Mueting Christmas Card 2011

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2011 has proven to be another adventurous year for us.

Some of our happenings:

-Andy winding down his 4th year of medical school at Des Moines University
-Marie turning 2 years old in June
-Charlie enduring another knee surgery in November and recovering well
-Kelly switching school districts in August
-Marie getting potty trained in October
-Andy & Kelly celebrated 5 years of marriage in June
-Andy traveling around for Residency Interviews
-Kelly discovering she was expecting baby #2 and due in July

We are certain 2012 will prove to be even more exciting with the new baby, possibly a move, and much more.

Marie's 1st Christmas Program

Friday night was the annual Children's Garden Christmas Program. This was Marie's first year participating. Her Butterfly room has been practicing since August for this one song...so we have been hearing, "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" since then. Needless to say we were READY for the program to happen. Her teachers, Melissa, Kristina, and Edith did such a good job getting all the kids dressed in their best and ready for the performance with several dress rehearsals.

Unfortunately my video-taking skills were less than sub-par, but you get the gist. Marie did a great job with the song and even was the star for part of the show. Her voice carries anyway but when you put a microphone in her face you know she is going to go for it!

Following the program, we went to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in the area and then went home to have our Christmas. Marie had no idea we were going to open presents that night so she was very surprised to see the tree with presents underneath it and her stocking stuffed full of goodies.


On Saturday morning we decided to have our Christmas morning breakfast - pancakes. Marie asked for pink minnie mouse pancakes and as you can see, she got them!


I am so grateful for this past weekend because I felt pretty good the majority of the time except I need to be in bed around 8:30 as that is when I start to get sick again.
I was finally able to enjoy some play time with Marie and I was able to help Andy around the house. Andy has been doing way more than his share with me being sick this past month and a half on top of his residency interviews and rotation schedule...I am a lucky girl.

We have a zoo at our house...

Marie is going through an unbelievable pretend/imaginary stage right now.

We spend countless hours going on alligator, giraffe, hippo, lion, and tiger hunts. Most of the time, Marie rides on our backs as we make our way through the house by crawling on our knees in search of these creatures.

When we find these wild animals, they are either scary (if it's in a dark room) or friendly tiny creatures that fit in the palm of our hand. Luckily we have Charlie in the house because if we find a particularly scary animal, he is there to bark at them and scare them away.

Marie is especially fond of the giraffe that goes everywhere with us...it jumps on the bed, takes a bath, and even visits the grandparents homes with us.

One night, Marie needed some cough syrup before bed so Andy got it all prepared. Of course the giraffe needed some too. So, he put some water in the medicine cup, Marie brought it to the giraffe, and looked away. Andy instructed me to quick drink it up. Marie turned around, picked up the empty cup and exclaimed, "the giraffe drank the medicine all gone!!!"

The weird taste of medicine/lukewarm water was disgusting, especially to this nauseous mom-to-be, but so worth it just to see how excited she was about it.

So, for now, we are playing right along with this imaginary wild animal stage and we have the worn-out knees to prove it.

***

We have Marie's 1st Chistmas Program at her school Friday night. She is sooo excited and has been singing the song since August. More to come on that soon!

Flour Flour Everywhere

We had an unexpected day at home on Wednesday due to pink eye. I knew I would have to keep Marie busy so we decided to make our Christmas cut-out cookies since I had a helper at home.
(I use the term "helper" loosely here)

As you an see, most of her helping was by playing in the flour which felt like "pretty powder" to her. It was EVERYWHERE! Every time I thought I had it all cleaned up I would find more.

Marie was very good at laying the cookies on the cookie sheet. I knew I would be tired from this baking adventure but I didn't think it would wipe me out completely! Marie and I cuddled together and took a 2 hour nap to recover. I am enjoying my time with her and trying to spend quality time while she is my only little one to care for.

