I O What?

IoWA, that's what. Yep, I thought of that all on my own. ;) Well, as you probably know, Cedar Falls, IA is where we will be calling home in about a month and a half and Scott will be working for John Deere. Yikes. I'm not ready for starting over again in another new city, but hopefully there won't be another move in the near future. Well, I want to be organized when we move and since that seems to be impossible for me, especially with two young kids, that means I shouldn't spend my time blogging while they are sleeping.

It is amazing the mess two kids can make (well, it is mostly just the one...:) ), but I love them so much it makes it not so bad.

A couple quick facts about our move:

1). We want company!!!!

2). John Deere is packing up all our stuff for us, moving it, and storing it, if we need it. Soooo thankful for that!

3). I never wanted to marry a farm boy (unlike my Mom), so I married a city boy. Never thought he'd move me to rural Iowa (ok, not super rural, but smaller town than I've lived in since freshman year of college, and surrounded by farm land) and work for a tractor company, haha. Funny how things work out!

4). We have yet to find a great home to purchase, so prayer on that front would be appreciated. Thanks to my Dad for accompanying me on the first trip--it would have been a disaster if he wasn't there, as Scott had to stay home and work.

5). We are looking in Cedar Falls, not Waterloo. Apparently, it is a better place for schools and living...we'll see :)

6). We hope to find a wonderful church, as we are leaving a wonderful church.

7). We want company!!!! :)

Ok, should sign out now. I need to go wash Blake's pillow and teddy bear, as he wet the bed the past two nights (he was doing so well before...I hope this was just a fluke). He's been dry for weeks, so this was kind of surprising, b/c it was a lot of pee!!

Here's a couple pictures of my brother's wedding a couple weeks ago and a few of my kiddos!

The ring bearer

Got a little wet, haha

Me and my new sister

Taking a walk

Blake loves to take walks!!

Um, so does Sadie!!! ;) 

My kiddos--love them so much!!

Oh, look, a puppy. Lately, these two have been fighting quite a bit. Blake gets so mad at Sadie when she takes his toys (although he always takes hers) and Sadie doesn't give up and gets mad back. Fun stuff here in the Miles' household. :) 

A nice calm picture :)

My 8 month old beauty!!!!

She sure is fun and super adventurous. Today I found her standing on the first step--that was a first. Normally, she just pulls herself to a standing position--doesn't actually climb the first step! 

Blake counts, Sadie crawls, and Waterloo

I think it about time I posted some more videos :)

This first one is of Blake. He loves to record video and then watch it, so that is what we were doing in this clip:

Conversations with Blake

This next one documents Sadie's first day of learning to crawl!!! It is a long video, and if you'd like to skip ahead to the crawling (shaky as it is), it is right around 2:08 and 2:50 :)

Sadie crawls!!!

This last one is close ups of Sadie and also shows how Blake likes to copy people.

Sadie being a baby and Blake being 2

Hope you enjoyed these. Sometimes it can be a little boring watching other people's home videos, so I won't be offended if you skip them :)

And here's a few pictures during our trip to Waterloo to scout out the area while Scott interviewed with John Deere

This is just a cute picture of them together :) 

Cute one of Sadie, so it's going in the blog!

Blake with his arm around his sister and also wearing his stethoscope (my earphones)

Blake playing doctor--I had no idea he was paying attention to the doctor how many months ago (at least 6 since he was last there...or maybe he is remembering from Sadie's...???)

Bath time!! Unfortunately, we totally forgot there would be a pool,so no swim trunks...

Cute boy in a towel :) 

Thought this was so cute when I noticed...Blake loves to play with soap if you couldn't tell :) 

Scott needed an updated Linked In picture, so we snapped a few when he was dressed up for his interview. It is really hard getting a good picture of him when he poses--it never looks natural, but this one turned out well

 And, here's a couple bonus photos, but not from our trip:

Sadie sucks on everything now

Although we do not have pets, this is how Blake likes to feed his teddy and puppy...:)  He grabs these tins from the cabinet and gets them oatmeal.

Happy rainy days--hope everyone reading is not flooded!

Fun with Sadie

Ok, couple quick facts about Sadie, b/c I think they are cute.

Looking at Mommy while Daddy takes her picture

The above picture reminded me of something she does. Every time Scott leans in to kiss her, she looks at me. All. the. time. Especially when I am holding her and he kisses her. She has to glance at me as if to say, "What is this guy doing? Am I ok with this?? Is Mommy ok with this??" Cracks us up b/c she does it every time

Secondly, and this one we are a little worried about, is that this little lady loves to shop. I mean it, she loves it!! She is in the best mood whenever I take her shopping. Whether I am holding her and browsing or whether she is sitting in the cart and swinging her little legs.

We checked out Aldi for like the 3rd time every the other day, and they have a wider cart where Blake and Sadie can sit next to each other and she was giggling and smiling the whole time.

I brought her to the grocery store and held her the whole time and I got so many smile and kisses. :)

So fun, but bad news for the future and our pocketbooks, haha!!!

Ok, and can't forget about out little man!

Blake showing me his play dough...after that, he went around to the other side and I found out that lever was filled too :)

Great, thanks Blake

Blake and his play dough

Ok, Mater is filled with mixed colors--now I'll have to try to separate them :) 

Blake and Mommy chillin. Gotta love the cute little feet!

Quick job update

Scott's been busy lately searching and applying for jobs and we've been talking about it quite a bit. Where to live, what he's looking for in a job, pros and cons of locations and jobs, the fact that not all our criteria match up to the perfect job...

So, here's the update on what he currently has on the table: 

Offer with BRP in Sturdevant, WI (near Milwaukee)

Fri, June 13th - Interview with John Deere in Waterloo, IA

Mon, June 16th - Interview with Thermo King in Bloomington, MN

Discussions with former bosses/managers about positions in Fridley, MN, Columbus, IN, and Seymour, IN. 

