Free Range Family

Christmas was wonderful. I would have posted last night, but after everything we had done yesterday, I got home and laid down and passed out lol. At least I got farther than Alan, he fell asleep on the ride home from Great Aunt Carolyn's house! :P We were so busy all day and it exhausted us! :) But there was snow on the ground and we had a blessed day with our families, I couldn't have asked for a better Christmas! We woke up just in time to watch the Disney Christmas Parade on tv. Alan really had fun dancing and singing and clapping with all of his favorite Disney characters and he always would get excited whenever he saw Mickey Mouse lol. :) We opened our Christmas presents from each other, and I was pleased to see that Lon did not get me a Shake Weight lol. I do not like those, and wasn't happy when he told me that he "might have bought" one for me. Jerk! :D He instead got me a Yoda alarm clock and a Fushigui ball. He also enjoyed all the toys Alan and I had

And all through the Village Inn, there was a ton of commotion because the Andersen family was having there traditional Christmas Eve dinner! Lol, I tried to make it sound like the book... Keyword being Tried. :P Merry Christmas Eve everyone! :D  Now I know it seems odd that I celebrate Christmas, being a Buddhist and my husband having his own scientific theories of creation lol. But let me clarify, my family only celebrates Christmas for the family get together and Santa Claus apsets. Afterall the rest of my family are Christian and Lutheran, and get together every Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Why wouldn't we participate in that??? :) We respect all religions and thus we celebrate Christmas and Easter in the more story, more commercial aspect. My son loves celebrating things and seeing his family, so we want to give him what we had as children. As you can guess, we went to the Village Inn for dinner tonight. As tradition with my family, we spend Christmas Eve with the Ander

Today marks the four year anniversary of my miscarriage. I was about 15 weeks along and the doctors knew it was a girl. We had named her Rosalie June. <3 Everyday I think about her, and what it would be like if she were here. She would be around three and a half years old now. Wow that's incredible to think! *Sigh* Since its been four years and I've made my peace with her passing, I'm trying not to dwell on it too much on my blog today. I still ask everyone to light a candle and say a prayer (in whatever religion you follow) for my daughter. I believe her soul exists still out there, and she is happy to see how far I have come. I love her so very much and know that she will always be a part of my life. <3 Rest in Peace Rosalie June Kimmel December 18, 2006

One year ago today, I was diagnosed with Postpartum Anxiety Disorder and mild Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. It was my mother-in-law who was the one that convinced me to get help and better myself. I had never really dealt with a mental disorder before (except for mild Post Traumatic Stress Disorder from an abusive relationship in highschool) and thus was in the dark about seeking help. I was scared to tell my parents and my doctor, because of fear of the unknown. My family hasn't seen a lot of mental disorders in our life, so I didn't feel like they would know how to deal with it. I was having a hard time dealing with it myself. But there was no denying it. (For those of you that don't know) Postpartum Anxiety Disorder- A disorder characterized by constant, uncontrollable, moderate to severe anxiety and depression in a woman after she has given birth. Can happen soon after delivery or up to a year after. Similar to Postpartum Depression except that the woman experiences

Please forgive me if some of this rambles or I repeat myself. I am exhausted and ready for bed. But first, I promised a post. :) So bear with me lol... At the early hours of 4 am, my sisters, Natalie's friend Jessica and I were waiting outside of Target, freezing to death in the long line. Thankfully we had gotten there previously, as the line continued on behind us all the way around the back of the building! We made it inside by 4:10 and instantly set off to find the best sales. I am displeased to say, that Target didn't have a lot that I was looking for this year. I ended up only getting a Grover stuffed animal and a small ornament. :P We went to Toys R Us next. I found Lon a lego set and Alan his Elmo trainer potty. Then we went for a coffee break at City Brew. Or maybe that was before Toys R Us lol. Hmmm... I don't remember lol, but I got an actual coffee today! That's how tired I was already feeling! :P Then we went to Walmart and I got Alan his Elmo potty D

I have a wonderful family that was just created two years ago (when Alan was concieved) and there was once a time where I thought this family would never have been. My husband and I have been married by common law now for eight months, and what a great eight months its been. I'm endlessly blessed and thankful for my beautiful, smart and amazing son who was born just fourteen and a half months ago. Alan Miakel, we love you so! We are blessed to have such a wonderful apartment to live in. It may be old and a little small for this family, but after living here for almost half a year now we are grateful to have it. I am thankful that Lon has a good paying job as a supervisor at the Village Inn and that I also have a good paying job that I love as an art teacher and Child Watch worker at the YMCA. Lon's been at his job now for almost eight years and I've been with the Y for almost three months now. I am thankful that Lon and I both have supportive families. Both of our

We had a great day today. Happy Halloween everyone! Alan wore his frog prince costume, I wore my princess costume and Lon once again went in his Daddy costume like he did last year lol (the same clothes he wears everyday). Will find and post pictures of at least Alan and I when I can, they are classic! :) For now check out my FB page, there's a few there. We spent our morning the usual Family Sunday way- snuggling in bed, eggs for breakfast, playing together as a family. But after Alan woke up from his afternoon nap, we got dressed in our costumes and started our Halloween trick or treating- Toddler style lol. We visited Alan's Great Grandpa Loiue and Great Grandma Marcia in the Valley Retirement Home, his Great Grandpa Floyd and Great Grandma Carol at their house, his Grandma and Grandpa Andersen at their house, Great Aunt Marnie and Great Uncle Doug where they lived (we went around their neighborhood a bit) and then we went around my parent's neighborhood with Aunt Apri

