The Graduate

Little Paisley is now 13 weeks old, and just yesterday, she graduated from Puppy Kindergarten! I can't believe how well she is doing, especially at such a young age. She knows sit, stay, down, leave it, drop it, and come. She has a little trouble with the command "relax" since she is so energetic all the time (she takes after her Mom,) but we're making progress everyday.

I was out of town working in Minneapolis, so Daddy was there for her big day.

She completed some agility exercises (aka - puppy obstacle course) ...

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And was presented with her diploma.

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We are SO proud. :)

30 and Loving It

I turned 30 years old today. Can you believe it?!? I know, I'll be carded until I'm 60.

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But, I'll be honest, I have never been happier in my life. A great husband, a new puppy, moving into the house of our dreams back in Minneapolis, a recent promotion, moving closer to friends and family, an adorable little nephew, the list goes on and on. I am truly blessed and so thankful for all the wonderful people in my life.

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Life (really) is good. ;)

Miss Paisley Petersen

We have officially been dog owners for one month now, and we thought it was time to show off our new baby. She's growing like a weed and won't be a little puppy for much longer! Similar to her parents, she has been living quite the busy life these past 4 weeks.

Here we are picking her up at the breeder on November 10th, 2010. Her life would never be the same. I think she was the lucky one as her sisters will be show dogs and her brothers will be companion dogs. She gets a life of fun being spoiled (rotten) by her new parents!



Here's our baby's favorite pose - frog legs. Starting to think we should have named her Kermit.



And ... Daddy giving her a bath for the first time. A little timid on bath number one but she's grown to love the water. It'll be fun to take her out in the boat and do a little doggie paddle in the lakes of Minnesota!




Wasting no time, at 9 weeks old we started taking Paisley to obedience classes. She is really doing well and can sit, stay, lay down, come, leave it (when she shouldn't get into something) and drop it (when we need to get something out of her mouth.) It requires diligent practice everyday, but Kyle and I have been thoroughly committed. Here she is working on her commands with Dad.



Our amazing trainer, Deborah, also hosts "puppy socials" every Sunday afternoon. Sounds cheesy, but it's a great way to get Paisley to learn how to play nice with other puppies and feel comfortable around a variety of people and breeds. She is definitely a bull in a china shop (like someone else in our family ...) and tends to bully some of the other pups with her non-stop energy. She's not real good at pacing herself - she goes a million miles a minute and then crashes hard. Here she is playing with her bff, Josey.



Speaking of crashing hard, here she is passed out in my arms. While we have been crate training her to aid in house breaking, she does like to sleep in your arms or on your feet (any warm body part will do) whenever she gets the chance.

After being away from our new baby for 8 days working up North, I came home with a new stuffed toy for her to play with - a Minnesota wolf. She loves it! Little does she know what Minnesota will soon mean to her.

Paisley got her first taste of Minnesota when Kyle and I had to drive to Minneapolis the day after Thanksgiving to look at a house (the one we are currently purchasing - more to come in a future blog!) Here are the Petersen girls scoping out the new digs!

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During that Minnesota visit, Paisley also got to experience snow for the first time. She picked up her feet real high wondering what was going on and shivered uncontrollably when I first picked her up. She did "warm" up to it after a while and by the end of the day, she was busy eating it. Good thing, because it's going to be a regular part of her life from January on.


Just like Mom and Dad, Paisley is a jet setter. She is only 3 months old and has already been to 5 states. Here she is helping Mom pack her suitcase. She just can't wait for the 16 hour car ride to Cleveland for Christmas! (As long as she sleeps the whole car ride like she did to Wisconsin, Kyle and I will be excited too!)

Paisley has settled into our family just perfectly. So much so, that I'm not even sure what we used to do without her. I had wanted a dog for years and was always wishing that I would have just taken the plunge ... now I know why I didn't ... because our dog wasn't ready until November 10th of this year. We just had to find her!

We Are Thankful ...

1. ... for a puppy that likes to sleep in the car ... seriously, Paisley was out the entire 12-hour drive to/from Wisconsin for Thanksgiving. Amen!






2. ... that after we move back to Minneapolis we will NEVER drive through the horrendous state of Iowa again! Here's the parking lot on Highway 35 with the freezing rain during our drive up on Wednesday... adding 2 hours to our already long drive. Never fails, Iowa has miserable weather whenever we drive through.






3. ... for a puppy that tells us when she needs to go potty during car rides. Here I am running around with her on a tiny patch of grass we pulled over to during the freezing Iowa rain. Good times.
   








4. ... that my mother-in-law made Special K bars (with Chocolate for me, without Chocolate for Kyle.) I know, it's a non-General Mills cereal, but believe me, if you tried one of these things, you would understand.







5. ... that my father-in-law actually got a weekend off work at the Police Department to celebrate Thanksgiving with us! Here's Kyle and Mark ... and cousins Nate and Spencer (our little ring bearer, holding up black olives as his eyes!) -- We'd also like to make a shout out to our cousin Nate for landing a job after he graduates! Another logistics professional in the family. Congrats!
   
