Happy Birthday, Barry!

Here he is...the most important man in my life. And he is turning 34 today!

Happy Birthday Barry! I don't know what we would do without you!

So You Want To Meet Sarah and Torben, eh?

Here they are...our Canadian friends, Sarah and Torben (pronounced Taubin, for those of you who don't know!).

These are the two that we miss A LOT since they left the States 2 or so years ago.

These are the two that we just had to go visit to see just what was so great about Canada. (And let me say for the record that Canada is really nice, but the only thing they have that we really can't do without is these two friendly Canadian chiropractors pictured right here. )

Did we have a lot of fun? YES, without a doubt!

Did we get a lot of R&R? NO, absolutely not!

But that is totally cool. We talked so much that I was still hoarse until Wednesday. We shopped. We hiked. We ate. We drank. We "kind of" watched hockey. We made fun of each other. And probably most importantly....we LAUGHED, GIGGLED, and were generally just silly. Silly like I haven't been in such a long time.... And by the way, what's with the "Canadian" Geese? I didn't see even one in Canada, but I see flocks of them around here!! They never leave!

And so, Sarah and Torben...although we can see why you left us (dramatic sigh here) , we now see why you love it in Canmore. You have a truly beautiful place to call home, a promising practice, and a relationship most people will never experience.

What more can you ask for, EH?

Canada, Here We Come!

So, tomorrow is the big day! Sheri and I are off to visit our friend Sarah in Calgary. We have been planning this trip for quite a while now, and tomorrow is the day! I am putting the kids to bed tonight and then heading in to Sheri's to spend the night. That will save me lots of time in the morning! Then off to the airport and a day of traveling...

Sarah is VERY excited that we are coming. She has had our itinerary planned for at least 2 months...to the very last detail! Yes, you could say that she's a planner... or maybe just a little anal? No, no, no...Sarah is very much together, there is just a lot she wants us to see and do in that country up north. My only stipulation has been that no one is to wake me in the morning until my body decides it wants to wake up. That being said, I may still be the first one up every morning! I'm not used to sleeping that late :-)

Barry and the kids will have lots of fun, even without me. His Dad and Luanne are coming Thursday night and staying over to watch the kids on Friday while Barry is at work, and Kendall is counting the minutes until they get here. Gary & Luanne, you'd better rest up! I think she has lots of plans for you! I don't know what Barry has planned for the weekend, but I know it will be fun, and if they can, they'll be outside as much as possible.

Well, folks, this will be my last post until I return, so stay tuned for the big lowdown after I get back. Hopefully I'll have some good pictures and stories to share.... CIAO!

Check Out Those Chompers!

Would you look at that?

THAT, folks, is what can happen in just one short weekend around here.

Noah's top two teeth just popped through and dropped down right before our very eyes. I can't believe how much older it makes him look! He took every opportunity this weekend to show everyone his new chompers, even taking the chance to bite on a few fingers. Fortunately for all of us, these new teeth didn't seem to cause him any problem. Other than the continuous drool, we didn't even have a clue that they were popping through!

That aside, isn't he just the happiest, cutest little guy? Don't ya just want to grab him and give him a big smooch?

Thank You Easter Bunny!

Well, yet another candy-filled holiday has passed! This Easter was fun, but hectic as all get-out! Aunt Jessie called Friday night and said she thought she might go ahead and take off, and asked if we would like her to take the kids with us. WHAT??!!?? WOULD WE??? SURE! Of course, that meant running around like a madwoman trying to get the kids packed up and in to Jessie's before they fell asleep. But we managed, and off they went. This would be Noah's first overnight away from us...and guess what? He did fine...didn't even miss us. NOT A BIT. I'm sure the spoiling was going in full swing at grandma's house!

I had forgotten that I had to work on Saturday, so that pushed us back to leaving at 3:30 on Saturday. That being said, we didn't make it around to as many people as we would have liked, so if we didn't get to your house, you now know why! In fact, between us getting home later than planned and Noah's nap schedule, we only made it two places! At least both families had egg hunts for the kids. Noah thoroughly enjoyed his first foray into that green stuff known as grass. He loved it! He couldn't stop picking at all of the little blades...and we were thankful that he didn't try to eat it - he eats everything else!

Kendall had a ball with her cousins! She never wants to leave, and it gets harder every year to tell her we have to leave one house to go to another. This year she told me it wasn't fair, and that she NEVER gets to play with her cousins, so we should let her stay as long as she wants. I agree to some extent, it just isn't that simple sometimes.

