across the street and figure it will be dried out in the morning and we'll move it. Not so. To put it simply, the engine is shot. The street was much more flooded than we thought, water rushed through the engine, and it is now unsalvageable. Our $2300 beer run WITHOUT the beer.Lesson learned: don't venture out during a storm when you live in a flood plain

Merry Christmas and Bahh Humbug

If it is possible to be a Christmas moosh AND a grinch at the same time then that would be what I am at this point. Such bittersweet feelings about celebrating Christmas this year. Especially in the way we usually do.....decorating, nativities, cookies, family dinners, gifts, church, games, etc. Doing all this without Steve hardly seems right or fair. For weeks I was insistent that Christmas just come and go. We do the absolute minimal. Until yesterday. I finally forced myself to put up our Christmas tree. And what a beautiful tree it is. The glow of the lights and Christmas carols in the background....watching the kids gaze at the tree.....well, it put me in the mood. And I suddenly realized how much we've missed out because of my bleak attitude towards the holidays this year. Who am I to rob my kids of the joy and festivities that Christmas time brings?! What a poop I've been! And so I resolve today and the next couple of weeks to be joyful, celebrate, and be grateful for the family that IS here...our children, my husband, my parents, Bell, Abby, Megan, Bethany, Emily, my brothers. For the time that I do have with them right now. To make those memories for the children. And to remember Steve as the wonderful and irreplaceable man that he was. I love you and miss your terribly Stephen....

Prayers Needed...

I'm sorry for the delay in getting pictures posted. We have had a hard month. On November 11, I miscarried our (almost) 15wk old baby. Some of you knew I was pregnant but a majority of you did not. We were going to wait to make the announcement at Thanksgiving, but unfortunately he didn't make it that far. These past 4 weeks have been so incredibly draining emotionally and physically. John and I have been showered with support and prayers from family members and close friends. The pain and heartache for both of us is excruciating and unbearable sometimes, but I'm told it will pass in time.
Since both John and I were almost 100% certain that our baby was another boy, we have named him John Stephen after his dad (and grandfather) and his god-father (and uncle).
Please keep us in your prayers if you think of it.

CLASSIC

Day At The Aquarium

Birthday Toys...

We had an absolutely wonderful day today. Hayden slept in a little bit, woke up in a wonderful mood and didn't sleep more than 30 minutes of nap all day, but was completely happy. Mary Jo and Ann came for the day and we went to the Aquarium. Boy did Hayden LOVE that!!!!!! He touched the rays and stergions (spelling?). He loved seeing the ducks and fish swimming. (it is a fresh water aquarium). We came home....he snoozed for about 30 minutes, then we played and played and played. He had some special visitors (some young student friends) stop by with a surprise birthday present which was very very sweet of them. We ate a wonderful supper and had cupcakes for dessert. Hayden didn't like the cupcakes much. I didn't want him to miss out on some birthday sugar, so I got out a popsicle that he and shared. And he LOVED that!!!! Then...off to bed. Long day....wonderful day.....we truly couldn't have asked for anything better.

Then and Now...(Nov 2005, Nov 2006)

Hello Me

Hayden just sat there jabbering to his reflection in the TV.....

quite entertaining

Present from Nana and Bumpa

Before the birthday present and after the birthday present. I know I know.....his birthday isn't until November 4th, but I couldn't wait. I knew he'd get a kick out of this.

Non-toys are the best...

No matter how cool the toy is, it always seems that Hayden's interest focuses on all the simple NON-TOYS. The ketsup bottle for example.....a simple wash was all it needed and he is perfectly happy with it (for weeks!!!).
I think I get more excited about his new toys than he does and here he loves the pots and pans more. Go figure....

Apologies and updates...

I know, it has been WAY too long since our last post. And Hayden has grown and changed so so much. Life just got really really busy for us. We had a crazy summer with family reunions and parties. I suppose I just kinda forgot to post after a while. Sorry about that.
Well, life is great right now. We are well past our fall season and have been winterizing everything. Snow falls sporadically but doesn't seem to stay much. I am taking a full load of classes this semester and it feels great to be back into the swing of things. My hopes are to be finished with my undergrad by the summer and move right into a masters program in January 2008 (the fall start for the program I want is completely book). John is doing what he does...works and shoots archery. He is doing very well. He absolutely loves being a dad even though he may not show it too often outside the house. ;-) And Hayden.....
He is walking and talking and getting into everything he isn't supposed to and throwing fits and everything a 1 year old does. But he is a joy and a FUNNY kid. We have enrolled him in a daycare 2 times a week for 2 hours a day and he loves it!!!! He is so social and we figured he needs that interaction especially now as he's growing into a toddler. I am loving the arrangement as well as it gives me a few hours to get things done without worrying about him.
I guess that is it for now. I promise to be better at posting......

John babysits

I left to run some errands and came home to John getting the grill ready for supper and Hayden outside in his play saucer. The funny thing was Haydens attire (as you can see). John put the bandana on his head to keep it warm. Hayden lost a sock and John just found a different one. I love these pictures! (April 25th)

Buddies

Isabell latched onto Emily the entire time she was here. I just thought these pictures were too cute. (April 22nd)