This pregnancy is much different from my first with Marie. I have days where I feel great and then days where I feel awful and spend a lot of time wondering if and when I will vomit. I can never predict what the day will be like or what will sound good to eat (not a lot). I have heartburn and indigestion so Tums have become my new best friend. Who knows, maybe the differences mean it's a boy...we will be finding out with this baby. Marie was a surprise for us and it was a great experience. This time we want to experience hearing the news at the ultrasound. I think that will be nice for Marie so she knows exactly what to expect - a baby brother or sister!

Seeing Santa

After listening to Marie chat about Santa Claus non-stop this week, we decided we should take the adventure on this weekend. She wanted to be especially cute and insisted on a flower in her hair for the occasion.

We only had to wait in line for a little while and it was well worth it. Marie walked right up to the big guy and told him exactly what she wanted - a pink bunny rabbit.

She was very happy with herself and enjoyed the candy cane from Santa as well. When she saw her picture on the screen she said, "That's me and Santa!!!"

***Surprise***

On November 6th, 2011 at 1:30 p.m. we were given a BIG surprise.

I mean the kind of surprise that takes your breath away, causes sweating, and increases your heart rate to a near-dangerous level.

The kind of surprise that slows down time and allows you to hear your thoughts running through your mind.

Yep...it was a life-changing kind of surprise.

Here comes Baby Mueting #2 !
Due July 6, 2012

I am very sick (again), but we couldn't be happier.

Although this was not our timing, we are excited to expand our family, and very thankful the baby appears strong and healthy.
We were already able to see the strong little heartbeat on an early ultrasound!

It will be a busy summer with possibly a move, Liz and Andrew's wedding, and Andy starting residency the week I am due...

Marie is very excited there is a baby in my tummy and was a little upset when she was told it would be a long time before it came out. She loves telling people about it and isn't very good at keeping it a secret. She also believes she has a baby in her tummy, too!
Right now, she is hoping for a baby brother, whom she has decided to call "Henry."

Stay tuned...it should be an interesting year!

Starting Christmas

We broke from tradition a bit this year and decided to decorate our house after we got home from celebrating Thanksgiving with our families. We usually do it before we leave for Thanksgiving, but life has been a bit unpredictable lately so we just didn't get it done.

So, on Saturday night, we put on "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" and got to work.

Marie took a big interest in decorating the tree this year. She even insisted on wearing either her swimsuit or her Halloween costume for the occasion...we settled on the costume.

We let Marie place most of the ornaments on the tree - leaving them just where she placed them. It may not be our most symmetrical tree we have ever decorated, but it is the most memorable now.

I was really excited to get our tree skirt out this year. At the end of Christmas last year, I purchased an inexpensive red felt tree skirt and some paint. All of us, including Charlie, put our hand prints on the tree skirt to decorate. Now, with each addition, we will add a new hand print. It turned out great and it makes our tree seem so much more special this year.


Marie also got to help Andy put up some lights outside. It was pretty cold so she wasn't as into it as expected, but she loves looking at all the lights!

Thanksgiving Part Two

Our 2nd Thanksgiving was held in Spencer with the Mueting side. It was a large group this year was meant more competition in turkey bowling. Marie enjoyed all the attention and the turkey. She especially had fun with her Aunt Liz and Aunt Katie during bath time. I am not sure who was laughing the hardest or who was the most wet, but I know the floor did get a good cleaning from all that splashing.

On Friday the whole family watched the big game at Papa's party. Marie showed her support for the Huskers by doing all sorts of dancing to the band and yelling, "Go Big Red" on command.

Marie also helped decorate for Christmas at Papa & Grammy's house. She took her jobs very seriously until the Legos came out, then she decided that was much more important.
Overall, it was a great Thanksgiving Holiday.
Now we are looking forward to Christmas!

Thanksgiving Part One

This past weekend was a busy one. It started on Thursday with a drive to Spencer to drop Marie off with Grammy and Papa for the night. From there, Andy & I traveled to Sioux City where we arrived just in time for dinner with a few of the residents from the Family Medicine program. Friday was a full day of interviews and tours of the Sioux City Residency. I wish I could say that we had our mind made up but I think now we are even more torn and confused by all the options.