So let me end this post with saying that the candy content is OUT OF CONTROL in this house. Kendall is asking for candy constantly, as we are trying to wean her down from the weekend. She'll be lucky if half of it doesn't get thrown away....or eaten by Daddy!

OK, OK, I might have a piece or two...

What We're Seeing A Lot More Of...

Yes, that's right. We are seeing more sleeping in the Kuck household. I have been keeping my mouth shut about it (ok, not TOTALLY shut - I'm excited!), because I didn't want to jinx it, but Noah has been sleeping through the night for almost 2 weeks now. We've only had one night that was less than 10 hours, and most nights it's more like 12 hours! We're thrilled! In fact, "thrilled" doesn't even cover it. "Relieved" is probably a little more accurate. I'm not even sure there is a word that can totally encompass the things Barry and I are feeling right now. All I know is this... I may be back on the road to mental clarity! Sleep is my new BEST FRIEND!

THE WEEKEND
We had a productive weekend! Hope you all did as well! The weather was great, and we spent as much time as possible outside. We were able to get our flower beds cleaned up, some things transplanted, and I managed to get the house cleaned as well! I was feeling GREAT by the end of the weekend. Mom and Joe and my Grandma & Grandpa Kogge stopped by on Saturday to "drop off my birthday card", which is code for "come and see the kids". Kendall was wired for sound, let me tell ya! Anyone that comes to our house better be ready to play! We ordered chicken from Der Dutchman for dinner....YUM YUM! I had to stop myself at 2 pieces, and it was hard!

MORE BITHDAY STUFF
For Barry's and my birthdays, our friends Chad and Beth sent us a box of totally AWESOME brownies from a company called Fairytale Brownies....I highly suggest you try them or send them to someone you love....they are DE-LISH! I am saving the chocolate peanut butter one for the perfect moment....YUMMMMMMM! Thanks, Beth and Chad, for opening my eyes to yet another food that I don't need to be addicted to!

Happy Birthday to ME!!

Can you believe it? It's already my birthday... AGAIN! WHOOO HOOOOO! It doesn't seem possible that I can really be 35 years old. I can remember when my parents were 35, and that really seemed old then. Doesn't seem so old now, though!

In all honesty, though, birthdays don't really bother me. Not even 30 did! Celebrating yet another birthday just means I get to celebrate another year of opportunities, another year of vacations, another year of seeing the kids change, another year of laughing with Barry, and another year to spend with my family and friends. Who in their right mind would ever lament their birthday? Another birthday means a whole list of reasons why you are still here!

Sheri and I firmly believe that your birthday should be celebrated for an entire month, heck...even the entire year! Our birthdays are something we look forward to every single year....it's another occasion to get together for dinner with friends...and a reason to do anything we want through the month of April. In fact, we often plan our next birthday before we are even finished celebrating! This year, we are going to Calgary to visit our ultra-cool friends Sarah and Torben. Of course, we justified this trip with..."Obviously, we should go in April, it's our birthday!" And so, we are going! I can't wait...even more celebrating!

So, my dear friends and family...I'll leave you with this: No more boo-hooing about getting old! Get out there and celebrate! There's still so much to do...and a birthday is the perfect means to justify it!

It's all clear to me now...

So you ever have one of those crystal-clear moments when you realize EXACTLY why you are friends with someone? Not just because you like them, of course you LIKE them, they're your friends! But you see very clearly WHY you like them???

Today I had one of those moments. My friend Heather is a neat freak. No, really...her favorite thing to do is clean. Yes, I said CLEAN! She is never more happy than when she is talking about cleaning products, and she is the only friend I know that actually gets excited if her husband buys her a new sweeper. So today, the kids and I went to Heather's house for a visit with her and her kids. Now, Heather and her husband just built a new house, and they've been in it all of one month. Not that I was suprised, mind you, but when I walked in, it was like they've lived there for years. Everything was in its place. She already had new furniture. All the pictures were hung perfectly. Not a box anywhere. Not a thing unfinished...no tools sitting out. It was BEAUTIFUL!

And I must admit, I was jealous.

Jealous with a capital "J".

Because I've been in my house for coming up on 2 years, and I still have boxes in the basement that need unpacked, pictures that need hung, tools that need put away, and just general clutter everywhere. Does it drive me crazy? Of course....I'm not a slob. I just can't ever seem to get enough time to get to it! So, what I want to know is, where does she find the time???? Are there ever going to be enough hours in the day? I'm starting to think the answer is a resounding NO. Not unless I want to make some drastic changes. Changes like:

*Not sleeping until the kids wake me up in the morning.