   



6. ... that Aunt Jodi and Uncle Patrick brought two beautiful girls into the world this year so that my husband can get more practice with babies. :)

7. ... that Hallie and Ciana had cute baby headbands that we could use to dress up Paisley. Adorable, right?!

8. ... that Kyle has adorable grandparents that have adopted me, and that Grandpa Joe is feeling better these days. I love having grandparents again!

9. ... that Uncle Bill and Chris drove over to meet Paisley (they didn't mind seeing us either!)

10. ... that I was in Minneapolis for my friend, Lora's, annual Thanksgiving feast this year. (how about this list, Lora!)

Long story short, we have a lot to be thankful for! (If you didn't make the list, it's only because we didn't have a coordinating picture from this year's Thanksgiving holiday, but we still love you! And, I purposely left out pictures of Paisley's Auntie Em, at her request.) We had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving in Wisconsin this year and look forward to future holidays with Kyle's side of the family that don't include 10+ hour road trips. ;)

Baby Announcement

Meet Paisley!

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Born September 15, 2010 in Joplin, Missouri

Lovingly welcomed into Petersen Family on November 10, 2010 in Bella Vista, Arkansas

Soon to be a Northerner (shhh...don't mention the S word!)

Notice the tag ... already a Packers fan. :)

Homeward Bound

It is official. The Petersen's are moving back to Minneapolis!

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Just last week, my promotion was announced ... I will be the new Logistics Manager for our Research and Development facilities in Minneapolis. Our ticket home.

In some ways, I can't believe we have lived in Arkansas for 2 years already ... in other ways, it feels like we've been trying to get back to Minneapolis forever. It is with mixed emotions that we will soon close this chapter of our lives and settle back into life in the frozen tundra.


5 Things We Will Miss Most About Living in Arkansas:

1. Our beautiful (and cheap) house that has everything we need and more.


2. The complete absence of traffic


3. Friday nights at our favorite little pizzeria, Gusano's


4. The delicious BBQ


5. The great friends we have made ... although, many of them should be following us to Minneapolis eventually

5 Things We Will NOT Miss About Living In Arkansas:

1. Having to do ALL of our grocery shopping at Walmart


2. The corny local commercials that play repeatedly on every channel


3. The constant work travel that has kept us apart for so many days ... weeks ... months ...


4. The 100 degree humid summers that seem to last forever


5. The ginormous spiders, slimy snakes and other scary creatures that call the South home

We have thoroughly enjoyed our time in Arkansas and are thankful that we made the leap 2 years ago. We'd like to think we took full advantage of this experience - exploring a new part of the country, meeting new people, trying new foods - and thank everyone who made our time here so meaningful.

In terms of timing, I will be back in Minneapolis for a week in November for training and house-hunting. My new gig starts December 1st, with a week back in Arkansas to wrap things up and celebrate my big 3-0. Kyle (and the new pup) will hang back in Arkansas into January ... hopefully giving us enough time to find a new house and move directly from one house to the next, avoiding temporary living and storing all of our things. Let's also hope that Kyle has enough time to house break the new pup before she meets the Minnesota winters.

It's good to (almost) be home. :)

Two Years and Growing

Kyle and I just celebrated our second anniversary on October 25th. We kept it low key, as I was traveling back from work in Minneapolis that day. We traded cards and went for a nice dinner at Fred's Hickory Inn ... a local supper club down the road. We had a great time and are more in love than ever. I always like to say "I get to have a slumber party with my best friend every night of my life" ... (minus all the travel that keeps us apart.)

Here we are leaving dinner at Fred's. Life is good.

Well, my friends. Life just got even better.

Kyle told me he had something planned for us on Thursday evening. I needed to cut out early and be home from work by 4pm. I absolutely love surprises, and for once, I tried not to guess what it was, for fear of spoiling it. In all honesty, I had NO idea what was coming.

After driving north for about 30 minutes, Kyle pulled a package from the back seat and said "Happy Anniversary, honey." I told him we weren't planning to do presents this year and that he shouldn't have, but really, who am I to argue, right?!? He had a card that said "hope you're ready to grow our family" ... along with a mini dog collar. WHAT?!?!? Then I opened a few Labrador books he had wrapped. ARE YOU SERIOUS?!?!?

Without me ever suspecting, (and I'm pretty nosey, so this is a HUGE accomplishment!) he had been researching breeders since June and had found a great one in Joplin, MO ... about 45 minutes north. He had communicated with her and arranged to surprise me with one of Elizabeth's litter of 5 pups, born on September 15th. We had been talking about getting a dog for years and could both agree on a Lab, so it was a perfect choice. Here's mom and, in the words of my friend, Greg, all 5 of her "dog babies."

