Merry Christmas 2010

Merry Christmas from the Gilbertsons

He doesn't look a day over 27

Today is my husband's birthday and for whatever reason it has me all teary-eyed. I assume it's because I am pregnant. I cried picking out his card after reading only two.  Usually it takes me at LEAST 8 cards before I get choked up. I just started thinking about his 27th birthday, which was 8 years ago already. We had just started dating and it was the frist time I met most of his family. I remember being so nervous and just hoping that they all liked me.  It seems like so long ago, but also just like yesterday. Then, I started reflecting on all the birthdays, holidays and vacations that we have shared and it just made me realize how truly lucky I am to have found someone who suits me so perfectly.  It's not only the good times we have shared, but the bad times as well.  I think that's when I really learned about the man I married.  From the first time we met, I knew there was something special about him.  So, I just want to say thank you.  Thank you for being who you are and loving me the way that I am.  Thank you for being a good father to our son and a support when I need it.  Thank you for always being there when I need you and thank you for sharing your life with me.  I love you, Mike Gilbertson.

My Inner Norwegian

In case you aren't lucky enough to have any Norwegians in your life, you might not now how important lefse is to them, especially during the holidays.  I am not sure that Christmas could happen for my husband if he didn't have a flattened piece of potato dough covered in butter and sugar rolled up on the side of his dinner plate.  The other thing you may not know if you have never made lefse before is how much work it is to make.  It is very time consuming and takes a certain amount of skill, so it's not something where you can just give someone the recipe.  You have to be taught and you have to practice.  So the concern for the last several years has been who will carry on the lefse making tradition in our family once my mother-in-law decides she doesn't want to do it anymore, and it looks like I have been tapped for the job. 

A little background for perspective, being Norwegian is very important to my husband.  He comes from a proud family of Scandinavians.  In fact one of the first Gilbertson family events that I went to, they actually had the flag of Norway hanging on the wall during dinner. I am not kidding, it scared me a little.  It was embroidered with his grandmother's maiden name, Tvedt. They don't come much more Norwegian than that.  We also had a Norwegian wedding cake for the groom's cake at our wedding. They eat lutefisk at nearly every holiday, they regularly attend the Norsk Hostfest, they all own krumkake irons etc. Okay, you get it.  They love being Norwegian. So, as you can imagine, the job of making the lefse is a very important one.  I love to cook, so I figured it wouldn't be too difficult.  And I love family traditions, so I would be happy to carry this one on for my Norsk husband. 

So last year, my mother-in-law had me come over for my first lesson over Veteran's Day weekend. (Which is the traditional time for lefse making, in case you didn't know) The first lesson didn't go well.  The goals for lefse are simple. It should be round, thin like tortillas, and soft with no holes.  My first few were shaped like Africa, thick as pancakes and got crunchy around all the holes I put in them. Basically, they were not good. My father-in-law, bless his heart, was sitting next to the lefse griddle trying not to cringe at all the pieces I was ruining. He and my mother-in-law just kept saying "You're doing good, Jess."  Such good liars. So the morning went on and my pieces started to improve as I got the hang of it. 6 short weeks later at Christmas, I got a special gift from them.  My very own lefse stick, griddle, rolling pin and rolling pad. I must have done something right.  They hadn't lost all their faith in me.

This year I came to the table a little more prepared and ready to go. The shapes of my lefse evolved to look more like Australia and Antarctica, which I would argue are much closer to that of a circle than Africa.  And there were very few holes and dropped/ripped/burned pieces.  I did MUCH better.  I think things will only improve from here.  Practice does make perfect in this case.  I rolled a large part of the whole second batch and did pretty well.  Mike even came upstairs once and gave it a whirl.  He seemed to be much more natural than I was, but I think it's genetic.  Ben even got in on the action and helped roll out some dough.  All in all, a fun filled family event and I am glad I got in on the tradition.  Next year I am shooting for oval shaped pieces. 