Friday night we headed to Sheldon where Marie had been spending the afternoon with Grandma Nel. Saturday was full of cooking and napping as we prepped for the Van Beek Thanksgiving. It was nice to have separate weekends planned for Thanksgiving because it really gave us a chance to relax and not rush through 2 dinners and family get-togethers.

Marie was exhausted on the trip home from all her adventures with her cousins. Here they were having a tea party. She stays so busy with the kids and pets at my mom's house.
Unfortunately, we all continue to be a little under the weather right now. Marie is a little sick with a cold/cough and Andy has a mixture of laryngitis and bronchitis.

We hope to catch up on a little sleep before we pack up again for our next Thanksgiving trip!

Time for Hot Cocoa

We were all feeling a bit chilly and under the weather this weekend so we decided to have a weekend of cuddling, movie-watching, napping, and of course, sipping hot cocoa.


This was Marie's first cup of Gramma K's homemade mix - a milestone in my side of the family.
Marie loved stirring her "coffee" and was certain that it needed to be stirred as often as possible.
I am sure we will be mixing up another batch soon!

First Snow

So at 5:00 this morning I scared awake and looked at our alarm clock to see that it was not working. We had been of power for who knows how long and we had a nice layer of white sloppy snow on the ground.

Marie loved using the flashlight to eat her cereal and insisted that she be the one to hold it for everyone.

Andy thought 6:00 a.m. was the perfect time to get out and play in the snow so he and Marie built the first snowman of of the season. I am sure Marie will be sad to see it melting away today as the temp is supposed to rise above 40.

**Charlie News**
I picked up Charlie from the vet yesterday afternoon. His surgery was on Monday and went very well. Now we have to keep him very still as much as possible so the healing can begin. He can only go outside to the bathroom for short trips and always on a leash. Eventually we can increase the walks to 5 minutes, then 10 minutes, then finally at 8 weeks he can be at normal activity.

It will be interesting, but I can tell that he is still in some pain so he is pretty low key at this point. Marie was so excited to have him back home. When she got home from school she just laid down by him and gave him kisses.

**Andy News**
Monday was also Andy's interview at a hospital in Des Moines. Once again it was more of a recruiting session to get Andy to pick them. The interview went very well which will just make our decision even more difficult. We are so thankful for the way the interviews are going and are looking forward to our next one in Sioux City.

Jumping in the Leaves

With the chilly wind came a leaf-covered lawn.

It only made sense to rake a big pile and jump in! Marie was loving it and it inspired our poor Charlie to get a little more frisky as well resulting in me being tackled while Andy tried to take pictures of it all. The kids got him back by tackling him as well while I got to snap the picture.

Charlie Update

For those of you interested in our other child, Charlie, we had our consult with the surgeon on Wednesday. We have scheduled the surgery for Monday, November 7th. All of us were concerned with the amount of pressure he is applying to his left leg which has already had 2 surgeries so we agreed we needed the surgery to occur as soon as possible.

It looks like we will be doing the more invasive procedure because of the faster recovery time. It will allow Charlie to apply more pressure to both hind legs faster, thus, relieving his back left leg from all that weight.

We will have to keep him on very short leash walks once he is able to use his back right leg which won't be easy. We are also going to look into water therapy at our boarding facility where they have a therapy pool and underwater treadmill available to use in the winter. Charlie is being so good even though we know he is frustrated and in pain. Marie keeps giving him extra kisses and always warns us to be careful around his leg.
***
Also, Andy had his first interview yesterday in Mason City. He was pleasantly surprised with the package they were offering including housing for a much reduced rate that is within walking distance to the hospital. The town was busy and full of fun activities as well.

We were very thankful for some information and it actually made us feel more secure in our future...they even mentioned finding me a job!