So, as you can see, we are all across the board. 

BRP--Pro: Position he thinks he would enjoy the most; good offer; will move us; WI is nice and has lakes :) 

          Con: Location

John Deere--Pro: Decent location in relation to family; decent job description

                    Con: Not excited about the location in general; complete desk job, so not the most desireable

Thermo King--Pro: Great location; only a decent job description as he won't actually be working on engines

                       Con: Not exactly what he wants to do

Cummins/Fridley--Pro: Location and working on engines

                              Con: He left there for a reason last time, would be working for boss in Columbus, satellite isn't great

Cummins/Seymour--Pro: Best career move; exciting job; great boss

                                 Con: Location is so far from family; Seymour isn't exciting

Cummins/Columbus--Pro: Exciting job and company with lots of opportunities

                                   Con: Location is far from family, but better than Seymour :) 

So, as you can see, there is a lot to think about!! We love what MN has to offer in regards to waterskiing lakes, cabins, snowmobiling trails (ok, this is mostly Scott's loves, but hey, he's my man and I want him to be happy). We love that it is close to family. Unfortunately, they don't have a wonderful job for him doing what he loves and what his experience is in. Not wonderful opportunities, but there still are good opportunities, so we are working through them and hope to know relatively soon! Next week we have to give BRP an answer, so next week we should know whether we will be in Milwaukee!! :)

If anyone has any great ideas for us, let me know :) 

Here's a few pictures of my loves: 

Sadie Jane

Love her face here :) 

Look at those teeth!

Where are my kids???

There they are!!! Sadie made her way under here, and Blake joined her and shut the door :) 

Scott and Sadie...look closely...

...yep, she's sleeping. Hard to tell without looking close :) 

Me and my little man

Spring is here!

With spring comes new bikes!!!

Blake just got a balance bike (a bike with no pedals to help him learn to balance, which then makes the transition to a pedal bike easy since the child already knows how to balance). If he catches on, he should be able to ride a bide without training wheels and at an earlier age than normal. I was super excited about this purchase, as was he!!

Look at that little stud!

 And with spring comes new hair styles!!!

Scott loves shaving off part of his goatee, and then waiting for me to notice. Last time it was just the stash. :) haha
He just got a haircut last night (I cut off quite a bit), and so the facial hair is also coming off for the summer. :) 

 We also had cousins come to visit!!!

Violet is a champ and holding Sadie all by herself! 

 Love it when they come because I love watching how Blake and Sam interact. They are the best of friends and just love playing with each other!!

My brother Kyle & his lovely wife, Sarah

Kyle, Sarah, and the kids will be heading to Russia, probably in January of next year, to be long term missionaries. We sure will miss them here, but so glad they are in the Lord's will! Love you guys!!

Sadie's news

Sadie!!! You are now able to sit up and just got your first tooth! Congratulations!!

Sadie can now sit up quite well, without any assistance. 

Look at that form! ;) 

If you look closely, you can see a tooth on the left hand side and another peeking through the gums. 

She has been a champ during teething, but had a rough night last night, so she came and joined us in our bed. Consequently, I didn't get great sleep either, b/c I am not used to a baby in my bed. I never did this with Blake, but I do keep waking up to check on her and make sure she's ok and no blankets over her face.

Don't get used to it, chica!!

Sadie during tummy time

She's getting so good at it and moving around a bit!

Me and my little lady

Me and my kiddos. Sadie sure loves her older brother, who still to this day, is the only one who can truly make her laugh. 

Wasted resources

Ok, so I sat down to write a quick blog with like 2 or 3 pictures and then realized how many there were that I wanted to share, so this will just end up being more than one post. :)

I am now typing upstairs b/c we moved our computer and computer desk upstairs so Scott can shut the door and work on his thesis when he needs to. The countdown begins!!

Lately, Blake has been wasting resources left and right: lotion, as you saw in an earlier post, Parmesan cheese, shampoo, toilet paper (from "blowing" his nose, over and over and over again), water (while "washing" his hands"), etc. You get the gist.

Want some pasta to go with that cheese??

Mmmm, cheese...and no, I didn't let him eat the whole bowl of cheese

Shampoo is another wasted resource...I need to stop buying expensive shampoo!!

Blake realizing he has too much and trying to clean it off with toilet paper. 

And more toilet paper...:)

He kept this expression on his face as he was trying to clean up, which was hilarious.  I couldn't stop laughing at him (or taking pictures) :) 

What is this slimy stuff?? 

So, in just over a month, Blake and his cousin Sam are going to be in my brother's wedding, so we needed to get them shoes. I stopped by Kohls to get some shoes and passed by their Godiva display which they always have by the checkout. Why do they do this?! Ok, I obviously know why, but every time I resist grabbing some of the expensive chocolate b/c lets face it, I'm cheap :) Well, today was no exception and I really wanted a piece. They had Kohls cash available today (buy $50 get $10 Kohls cash), so I thought, "if I don't quite make it to $50, then I'll just make up the difference with some chocolate!" Turned out, the signs were old and Kohl's cash was not available. Oh well, didn't need it anyway :(

While checking out, Blake is still in the cart and I see him hunched down doing something. I look and what is he doing??? Unwrapping a Godiva chocolate bar!!! "Blake, NO!" came out of my mouth while secretly I was thinking "YES!! Now I HAVE to buy it!" :) I didn't feel guilty about spending the money at all b/c I was just being a responsible Mother by buying the item my child "destroyed."

Thanks Blake, for the unexpected treat (and no, he didn't get any, hahahaha)! This is one resource I didn't mind him "wasting." :)

Dark Chocolate Mint Chocolate Chip--nice selection, Blake!