Halloween 2010

So this year's Halloween was probably our most memorable so far.  Mostly because it was the first year where Ben was an active participant.  Last year he sort of just looked at me like, "Why am I dressed up like a monkey?  And what have you done to Sally?" (She was a lady bug and a damn cute one at that!) This year, he actually chose his own costume.  Well, to be fair I only gave him two choices, but still, he got more input than he ever has before. Between a hamburger or a tiger, he chose the tiger.

His first stop was our neighbor's house and I had to tell him about 15 times, "Yes, just say Trick or Treat and she will put candy in your basketball." Somehow he just couldn't believe that something so simple could work to get something as valuable as candy. So we ring our first door bell and Ben proudly proclaims,"TRICK OR TREATING!" Close enough, right?  He made the neighborhood rounds and hit up both grandmas for candy.  Let's just say his blood sugar hasn't dipped since November 1st. He made out okay.  Besides the obvious trick or treating, we also like to carve pumpkins with Mike's parents every year and this year was no exception.  Mike likes to try different templates every year (My personal favorite was our Obama pumpkin in 2008. Legendary.) and this year he thought Ben would enjoy a Handy Manny pumpkin so he went for it.  Such a good daddy!  Happy Halloween!!

Baby G: Take Two

So, many of you already know this, but some don't.  Mike and I found out in early September that we are expecting another baby!  Baby G The Second will make his/her debut in early to mid May.  We're not exactly sure of a due date, but we're thinking May 14th.  We had been trying since April to get pregnant and when it didn't happen for 4 months, I thought it might be a good idea for us to wait another year.  Mike agreed so we sort of put the idea out of our minds. Naturally, about a week later, SURPRISE!  You're pregnant! Which was fine with us, it was just a little unexpected.  We had Ben tell Mike's parents.  Our exact words to him were, tell your grandpa you are going to be a big brother.  Here's how it went down.  "Grandpa, guess what?  I am going to get a big brother!"  Not exactly, but they still figured it out and were pretty excited.  To tell my parents, we had Ben wear a shirt that said "I know something you don't know, I'm going to be a big brother!"  It was pretty funny to see everyone's reaction.  At least this time, my mom knew it was us and not Mike's brother who was pregnant.  So, we're very excited and very blessed.  I have been feeling really good, too, which is icing on the cake!  Just the normal symptoms of a little queasiness and being tired. A lot.  I am so grateful! Any bets on what this little one will be?  Boy or girl?  Ben thinks it's going to be a dinosaur.  But on the off chance that it's a Baby Girl, he wants to name her Fufa.  After the creepy pink character on Yo Gabba Gabba.  Awesome.

Mommy's School

Today as we were getting ready to leave the house, me to go to work and Ben to childcare, we had a very funny interaction.  Ben doesn't really grasp the concept that Mommy goes to work and not school since he and Daddy both go to school.  I also always try to sort of pump him up for "school" in the morning by talking about all the fun things he gets to do during the day.  It goes a little something like this. "All your friends are waiting for you.  You are going to have music time, do some fun coloring, eat lunch, have a nap, play outside!" And I say all of this is a super excited voice like he's going to Disneyworld.  He GETS to do all of these things!  So back to today, he says, "Daddy at his Demon school today, Benny is going to his school and you get to go to school Mommy.  All your friends are waiting for you!  You get to take a nap, and have lunch!  It will be fun!" And he did it with the funniest expression on his face.  I am pretty sure it was the best Mommy impression Ben has done to this date.  Such a funny kid!

Where has the time gone?

This summer has truly flown by and I feel like we haven't even had a moment to catch our breath.  So where have we been and what have we been doing?  A large part of the summer has been spent doing the usual warm weather activities.  The first is making good use of our zoo pass.  Ben has actually started to know which path he needs to walk down to get to his favorite animals at the zoo.  It's always amazing to me how much he knows and remembers!  This year he seems to be very interested in the tigers.  