More Halloween Advenutures

Thursday night we attended Night Eyes at the zoo in Des Moines. Marie got to trick-or-treat around the zoo in the dark as we followed a path lit by all kinds of spooky lighting and figurines. The best part of the night was being right by the lion as he roared at all the trick-or-treaters walking by.
We continued celebrating Halloween this weekend with a trip to NW Iowa to visit our families. First we stopped in Spencer to spend some time with Grammy and Papa. Marie loved helping Grammy make pumpkin cookies for Daddy and Papa while they were gone hunting. It was a welcomed warm treat for them when they returned.
On Saturday night we headed to Granville to attend the annual Halloween Party. Chris & Mindy were in charge this year so we were there to help run the games and contests. Marie absolutely loved running around with her cousins Abby, Alissa, Whitnee, and Brandon. They were all helping her do the fish pond and bean bag toss games over and over again.
Marie even won a prize for her costume!
In other news....poor Charlie had a rough weekend. While enjoying his first weekend of hunting this fall, he injured his ACL in his back right leg which will require surgery. This will be his 3rd surgery: 2 on his back left leg and now this one on his back right leg. He is in quite a bit of pain right now so he in on meds and we will be consulting with a specialist this week to find out which type of surgery is necessary and how soon...keep our bud in your thoughts this week please.

Pumpkin Time

This is one of those weeks where we can barely get through one day's activities before we are thinking of the next day's to-do list.

Andy started an ER rotation with alternating weeks of working days and nights, I am prepping for conferences and holding several meetings, Marie has decided to amp up her independence and toddler-isms this week with some tense mornings, the daycare had to unexpectedly close for the day due to a gas leak of some sort, and Charlie is soooo ready to go hunting on Saturday he can hardly sit still anymore.

That being said, we did find some time to enjoy our pumpkins.


Marie insisted on putting on her cat costume to do this. Like I said, she is VERY into expressing her independence this week. She will get to wear her costume 2 more times, too. On Thursday night we are planning to attend Des Moines Blank Park Zoo for Night Eyes. She can hardly wait. Plus, we are going back to NW IA this weekend to visit family so she will get to wear her cat costume again at the Granville Halloween party with Alissa & Abby.

A small discovery

A few nights ago I was getting Marie's bed put together when I noticed something lying under the covers. I picked it up and realized it was one of her ear tubes!

We had been expecting them to fall out for quite some time but never found one...figuring we had vacuumed it up or something.

I couldn't believe how small it was. Something that small provided such great relief to her for a long time.

We just had an appointment with her ENT in September and he said that her ears were looking great and we had no reason to expect another tube surgery in the future - great news!

Grandma Nel + Sadie

This past weekend we were lucky to have Grandma Nel and Sadie come down from Sheldon to spend the weekend with us. Andy was in Philli taking a test so it was a girls weekend (plus Charlie).

We got to enjoy beautiful weather while playing at the park, shopping, and attending the Children's Garden Annual Halloween Party. Marie really enjoyed it this year with her friends. Her favorite part was dancing to the DJ in the dark with the smoke machine.

Andy got back on Saturday night just in time to play with play-doh. This was also the final weekend for my volleyball team. We won our first game, but lost the next two. It was a good season, a lot of fun, but I am glad it is over with now and I will get to have some nights free again.
Thanks for coming to visit Grandma Nel and Sadie!

Marie says...volume 3

Lately Marie has been saying some very cute and funny quotes.
Here are just a few we can remember:

"My mommy has a baby brother in her tummy" --Marie said this to her daycare teacher...let me just say VERY clearly --NOT TRUE

***

"Oh no Finn, I broke my eyebrow!" --Said to her friend at school when she hit her head on the door.

***

"Oh, what's her name again is sad." --Said to Andy while watching Jasmine cry on "Aladdin."

***

Mom: "How was your day?"
Marie: "I got sand in my eye."
Mom:"How did that happen."
Marie:"I said, No (insert naught daycare boy name here), I don't like that when you throw sand in my eyes ok? We need to be nice to our friends."
Mom:"That was good you used your words with him."
Marie: "Yeah, then he pushed me down. Silly (insert naught boy name again)" --Said in the car on the way home from daycare.

