Happy Birthday Brett

About a week before Brett's birthday I called my brother. "Hey... when are we going out for your birthday? I can't wait for RED MEAT!"

Perhaps I have mentioned before, my Dad (and Chris of course) takes us out to dinner wherever we want for a family birthday meal. I think Brett, Rachel, Mark and I have all come to look forward to each person's special restaurant experience.

Anyway...true to Brett form, since the Birthday Dinner was instituted, Brett always picks one of the Twin Cities finest steak houses. The past three years you can find us at a table for 6 at Manny's in the Hotel W. Can I tell you Brett's Birthday Dinner out is worth every single penny we invest in our babysitter (and then some....)!

It has become Mark and my tradition to leave early enough to have a cocktail in the bar before our meal. Like Manny's meat extravagance, the bar does not disappoint. The people watching is fabulous. For a few minutes, Mark and I pretend to be hip. Last Friday I had an interesting chat with a woman dining alone at the bar. She had a bottle of Italian water and a bottle of red wine in front of her. She explained in just a few days she was travelling to Belize for a 4 week vacation with her boyfriend who plays major league baseball in Milwaukee. She appeared the most typical of Minnesotan's, (she even showed us her MN Twin's tattoo on her bikini line, then explained she was also Ron Gardenhire's niece). She alerted us she was sparing no expense on one of her last meals out in our fine state.

Anyway, everyone arrived and we had an amazing and fun evening. We all get dressed up. Of course, neither Brett nor I had our camera. Rachel was a total hottie in a black dress and heels. My Dad wore his initial cuff links. (I wore a BP Factory Outlet teal sleeveless dress with a ruffle down the front, black footless tights, quilted black flats, and a flee market brass beaded necklace.) Like past years, we went up to the Prohibition Bar on the 37th floor of the Foshay for a nightcap.

My birthday gift for Brett on his 33 birthday on 10-10-10??? - A sizable bottle of Hendrick's Gin purchased at Morelli's on Payne on my way home from work Friday! I am sure I got a good deal. (Oh.. and I picked up one of their homemade frozen pizza's for the kid's supper too.)

Love you Brett! Happy Birthday! Love you Dad for our birthday meals, and everything more!

The Return of Mickey

When I told my co-workers the story of the catch and release of Mickey Mouse in our home last week, I was warned. He would return... or send friends.

Indeed, this is true. Around 6:20 am this morning, Ramona the Cat found her playmate. But, before I even knew there was a mouse in the house, Mark had AGAIN caught the little pest in Pyrex!

I told Mark this time we needed to KILL the pest. Mark began to put on running pants and shirt to go outside. He started laughing, kind of like a neverous teenager. When Mark starts to laugh like this, it means he knows he's doing something he shouldn't, but he is going to do it anyway, and pretend something else.

Translation - Mark really had no idea how to kill the little pest either, and was going to release Mickey (or his friend) again, because he couldn't or wouldn't squash Mickey!

So, my husband got in the car, drove to the park by the river, and dumped Mickey. He appeared half dead. We hope this is the end to our rodent problem, but we fear it is NOT. We think Mickey may have told all the little mousies out there about the feast on the Thomberg's kitchen floor because Mrs. Thomberg doesn't sweep often enough.....

We do have traps out, and poison, and such.

Renaissance Festival 2010

Sunday Dad and Chris took Marly, Dean and me to the Renaissance Festival on a picture perfect fall afternoon. Marly and Dean were dolled up in costumes courtesy of Nana Chris. They will also be playing the role of a Fairy Princess and King for Halloween.

After eating a cupcake right inside the entrance, we checked out two men fencing. (Fun Fact - while studying abroad in England at the Alnwick Castle, I took a class on the sport for a P.E. credit from an English woman named Margery. She also taught British history. She wore her VERY long hair in a braid wrapped around her head. She unwrapped her long braid to put on her fencing gear!)

Next we headed off to find more nourishment in the form of a giant turkey leg and a pork chop on a stick.

Here we are on a camel ride!

This might have been one of my favorite moments of the day. How often do you get to ride on a camel with your Dad and your children?

The Twinners went on to ride the ponies...

and butterflies...(while I got to sip on a belinni!)

Honestly, M&D were ALL smiles, ALL day long (and so was I).

The adventure was complete when Grandpa took the Twinner's back for an elephant ride before departing.

Seeing your Dad on an elephant with his precious grandkids - PRICELESS.

(Well... and my dad also paid for all the animal rides - But it was STILL priceless!