Earlier this summer, we were able to take Ben's cousins Will and Thomas, my parents and my brother with us.  I think Ben had a great time showing them around.  We took a train ride, pulled the wagon around and Uncle Nick and I even managed to have a little fun.                                                                                                                                                                    

                                                               

                                                               

                                                       

I am certain that the zoo pass was worth every dollar.  When we're not at the zoo, we have spent lots of time swimming. In the backyard and over at my old stomping ground at Hillside pool.  I have said it before and I will say it again, it is such a wonderful experience taking Ben to all the places that I went to as a kid. Those are moments in life where things just feel like they have worked out how they are supposed to.  He loves to spend time in the backyard playing in his pool and playing host to friends.

                          

                          

He always has a great time when other kids come over to play!  I think it's probably because he gets bored.  He's been home with Mike this summer and I don't think he gets as much kid time interaction as he's used to.  He will be starting daycare in a couple weeks, so I think that problem will be remedied soon enough.  I am really hoping that he makes the adjustment well. (Translation: I hope his mom makes the transition okay.)  I am already nervous about it!  

We haven't really had much time for vacation (yet) but we did manage to make it down to Minneapolis for the 4th and spent a really fun weekend with my sister and her family.  We spent an awesome morning at the Mill City Farmer's Market, enjoyed a great night out with Leah and Nate and Mike even got to take in a Twins game at Target Field.  Ben had a great time playing with Cousin Will all weekend and I can't get enough sister time so it was a great trip all around.  

Flowers at farmer's market

Ben and I at the farmer's market

Cousins

Dads like ice cream too

We have also managed to get in a night or two at Mike's parent's house in Pick City near the big lake.  Luckily, one of the nights when we were there the weather was perfect for a boat ride with Grandpa Russ.  Ben had the time of his life helping to steer Grandpa's boat. I wasn't really sure how we were going to get him out of the boat at the end of the night. These are the things in life that I absolutely hope Ben holds onto as a adult.  I know he might not remember details, but he has to remember feeling love like this from so many people.  As a little girl, and even an adult I was so close to my grandma, so I know how special those relationships can be.  I can physically see Ben's face light up when he sees any of his grandparents, so I know those bonds have already been made.  I just hope their love continues to shape the kind of person that he grows up to be.  As for the boat ride, I really am not sure who had more fun.  Grandpa Russ, Dad, or Ben? 

                            

                            

In addition to all the fun we have had, we have also had our fair share of stress this summer with the replacement of our air conditioner, furnace, tires on my car and parts of our water heater.  It seems like when you own a house/car it's always something. Despite the unexpected expenses, I tried to tell myself constantly that when you put things in perspective, we really are blessed.  The things that broke around our house, are just that: Things.  Things can always be replaced. I hope you have been enjoying your summer as much as we have.  

Oldie but goodie

I was cleaning out the computer files today and I found this hilarious video of Ben discovering himself on the webcam. This was probably around Christmas time, so he wasn't quite two years old yet. Seriously, could he be any cuter?

Mo-mo cupcakes

Forgive my tardiness in writing this post, but I did want to share my recipe/process for making Elmo cupcakes for Ben's 2nd birthday. Yes, his birthday was almost 3 months ago, but better late than never. Let me preface this post by saying I am the first to admit that I go a little over the top for birthdays. Okay, a lot over the top, but it's so much fun! I don't go nuts with the presents for him, but I do like for him to have fun parties with thoughtful details. Maybe I will get over it someday, but so far, I am 2 and 0 for going overboard with his birthday.

He had been talking (obsessing) about Elmo for a couple months leading up to his birthday, so the theme was set early on. So I started researching cute Elmo birthday party ideas online. I figured I could find some cute party supplies at the store, so I was most concerned about finding the perfect Elmo cake. I decided on cupcakes and found a cupcake blog that showed me how to make what I thought were the perfect Elmo cupcakes!! Believe me, there are about a thousand ways you could go about making Elmo cupcakes, just google it. Go ahead. I'll wait. So I decided on using the Kara's cupcake method. So here goes.