***

"Ahh, there's an alligator in my coffee!" --Said while she was in the bathtub 'making coffee' out of her bath water.

***

"Because my butt was too far away." -- Answering the question, "why didn't you put your pee in the potty chair?"

***

"Because I just telled you." -- Answering the question, "why don't you want to go to bed."

***

"Aww Charzo Barzo, does your tummy hurt? Here, let me kiss it." --In response to seeing an unpleasant sight on the carpet when we got home from school...and yes, she kissed his tummy.

Marie: "Mommy I went potty in the toilet! Are you happy Mommy?"
Mom: "Yes I am so happy, Marie."
Kristina (Teacher at Daycare): "She's so cute."
Marie: "Mom, am I so cute?"

***

"Now listen, it's time to take a deep breath and calm your body, and go to sleep now." --Said while putting her stuffed panda to bed. Obviously she is listening when we tell her the same thing at night!

***

"Mom can you open the door for me? Thanks, you are so wonderful."

***

Marie: "Oh, I hear a big giant airplane in the sky. Wait, is it big or little?"
Mom: "Big."
Marie: "Right, big! Good job, Mom." --Said this morning when putting her into the car.

***

Marie:"Something hurts."
Dad:"what hurts?"
Marie:"My armpit, neck, and my knee." --Getting out of bed for the 4th time at night and requesting special medicine on them...vaseline works wonders on this procrastinating girl at bedtime!

Fabulous Fall Weekend

We are finally out of the crazy fall heat wave of 80 degrees and into my favorite time of year - 60 degrees and below.

Which meant that this was the perfect weekend to go to the pumpkin patch/petting zoo/crazy slide/jumping pillow/apple orchard/corn pool/ I could go on and on...

Marie has been asking to go to the "punkin patch" all week so she was thrilled when Saturday rolled around. We started out with the animals. Marie has no fear with animals and loved feeding the many goats, ducks, chickens, pigs, and turkeys.

She also found the nursery rhyme area with the 3 Little Pig homes. She decided to be a little piggy, too.

We tried the corn pool again, but she decided it still wasn't for her. So, we settled on a cider slush and caramel apple instead.

Next we went on the jumping pillow. I didn't know how she would react to the craziness, but she loved it. We were laughing so hard we could hardly stand up. After 3 turns on the pillow, our legs were tired...but not too tired to climb the hill to the super slide. We all went down the slide together with our arms in the air. A few high schoolers backed away because they were nervous, but not Marie!

What a great evening at the patch!

High Achiever

Wouldn't you know that after that lengthy and dramatic potty post a few days ago, our Marie has decided that this potty thing is not so bad after all. She is always out to prove us wrong...
She has only had 1 accident all week!

Plus, she is proving to be adventurous...putting her #2 in the potty, too.

(Maybe more information that any of you wanted to know, but I definitely thought it was worth sharing. That is a HUGE accomplishment!)

Her teachers are so proud of her at school, and we are so proud of her at home. She is even stopping while playing and telling us she has to use the potty.

I guess that "potty treat bag" was the way to go!

PEE-autiful Potty Training

We did it.

We took the plunge and said "no more diapers."

(What were we thinking???)

Friday night started out with brand spanking new Minnie Mouse and Daisy Duck underwear, a trip to McDonalds for "big girl" chicken nuggets (accident number 1), and a trip to the toy store at the mall (accident number 2 & 3) to celebrate our "big girl."

Let's just say that we now know we were expecting WAY too much out of our little Marie. How could she think about her potty when she is surrounded by toys and french fries?

Lesson learned.

We headed back home and proceeded to discuss when we potty, how we potty, and why we potty in the toilet and not on the floor, kitchen chairs, or in our pretty new underwear. We have a few potty books explaining it all which have been so helpful. When the little girl has an accident in the book, Marie can relate and she tells her, "it's ok, you will pee in the potty next time."
We had a few successes on Friday night but we knew that we were in for a long and wet weekend.

