Jailbirds!

I had another first this past Thursday... I had to "bail" my boys out of jail!  (I never thought I would say that!)  

No, it's not what you are thinking... 

Luke participated in the 2012 "Lock Up" for the Muscular Dystrophy Association and had to get "bailed out" of jail by gracious supporters via monetary donations.  

A HUGE Thank You.. 

to the following families for your gracious donations!

Adam Marson

Jan and Jeff Marson

Jean and Mark Gunderson

Heidi and Greg Case

Jeanine and Rex Newcomer

Kathy Hansen 

Because of your gracious donations, kids diagnosed with MD are able to attend a week long summer camp with all expenses paid!  We heard some amazing stories of some of the young boys and girls that look forward to the camp each and every year.  They love the fact that they can enjoy a week of fun activities and not feel judged or feel left out due to their illness/disability. 

My boys... 

Still "free" at this point

In the "slammer"

Luke was "bailed out" but Jameson on the other hand..

he had to serve a little more time...

At least he can laugh about it!

Thank you again to EVERYONE that supported Luke and donated to the MDA!  

Mommy's weekend away... AGAIN!

So it was another mommy-weekend for me!  I had a bridal shower back in my hometown to attend Saturday afternoon, so my AMAZING dad offered to truck out to Sioux Falls so I could truck back to Ona without a screaming baby in the backseat!  Seriously, he is the BEST dad in the world!

My dad made the drive out to SD on Thursday evening, but had to head back to WI Saturday evening once Luke was off work.  So, I decided to drive back to Ona Friday morning so I wouldn't have to do a long round-trip, road trip all in one day on Saturday.  BUT, you know what that meant for my mom and I...  GIRLS NIGHT OUT!  (haha gotta love those times!)

We called our old neighbors (love you Holthaus girls!  Oh yes, and Jeff too) and girls night it was... officially girls night and LOTS of fun!  We started our evening hangin' around the good old kitchen table (so many great conversations and laughs!) and then we headed downtown.  (Whats a true girls night without some drinks and country dancing?)  Dinner was first on the agenda so we head to Dublin Square to grab some food.  Then it was off to the country bars! (truly, would you expect any less from me?)  I was in heaven and singing the night away.

Kaylin, Me and McKenzie

(the sisters I never had!  Love you girls)

Girls night out!

Mother/Daughter photo-op

I was "oh so lucky" to do a shoot-out

at the country bar to win a drink tab

(No, I did NOT win)

It was such a great night, ladies!  I was feeling all sad that I was away from Jameson two weekends in a row, but you girls made my night!  Thanks for being such great friends and "family".

Saturday - mom and I slept in (that NEVER happens) and headed up to Holmen to visit my grandma for a while.  It's always so wonderful to spend time with her; especially when it's not rushed and I don't have a squirming baby with me.  We then had a couple little errands to run then it was time to pack my car, clean up and head to the bridal shower.

All I have to say is, SO MUCH FUN!  Maria's maids-of-honor and their wonderful moms put on a great party!  They did an Italian Movie theme and everything was decorated to a "T"!  Seriously, movie quotes all around the house, red carpet, movie posters featuring Maria and Mark, popcorn, movie snacks... just perfect!  (GREAT JOB ladies!)  And...anyone that knows me knows I LOVE shower games!  We were lucky enough to play THREE... count them 3 games!  (I was in heaven)  AND... AND... I WON one of them!  Maria opened some wonderful gifts and she truly was showered with so much love!  I said it already, but great party ladies and bring on September!  The big day is fast approaching and I can't wait to celebrate.

One of the adorable "movie" posters

I WON!

The costumes for the "red carpet" pictures

Kayla with the Bride-to-be

 Too much fun!

So, after the party, it was back in the car for this girl.  I was looking forward to the fact that my dad was also driving, so we planned to meet half-way for a little stretch/coffee break.  (definitely makes the 4.5 hour drive not seem so bad).  What I was NOT looking forward to was this...

Oh yes, that was the storm I drove through near Rochester!  (and anyone that knows me, knows I am deathly afraid of storms... not a good situation!)  Thank goodness all I really had to deal with was heavy rain!  (it was coming down so hard at one point I thought it was hailing)  That was NOT very fun!  But, once I got past the storm, this is what I saw...  and the rest of the drive was easy and enjoyable!

What a great weekend!  Sunday was fathers day and although Luke had to work most of the day, we were able to enjoy a very nice dinner out, ice cream (Luke's favorite) and a relaxing evening as a family!

Thanks again to my wonderful dad for driving out to watch baby J!  You made the weekend wonderful and Jameson was in heaven playing with his GPA!   -Love you papa!

Mommy's Weekend Away

Yet another first for the Hansen Household...  Luke and Jameson had their first Father/Son weekend... ALONE!

I was so excited for this past weekend!  I was heading to Chicago to celebrate my friend Maria's "last fling" before her BIG day!

Although I was super excited for my get-a-way, I was a little nervous for my boys... Not that I didn't trust Luke, but it was hard for me to be away and those two to be together... I guess that's called jealousy!  hahaha  I knew they would be fine, have a great time and get some much needed bonding time, but it was still hard to say goodbye.  Not to mention I am deathly afraid of flying, so I was in a minor  major panic when it was time to head to the airport.