Supplies Needed:

-2 boxes cake mix (Unless you are super ambitious and make your own, and you can also use just one box, I needed lots of cupcakes so I made two)

-Enough orange gumballs to make noses for all your Elmos (I used jawbreakers because that was all I could find, don't worry, Leah! I warned all the parents to take them away before consumption of said cupcakes)

-1 bag white candy melts (Can be found at party supply stores and bakeries)

-1 package Oreos

-Red Wilton food coloring gel (You can find this at many party stores or cake supply stores, in Bismarck I found it at Magicandle Cakery)

-Black Wilton food coloring gel

-2 16 oz containers of buttercream frosting (I went to the grocery store and asked for some at the bakery. I am told using the store bought Betty Crocker or Pillsbury kind won't work very well.)

-Two piping Bags, one "grass" or "hair" tip and one plain, round tip

Okay, so to begin you just make the cupcakes according to the box recipe. I make two boxes because there were a lot of people coming to Ben's party (See above where I mention going overboard for his birthday). I made one box chocolate and one box yellow cupcakes. I didn't use any special liners for the cupcakes, but I did see Elmo cupcake liners at the party store if you are interested.

So, after the cupcakes have cooled substantially, you mix up your red frosting. You have to use A LOT of red food coloring to reach an acceptable level of Elmo red. Oh, and on a sidenote, it is also good to warn other parents that this much food coloring will alter the color of their child's poop. Sorry, for oversharing, but it's better to overshare and save the other parents a trip to the ER. Okay, so once you have the red frosting mixed up, put it in one of the piping bags with the "grass" or "hair"tip. Then you pipe it all over the cupcakes. This is the best part about these cupcakes. A messy Elmo = messy cupcakes, so there is not a lot of precision involved in making these.

After you finish piping you can start adding his face and they really start to come together! A couple hints, when you cut the oreos in half to make the mouth, use a serated knife and you will have more luck. When I started, I was just breaking all of them. My father-in-law, who is a genius, suggested the serrated knife. I also need to give credit to my mother-in-law, Jane. She helped me dye the frosting and get started with the piping. So to start the face you put two candy melts flat side up on for the eyes, then add the half-oreo. After that, I added the jawbreaker noses. Finally, using the remaining piping bag with the plain tip, I piped on his eyeballs. And voila! 48 tiny Elmos! Here are a few more pics of the process. Enjoy!

My handy work

I got a new camera tonight and here is a preview of Ben's first photo shoot. :) Seriously, could he be any cuter?

Need to update!!

Boo! I bet you thought I had given up on this whole blog idea. Not so much given up as just doing a really bad job. It's not that I don't think about it. I have so many things that I think of posting throughout the day and then when it comes time to blog abot it, I am usually too tired to do it or I have forgotten my awesome idea. So, here are some snipets of things I had planned to tell you about:
- December 31st- Mike and I celebrating our 5th anniversary, still feels like we're newlyweds :) (sometimes)
- Ben's speech- Holy crap can that kid talk! (No idea where he gets that!)
- Ben's general energy and craziness, unlike anything I have ever seen
- A bunch of good recipes
- My new year's resolution to lose weight and how it is going
- A thank you to my sister for recommending the book Mountains beyond Mountains. That book has changed my life. Seriously.
- My first trip to Kentucky
- My new found love of statistics due to my class this semester (100% on my first test!!)
- The new camera that I am going to get very soon

I mean, really, I can't think of things that I DON'T want to blog about. (If you watch Modern Family, that joke will make a lot more sense.) I am sure there are many more, but like I said, I keep forgetting to write them down. I am going to try to blog about a few of these things in more detail, especially Ben's birthday! Can't believe I am officially the mother of a toddler. So far, it's been a wild ride! Expect to hear from me again soon.