This and That

• Mark has a new role at the 'Bou. He is a multi-unit/area manager. In a remarkable twist from my usual reality (where Mark gets up and leaves long before I wake), today he was in his bathrobe working on line at the kitchen table when I rose. He made pancakes for the kids and took them to daycare. I was cruising towards work before 8 am. WOW! We even navigated our relatively small bathroom together without dissent!
• I am just fine! I LOVE fall and find little moments of bliss here and there. In the summer I feel pressure to socialize, get out, be somewhere, find water, pursue extended family activities, etc. In the fall, I find contentment all around me, and close to home (although I long for the country harvest). Apple orchards, pumpkins, and crisp, colorful leaves beacon me (along with Marly, Dean and Mark).
• The kids are fun. Dean seems to think EVERYTHING is a race. Getting dressed first, getting undressed first. First to the front, first to eat, etc. He is constantly exclaiming, "I WON!" I do not know what he is winning. I do know he gets upset when Marly has all components of her attire on FIRST.
• They have been potty trained for nearly a year. I chuckle every single time one of them yells, "WIPE MY BUTT!" from the bathroom. My smile gets wider when I appear, and one of them is standing there with their little butt in the air, and their hands planted on the floor. Okay, that may be a little weird.
• Marly is shy in public. She is clearly not comfortable at Sunday School unless daddy stays in the room. Dean is doing just fine. He is an eager listener ready to learn.
• Both kids love swimming lessons at the YMCA. They conclude at 7:20, so last Monday I donned my suit and joined them in the pool for open swim before going home. They are definately picking something up in class. I was glad to give them more water time to practice. They love the water, so they are not in class to simply to gain COMFORT. The only problem came when it was time to go home for bed. Dean didn't want to leave. He SCREAMED the whole time we were in the Family Locker Room. It is possible others thought I was beating my child behind the locked door of shower/changing room #5.
• I am finding great enjoyment in our yard. To us, it is a pretty place. I love our mature trees. Yes...we have worked hard to create an expanse of lush, suburban, weed-free lawn. We have pruned and pulled. We have a swing set. We attempted a garden, with little success. We enjoy! Marly and Dean are excited with the prospect of a leaf pile in the month ahead.
• I changed out my lack-luster, puny, red geraniums for yellow mums and gourds in our front planters. The geraniums looked awful, so I was ecstatic to move on. I purchased cheap mums at Walmart. The truth is, they are not thriving either. I suck!
• The palms on our patio DID thrive. I removed the flower heavy inpatients from the bottom and they are finding homes inside.
• We ate supper on the patio last night. It was a gorgeous fall day. The time to eat outdoors is limited. The kiddy pool is deflated and returned to storage in the garage.
• I pushed the kids on the swing forever last night after supper.... because soon this opportunity will be gone too.
• Marly is still strongly attached to her two blankies. Dean loves Oscar more then ever. Those three items go with Marly and Dean most places.
• Dean is much taller then Marly. Marly has lost her chubby cheeks. They bear no similarities in appearance, and surely don't look like twins. But, they ARE every bit TWINS. Marly told me yesterday Dean was her best friend. At daycare, our provider says they always like to sit by each other at meal time and often hug each other, etc. I am very comfortable with this. They act independently in groups as well.
• Dean loves yogurt and Mac n' Cheese. Marly probably likes ice cream more then Dean.
• I love listening to Marly and Dean converse with each other.
• I wish I knew what "Mocha Mocha" meant.
• Marly has a variety of favorite stuffed animals, which she rotates between. Most of them do not have names. She does have a blond dolly named "Inga".
• The Twinners remember things and ask questions (as you would expect of their age). They know their family, and identify and converse about so many things. They were at Brett and Rachel's this past weekend. Rachel picked them up at my Dad's. She travelled home and Dean insisted she was going the WRONG way. When she finally convinced him they were heading to her house, Dean started requesting a boat ride. When Kelly comes to get them, they know she will arrive in a fast, yellow car.
• They clearly adore all of their grandparents.
• I need to lose a few pounds. I put on black dress pants the other day for the first time this season. I thought I was going to bust out of them at the end of the day.
• I use capital letters too often in my blog.

Tonic Sol-fa, Chili & Mickey Mouse

So what have the Thomberg's been up to lately? Just this and that. Lately, I have been trying to take the time to enjoy all those little moments in life. You know... the usual stuff. I've been having fun enjoying just getting my three year olds dressed in the morning. What a great stage in life we are at with the Twinner's.

This past weekend Mark and I attended a Tonic Sol-fa concert at St. Ben's. It was a fundraiser for Gillette put on by an amazing young woman who is a student there. She connected with Children's Miracle Network because she was a contestant for Miss MN. Anyway, the event was an entertaining night away for Mark and I.