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From the surprise and shock and excitement of it all, I felt like I was going to throw up ... but I kept it together and we met the breeder, Carolyn, and her family, played with the 5 pups for a while, met the mother, Elizabeth, and picked our favorite. They were designated by a small spot of paint on their rear-ends ... and I chose the little green one. An adorable little girl.

And here's the winner ... zonked out from all the excitement ... looks like me at about 10pm every night, so it's a perfect fit ...

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She will come home in 2 weeks ... get excited to welcome the new little Petersen. I know we are. :)

Pink is the New Black

This year, I've heard October (Breast Cancer Awareness Month) referred to as "Pink-tober." So, in honor of Pinktober, and the fact that one of my girlfriends has never seen the chick flick Legally Blonde (a tragedy!) ... I hosted a pink party at the house ... much to Kyle's dismay. I whipped up a batch of my mother's homemade mac & cheese, and everyone showed up wearing pink. We gossiped faster than any man could keep up with, sipped pink wine ... and welcomed Elle Woods into our family room for a showing of Legally Blonde on the big screen.

Needless to say, Kyle stayed upstairs in his office on his computer the whole time. He was a good sport and took some photos of our fabulous group. When you look this good, there's really not much more to say. :)

Piegergogies

No. The title of this blog is not a typo. My father has been known to make up words and this is his name for a pierogie, the Polish dumpling. For as different as Kyle and my father are (Kyle hunts and fishes, my dad goes to the symphony and plays the accordion) they both have an affinity for creating their own language. My dad eats piegergogies and Kyle doesn't go grocery shopping, he grocerizes. Go figure.

Living in Cleveland, and being 98.6% German, we grew up enjoying lots of ethnic fare. While I complained about most of it when I was little, pierogies fit nicely into my plain-Jane "buttered noodles" phase ... the blander the better. Amen that my taste buds eventually came around. Pierogies are much better smothered with sour cream and sauteed onions ... mmmm mmmm.

Thanks to my sister-in-law's mother, Loretta, for sharing her homemade pierogie recipe. And thanks to my husband for enjoying the process of cooking and being up for a challenge on this one. We made quite the mess in the kitchen but the result was delicious!

Pole-less Position

Last weekend, we decided to take advantage of the perfect fall weather and enjoy a little outdoor activity. We joined our friends Greg and Chaney, loaded up two cars (clearly, we were roughing it) and headed almost 3 hours southeast to explore Mt. Nebo. Quite the view.

Here we are at the top of the mountain - Kyle and me, doing my best Kyle impression. I'm not really that tough, but I have been watching quite a bit of Man vs. Wild and Dual Survivor lately, so I was ready for some adventure.

The adventure was off to a slow start when we discovered that our camping plot was literally 2.3 ft. away from the playground. Our idea of a peaceful weekend in Arkansas's natural surroundings did not include screaming kids so we headed back to the visitor center. We were able to trade in our plot for a hike-in campsite, about a mile off the beaten path. Now the adventure began with our multiple trips hauling our gear down the mountain.

The guys headed up the path for the last load of gear, so Chaney and I decided to get a head start on setting up camp. Now, I haven't set up a tent in a while, but I'd like to think I'm a smart girl and can figure out what I need to do. "Hey Chaney. Am I an idiot or aren't there supposed to be poles for this thing?!" At first we thought it was a mean joke by the guys so that the girls would be unsuccessful at setting up camp, but we soon found out that Greg's friend that lent us the tent forgot to give us the poles. Just hilarious.

Luckily, it was still early enough in the day (and we were in Arkansas,) so Greg was able to cruise down to the local Walmart and bring back our fancy new house. Constructed perfectly (with poles) by Chaney and I.

Kyle tended to the fire and whipped up a tasty pot of chili. (You just can't keep a good man out of the kitchen.) We had a lovely evening full of good tunes, good conversation by the glow of the fire, refreshing brews and a critical ingredient of any campfire ... S'mores.



I actually slept really well, for being on the cold, hard ground. Kyle suited me up with a nice sleeping bag and sleeping pad at the REI sale a few years ago so I was camping in comfort (and style, I mean loook at that gorgeous shade of pink!) I had layered on so many clothes while we were hanging out by the fire that I had to unzip my sleeping bag in the middle of the night so that I didn't roast to death, but other than that, pure comfort.

Here we are in the fresh, brisk morning air. I can't say that we smelled very fresh, though, since our clothes still smell like campfire smoke after repeated laundering. But, we sure are cute in our little caps, huh?

We spent the morning exploring some of the hiking trails. Quick photo opp by one of the signs to prove how hardcore we were ...



... and we snapped Greg's cute mug by another sign at the campground. That's right, ladies. He could be all yours! He likes long bike rides, a good cup of coffee and cooks a mean gumbo. Email me for more details. :)

We felt pretty good about our adventurous weekend, until we saw this guy setting up his hang glider to jump off the top of Mt. Nebo. Guess we weren't as hardcore as we thought.

Another great weekend, brought to us by Arkansas: The Natural State.