No Chad, those aren't pirates (Cruise- Part 2)

I figure it's time to sit down and write about the rest of our cruise before I have to rely on the stories of others and my pictures to tell me what happened. I am pushing 30, after all, my memory just isn't what it used to be.

So, where was I? We got to the terminal, showed our passpots, answered several questions about The likelihood of our having swine flu, asked several questions about our captain's credentials and our old friend Hurricane Rick. After everyone was satisfied with the answers, we went to find our rooms. Seeing that everything was in place, we finally started our vacation!!

We sailed through the first night and arrived at our first port of call early the next morning. We had planned a shore excursion in Ensenada where we would visit two Mexican vineyards and taste wine. Not a bad little Tuesday planned, if you ask me. So, after a terrifying bus ride through the Mexican countryside, we arrived at our first winery.

Some of the things we saw at the winery included:

A bull fighting ring,

A lot of wine,

Some equipment that we weren't supposed to touch,

And then finally, the part we were waiting for.


So after some wine, cheese and bread, we headed to the next winery.

We went on another tour where we saw much of the same, minus the bull fighting ring.

A lot of wine,


Some more things we weren't supposed to touch,

And then finally, some wine tasting with some bread and cheese. The bread and cheese that we ate were awesome! So much in fact that we didn't want to appear to be hogging it, so we kept walking by the tray going, "What? There's bread, I better try it. And cheese? I need to taste it" Overall, a very fun little venture. And all the wine made the trip home much more relaxing. :)



After our day in the lovely city of Ensenada, we enjoyed a day at sea where we laid by the pool, soaked up the sun, drank, ate and just generally relaxed. It was just what I needed! It was also the day when I took in the spa services and got a facial and a massage. WORTH EVERY PENNY!
So following a relaxing day at sea, and a night sailing, our ship tendered in Cabo San Lucas. We got up and off the boat right away in the morning and headed into the town. We got breakfast and wandered around the city a little before deciding to hire a water taxi to take us to one of the beaches. We asked our taxi driver to take us out to get a look at Land's End and then drop us off at Lover's Beach. Here's some of what we saw.


The beautiful city of Cabo. DEFINITELY going to visit this place again!



Land's End, the southern most point on the Baja Peninsula


and some beautiful sandy beaches.


The rest of the cruise was spent eating, going to shows and watching interesting people dance with glow sticks in the ship's night club. Overall, a great time! When I write reports at work, the format that we always use is successes, challenges and lessons learned, so I thought I would report back on the cruise in the same manner. So in summary, here is goes:


Successes:

• Weather! We couldn't have had better weather. The day we were at sea mid week it was 90 and sunny, our day in Cabo was much the same and we completely missed Hurricane Rick
• The food. Particularly the bread and cheese.
• The naps.
• The spa day.
• Our travel partners. We couldn't have asked for better friends to travel with!
  

Challenges:

• Botched plane landings and bus rides from LA
• Infrastructure in Mexico is NOT what it is in the US. Driving a bus through the Mexican country side wasn't as relaxing as I had hoped.
• Convincing Chad that every ship in the distance was not pirates
• Dealing with strange people on board the ship, including our super strange Canadian dinner companions and our old friends Mama and Papa (Mama and Papa were a super annoying couple that we kept running in to. They were a younger couple who looked extremely high maintenance. She wore 7 inch heels on our wine tour and he wore a super tight Ed hardy t-shirt. You get the picture. Oh, and here's the kicker, they referred to each other in the third person as Mama and Papa. Erin and I probably spent more time and energy than we should have despising them)

Lessons Learned:

• Get to the pool earlier in the day to reserve a desirable lounge chair
• Visit the ship's disco club at least once, if anything just for the people watching.
• Virgin Pina Coladas actuallly taste better than the ones with rum in them.