Beyond that, we enjoyed the nice weather and our yard. Mark made up a big pot of Al Roker's Chili on Sunday.

Later in the evening, at bedtime, I noticed Ramona the Cat poised and ready to pounce, steady at the stove. I knew instantly what this meant. Surely a mouse was under there.

Indeed I was correct. About 20 minutes later I heard scuffling in the kitchen. "Mark... get up.. there is a mouse out there!" And so we did. We successful caught Mickey in a corner in the basement after chasing him about a bit. (Ramona does not have claws. She likes to play and toy with Mickey and his friends.)

Here is Mickey's back side in a Pyrex dish. What I did next was probably a mistake. I released him "into the wild" of our suburban street. My co workers tell me he will RETURN TO THE WARMTH of my home and kitchen.

Oh dear...All because I wasn't quite sure how to kill the little bugger without grossing myself out. Next time I will make my husband "be a man" and take care of it!

I also spent some time "jazzing things up" for fall and Halloween. More on that in another post.

Jazzing Up the Bathroom

When we moved into our home a year and 1/2 ago, Mark put up our pre-existing Pottery Barn shower curtain, painted to match, threw down the rug, changed out the standard flush wall mount mirror to a framed style, and that was that.

I mentioned we later changed out our toilet this summer (due to necessity), and now we finally "jazzed it up" a bit! (The bathroom, not the toilet.)

I feel bad posting about our decorating after my "Life Lesson from Craig's List", but the "jazzing" occurred before my post. And...well, who am I kidding - Mark and I really enjoy decorating.

Anyway... we recently added two Ikea shelves above the toilet and the 3 Ikea glass storage containers. Two of them are very functional and contain cotton pads (I use daily and now have easy access to) and Q-tips. The plant use to sit on top of the toilet.

Next, I searched Etsy (Catagory 'Art' , search word 'fern' since this was my initial vision for the wall hangings). I wanted just the right thing (within my meager budget) to add some pizazz to the wall opposite the entry door. I saw something I liked from a crafter called Crafterall. I sent Crafterall a special request, and we started a "convo". I explained what I planned to do, and she created three 5X7 custom papercuts to fit my in-expensive Ikea frames. It turned out the lady was located in nearby Shorewood! The items she created are perfect,unique, and neat works of art!

I LOVE Etsy. You can search endless avenues for gifts, decor, kids items, clothes, WHATEVER - hand made from across the world. Often, you work directly with the crafter/creator (like I have done on several occasions) to get exactly what you hope for! If you have never visited, go take a look. Thrift Stores - another love! The Kleenex box above is thrifted along with the garbage below (brand new with tags from Target). Oh... and the little finger towels hanging on the towel bar above the toilet. All these items were purchased here and there over many months.

The sink - finished off with my favorite Mrs. Meyer's hand soap (the bottle label happens to match the paint) and an antique jewelry box with a "T" inscribed on the top, which Mark bought me one Christmas off E-bay. And finally, a tiny vase and fake flowers purchased for a few bucks at Ikea.

There you have it! Our "jazzed up" bathroom!

Nickel Dickel Days

Sometime over the summer, Rachel asked Mark if he wanted to run the Nickel Dickel 5K in Waconia with her. Sure! What a great way for Mark to motivate himself to start working out, right?

Back in the day (when the Twinners were just infants) Mark use to run a 5K's here and there. The first one after the kids birth was in May. It was the Get in Gear 5K at Minnehaha Park in Mpls. Mark, Rachel and our friend Jeremy all ran. M&D took their first bus shuttle and light rail ride that day. Of course the Duo-Glide was dragged along. Our trusty Graco stroller was a necessity back then. I might have breast fed in the middle of the park while waiting near the finish. I remember M&D were wearing darling coordinating red and white Gap outfits. A few weeks later, Mark ran the Grand Ole' Days 5K, and then the Lumberjack Days 5K in Stillwater. Me, the Duo-Glide, and the Twinner's were along to cheer Daddy on for each one, and we enjoyed it. I would push the kids up the street to find a latte while Mark ran. That was three years ago...

...And it may have been the last time Mark ran, until this past Saturday! (So much for getting in shape.)

Rachel, Mark, and Mark's friend Mike. Notice Mark is wearing a DMB concert T-shirt. Some sort of consolation being he couldn't attend. The Twinner's and I drove separate and met them, since we stayed overnight at Brett and Rachel's.

Marly started chanting, "Go Daddy Go!" a block and a half before we arrived at the finish line.

I must find the similar post-run photo at the Get in Gear 5K three years ago! Things look a little different now.

Afterwards we enjoyed all the activities in the park, including the bounce house.

Thanks Rachel for helping inspire a fun day for all!