Before the big bachelorette weekend began, I got to meet up with my old college roomie and spend a few hours catching up!  I was beyond excited to get some MONI TIME!  We went to look at bridesmaid dresses for her up-coming wedding (can't wait to be apart of your day, Moni!) and then headed for some lunch.  Although our afternoon together wasn't all that long, it truly was amazing and it meant the world!  I love the laughs Moni and I ALWAYS seem to find with each other and how we can pick up from where we left off.  Such a fun afternoon and I can't wait for October 6th!  

BRING ON THE PARTY!  Friday afternoon/evening was a little low-key...  We had a little high school reunion/reminisce time, cocktails, decided the gender of Kayla's baby... you name it, we talked about it...  (that's what girls do!)  It was then time for a delicious Spanish dinner and off to Howl at the Moon.  (PS, if you haven't been... It's a MUST!) That place was rockin' with fantastic live music!!!!

1/2 of the O-town Crew

"Bride Sandwich"

The "other half" + Jenna (again) :-)

 Me with the beautiful bride

Thanks for the hotel room Smitty!

The "ring game" to figure out the gender of

baby Schwein

(PS: it said girl... then boy)

Maria and Lauren getting their groove on

at Howl  at the Moon

Saturday... Maria and I started our day with a beautiful and refreshing run down to Navy Pier!  What a breath-taking way to start a morning... (I think I could get use to that)  Then it was off to brunch at the (extremely) delicious cafe ORANGE (perfect for the occasion considering Maria's wedding/favorite color is orange!)  I was in love with that place and highly recommend it to anyone visiting the Chicago area.  We had a little time in the afternoon to bum around... Maria was able to catch up with one of her college friends, a few others had a couple errands to run and Kayla, Jenna and myself headed over to Michigan Ave for a quick shopping adventure. (would you expect any less?)  On our way back to the hotel, we had the brilliant idea to get frozen yogurt!  MMMMMmmmmm SO GOOD!  Jenna had never experienced a frozen yogurt bar, so on top of the deliciousness, she was speechless at a) the selection of yogurt flavors b) the selection of toppings and c) the overall "party in your mouth" flavor explosion once her combination of yogurt and toppings hit her taste buds.  It was pretty funny to watch!

O-town girls at ORANGE

Maria and Shannon enjoying a cocktail 

Our evening was... OUTSTANDING...  AMAZING... MY TYPE OF PARTY!  We were off to Wriggly Field for the Jerrod Niemann, The Band Perry, Chris Young, Miranda Lambert and Brad Paisley Concert!  I was truly in heaven!  On top of a great show, we had roof top seat tickets which included: all-you-can-drink beer/wine, food, nonalcoholic beverages and (for all you ladies out there) NICE/CLEAN bathrooms!  Seriously, so much fun and I would highly recommend it to anyone.

Jenna... Taking a shot?  You go girl!

 The beautiful bride and her Maids-of-Honor

O-Town Crew

The entire party!  You girls are rock stars!

Such a fun weekend!

Overall, it was a great weekend with my ladies!  Thank you to everyone that made "Mom's Night Out" so delightful!  Maria - I am so excited to be apart of your wedding and thanks for such a fun and memorable weekend!!  Jenna and Lauren - thank you for planning such a great party weekend!  Love to all you girls!!

And now on to my next trick...

WALKING (behind toys)

These two videos are pretty similar, 

but you get a front and rear view of the action

There is officially always some sort of movin'-and-a-shakin' going on in the Hansen household!

Finally Crawling

I say FINALLY because Jameson was getting so upset and angry at himself when he couldn't get to where he wanted to go (or get that toy that was just too far away to stretch and reach for)... With that said, he is on the move ALL the time now :-)

Here is a video shortly after he figured out how crawl:

Again, sorry you have to hear my LOUD voice in the videos

Seriously, I am such a proud mommy :-)  It maybe stressful and keeping me on my toes, but I just love to watch my little man grow and develop!

SOOOOO.... I think I have officially aged about 10 years over the last four days!  Not to mention CRAZY stress levels and absolutely NO more relaxing/sitting down time...

Why you ask.. Well, since Sunday, Jameson has started to crawl, walk behind toys AND stand/jump in his crib.

I put Jameson down for his nap this afternoon (PS: our monitors are in the process of being shipped back from Samsung, so I have been hanging out upstairs until he falls asleep) and I heard him "talking" a little odd... thinking something was going on, I opened the door to a STANDING baby boy!  At this point, we hadn't lowered his crib so I immediately went into panic mode!  Daddy was working, so it was mommy's turn to play handy-man and fix the situation by lowering the crib.

After the craziness, the crib was lowered and it was WAY past J's nap time (I was just waiting for the meltdown to begin, but he was such a good boy while mommy fixed the crib).  So, I put him back in only to walk in on this

NOTE: please excuse my LOUD voice in the video

On a positive note: it is SO much fun to watch him grow and develop... It maybe a bit stressful as a mommy (at times) but I wouldn't change it for the world...  (maybe it will allow me to cut back on my gym time since I have to chase him around so much) 


**Crawling and walking posts to follow**

Date Night...

With Jameson!

We went on our first mommy/son ice cream date!  Let's just say, he knows the key to his mommy's heart :-)  (I LOVE ICE CREAM!)

He wasn't so sure what was going on...

SO COLD MOMMY!

 But, not afraid to dig-in for another try :-)

Man, this little boy really makes me so happy!  Love you baby J and thanks for going on a date with mommy!  (I need to take all this in now because in 10-15 short years, I don't think I will be so lucky to go on a DATE with my son).