*Putting the kids in front of the TV all day on my days off so I can clean, clean, clean!

*Really making Barry mad by moving all his piles of papers... and truly disrupting his system of "organization".

*No more scrapbooking, cross-stitching, gardening, etc.

*Totally giving up on this blog thing....there would definitely be no time for that!

*No more trips to visit family on the weekends...holidays included!

* Oh yeah, and I'd probably have to give up my practice!

Now don't get me wrong! I'm not making fun of Heather, and of course, I'm being sarcastic. BUT, I am being totally honest when I say I don't know how she manages to get it all done and still be one of the best moms that I know. She is involved with everything her kids do, she has a great relationship with her husband, a clean and organized home, and still manages to come and see us in London every other month. She has a style all her own, and I'm proud to call her my friend. I guess maybe it's true when they say that we pick friends that have qualitites we wish we ourselves had! I'd love to have a little Heather in me! And just the same, I know she'd like to have a little Jen in her. She actually had a brilliant idea today...maybe we could work out a little co-op. She would come here once a month to clean my house, and I would go there once a month and fill her freezer with meals. Done Deal, I say! Especially if she cleans up the kitchen when I'm done!

Deal ...or No Deal?

Ok, so we're hooked on that new game show DEAL OR NO DEAL here in the Kuck house. Have you seen it? It reels you in and you are hooked! And Howie Mandel is a genius at drawing every decision out until the last possible second. (Although I can see that this particular trait will inevitably get on my nerves at some point in time....) Anyway, we've been watching it when we can catch it. Kendall is really hooked as well. I didn't actually think she would be into it, or even really understand it, BUT SHE DOES. Of particular fun to her is yelling, "NO DEAL!" and "Don't do it!" It's pretty funny!

So the other night we were watching DEAL OR NO DEAL. After it was over, Barry took Kendall up to bed to read her the nighttime story and do her whole routine. He comes downstairs 15 minutes later shaking his head and laughing....and I know that a good Kendall story is about to ensue. Here is what happened:

After the brushing of the teeth and emptying of the bladder, Barry read her a book. If you know Kendall well, you know that she is ALWAYS hungry. She needs a snack every 45 minutes, or she just may fall over and die from starvation. Oh, yeah. It's THAT serious. So anyway, he gives her a kiss and tells her goodnight, etc. and as he turns to walk out the door she says:

"Hey Dad... how about if I lay here and try to sleep and you come back in 10 minutes to check on me. If I'm still awake, you can bring me a little snack. If I'm asleep, you don't have to. DEAL... OR NO DEAL?????"

Barry, always on top of things, quickly responds..." NO DEAL!" and walks out of the room laughing.

AHHHH, the fun NEVER ends!

Happy Birthday Sheri!

Today is a VERY important day.

It is Sheri's birthday.

Ok, it is after midnight, so actually, her birthday was yesterday, but let's just skip the technicality and work with me here, OK???

For those of you who do not know Sheri, she is my partner in crime...my best friend... and the only person besides Barry who truly understands me! In fact, sometimes I think she understands me a tiny bit better, simply because we are GIRLS, after all...and because maybe even more importantly, we are both Aries! We are like peas and carrots, as Forrest Gump would say!

Every year we celebrate our birthdays together since they are only 5 days apart. And every year, that involves some kind of dinner, since we LOVE food. This year we made it to RJ Snappers in the Short North. A small group, but it was still fun. My first glass of wine since I weaned the baby...YUM! Then we moved on to Cup O'Joe for some coffee and conversation...and some interesting entertainment from the belly dancers on the sidewalk. I'm still not sure if that really happened, or if I had too much wine....

Ah, I digress. This post is about Sheri, and the fact that there is no one else I would rather celebrate my birthday with every year. She is kind, generous, gregarious, energetic, beautiful, creative, fun, childlike, conscientious, and down to earth. It is a mystery to everyone who meets her why she is still single and why we haven't "set her up" with anyone. Well, world, the reason is this:

We haven't met anyone good enough for her. 'Nuff said.

Anyway, this is my happy birthday post to Sheri...everyone should have a friend like her. But find your own, because I'm NOT sharing!

Love Ya, Sheri! Happy Birthday!