Saturday morning started out with a success followed by lots and lots of carpet cleaning if you know what I mean. Andy & I were feeling defeated and we didn't know if this was going to work. Marie on the other hand didn't seem to mind the mess, but she was feeling a little out of control and we could tell that her mind was working and trying to make sense of it all...

On Saturday evening, Andy & I were having yet another potty brainstorming session. Suddenly, Marie galloped past us and into the bathroom. She sat on the potty chair and had success all by herself!

Needless to say we celebrated - danced, yelled, sang, and rewarded her with a treat from her "Potty Treat Bag."

Sunday was a great day. Things seemed to be clicking right along and we even made a trip to the store with no accidents. We had a few set backs in the evening, but she got right back on track before bedtime.
We didn't do a lot of running around this weekend of course because we were focused on Marie and training. However, it was a great weekend to just be at home as a family. Marie has been spending a lot of time outside with Charlie in the grass lately. He runs out to lay in the sun and chew a bone and Marie sits next to him and talks his ear off...what dog lets a little girl lay on him while he sleeps and chews a bone?

Our dog.

Marie is at school today with several extra sets of clothes for her accidents which we know she will have, but I am so proud of her for what she has accomplished so far. I am hoping that being around her potty-trained friends will make her even more aware of using the toilet.

And, I am so proud of her mom & dad for not completely freaking out and quitting on Saturday...believe me, it was tempting. We have a long road ahead of us but thankfully we have this initial training weekend behind us.

A Marvelous Mess

Lately, we have been busy scheduling interviews for Andy as he is applying to residency programs around the midwest. So far he has been invited to interview all over: Sioux City, Mason City, Lincoln, Des Moines, Mankato, and other places that I am forgetting.

Although this is a very exciting time for us, it is also stressful.

We want to make sure that we make the best decision for the whole family. There is so much to consider: my career, Marie's schooling, housing opportunities, daycare, our families, Charlie (yes...he is a factor for us to consider), and of course the best possible training for Andy for his 3 year residency in family medicine.

Des Moines has been an amazing home to us and we are very close to our friends and our connections here. Everything is set here...our home, school, job, daycare, and doctors.
We are comfortable.

On the other hand, a move could mean we are closer to our family, a different job opportunity for me, more rural training for Andy, closer to leisure activities we love to do (hunting), and closer to friends.

The past 3 years have flown by and we can't believe we are at this time in Andy's schooling. The thought of 4 years of medical school seemed unending to us when we moved to Des Moines in 2008.
Now here we are .
Honestly, it feels a bit like what Marie's hands look like in these pictures...messy.

We are starting interviews soon and would appreciate your thoughts and prayers as we make this decision.

In the end, we know we will be guided in the right direction.

Football Saturday

We had another beautiful tailgate Saturday, and this time we stuck around for the game. Andy's Uncle Tom and Aunt Mary were visiting from Michigan so they could see their Horns take on the Cyclones.

Marie was loving all the extra attention and even got to see Aunt Liz, Grammy, and Papa.

While at the game, Papa took Marie down on the field where she got an up close look at the band and the field. Although it was chilly, Marie stayed warm with plenty of cuddling and popcorn.

At one point Marie turned around to Grammy and said, "I like this!"

I guess this means more football games are in our future!

Looking Good!

After too many mornings dealing with snarls and tangles, I decided it was time to get Marie's hair cut for the first official time.
I have done a few snips here and there but she needed a good cut.
I knew she would be a little nervous, but after a sucker, balloon, bubbles, and finally sitting on daddy's lap, she calmed down and sat still the whole time.

The stylist cut over 2 inches off! This cut makes her look so much older!

In other news....Daddy is home! He has just completed his 4th and FINAL (yeah!!!) rotation away from us. Marie and I have been home alone in Des Moines for the month while Andy was in Sioux City and Charlie was in Spencer for three of the four weeks.

Andy had a great rotation in the family med program there. It is a possible residency site for us so it was a very important rotation for him. He really enjoyed it and got great hands-on experience delivering many babies. That being said, it's soooo good to be under one roof again.