Well not quite lol, but I work like ALL the time these days. Which is the complete opposite yet oddly similar to what I was doing last year, when Alan was only a month old. I was a SAHM for his first year of life, and finally got a job just two days before his first birthday lol. I've now been working there for almost two months, and I love it. :) I get to work with kids, which is my passion, and Alan gets to interact with other children his age and older.  Its perfect! For those of you who don't know where I work now, I work at the Billings YMCA. I teach an art class for young children, run their birthday party program, and work in there Child Watch drop-in daycare. This keeps me very busy as I am working three different programs while most employees there only work one. I am there in the mornings til noon, then I go in from 3 to 8, and I work Saturdays too. But I thrive best sometimes in busy schedules, so I think I'll do okay. Plus when I get tired of one program, I ju

Lon convinced me that going to the pumpkin patch the Saturday before Halloween would not be a good idea, as all the good pumpkins would be gone. So today when I finished teaching my art class, the three of us went to the Maize at Grandpa's Farm, the local fall festivities headquarters, for some Great Pumpkin hunting! The main attraction there is the corn maze, but they also have a pumpkin and a squash patch, hay rides, pig races, hay jungle gym/ play ground, cow train and pedal car. We had quite the time exploring everything and experiencing the wonders of fall. :) Upon first arrival, we set Alan down to walk around a little and he was immeadiately off! He proudly led us to look at the tall cornstalks, the pedal cart track and then to the hay jungle gym, where he tried to climb the crickety old stairs! That gave me a bit of a heart attack lol, so we distracted him with pumpkin picking. Which Alan loved, by the way! :) He had too much of a hard time walking around on the uneven gr

We've all heard the saying, "You learn something new everyday." Well I am starting to believe that this is especially true with my son Alan. It seems like every single day I learn anywhere from ten to a thousand new things about him! How can this be so, you ask? You're his mother, shouldn't you already know everything about him? Of course not! Really lol? Alan is of course a growing toddler, so his personality, body and even mind status is changing daily. So of course I'm finding out new things about him, from what he likes and dislikes to how he responds to different things. As some of you may know, Sunday is a very important day of the week for my family, not because we go to church (which we don't, I am a practicing Buddhist that doesn't like organized religion and my husband is an atheist) but because Sunday has officially become our family day. Both of our jobs are closed on Sundays, so we make a point to do only family activities on Sunday. Tod

My husband thinks I'm absolutely insane for making such a big deal out of this year's Halloween, but what he forgets is that I'm like this every holiday, lmao! :D Holidays have always been very important for me and even more so now that I have my own son to celebrate with. This year's Halloween though is very special and important to me because this is Alan's first Halloween where he's able to participate. So I am going to be very particular about how we spend our night, er nights lol. :D I know, I know, I'm a total geek but here's my plan: Our Halloween celebrations will begin Friday October 29th. Alan and I have professional pictures in our Halloween costume (you gotta love Sears, they're so cheap I can get ridiculous pro pictures like these done lol!). We have yet to buy our costumes but should have by the end of the weekend. *Crossing my fingers* Alan and I are definitely doing a pair costume, either BoPeep and Sheep or Princess and Frog Prince

Today is Worldwide Pregnancy/Infant Loss Awareness Day. Please take the time to remember and support all who is affected by pregnancy/infant loss, as they often do not get a lot of support. Losing a child or even a pregnancy is one of the worst things that a woman could go through, yet the majority of women have gone through it in some way and don't receive any comfort. We must give them support and hope so that they can one day overcome their sadness and make peace with their loss. I remember you today my beloved Rosalie June, though I doubt I will ever forget you. I think about you everyday and wish you were here with Lon, Alan and I. I miss you so badly and love you with all of my heart. Lon and Alan love you endlessly also, even though they've never met you. Rest peacefully, my beautiful girl. <3 I also remember baby Ewan Eliezer, who earned his Angel Wings October 4th (my husband's birthday, that's so much sadder!) as a result of CHD.  I have never met you o

As you all know, Lon and I are married only by common law, but we take it as serious as a real marriage primarily because of Alan. I don't have a ring yet, and we don't plan on actually getting married for a year or two. This is simply because we do have a son and very little money to spend on such expensive things as of current. But when I tell people this, they always tell me to just go out and quickly elope or just get married at the courthouse now. Well, I don't want to do that because even though we don't have the money now, it doesn't mean that we don't want to have a wedding at all. Why should I have to just "get married now" and not have my own girly wedding? What's so important about being married that it can't wait until my husband and I can afford it? I'm still am a girl who has her specific ideas and plans for her dream wedding, and I am determined to make that happen. If this means that I have to save up for two or three years

I have always loved you. And I always will. Now of course, I do not remember the first time we met (how could I? I was only a newborn) but I know that you do. When I look at pictures from those beginning days, I can see that we all looked so happy together. My favorite picture is the one with Great Grandma June, you and I, and my mother. The four generations of us strong women. I proudly keep a copy of that picture safe, so that I can look at it from time to time and remember where I came from. <3 We spent a lot of time together those first few years of my life, and I remember bits and pieces of it. Grandpa trying to teach me Italian words in to make it hard on us while you try to teach me some English words. Natalie and I helping feed Cali Kat, and then sneaking a few hard cat food pieces ourselves lol. Blake, Natalie and I raking massive piles of leaves in your front yard, only to grab Cali and jump in all together, immediately scattering all the leaves again (boy, did your cat

Today has been a day from hell for me. And now, all I want to do is snuggle in my bed with my sleeping boy and rant on this blog about it lol. So here we go... The morning started out alright. I woke up at a decent time and was able to spend some time with Alan, which was nice. But my boss called me and reminded me of my class time (which I was finally aware of) so that made me feel incompetent, especially since she knows my current situation. I got over it by the time I got to work and was in a positive move for my Parent/Toddler art class. Today we made leaf prints using crayons (a surprising success with toddlers lol) and then made a fall collage. I only had two children instead of my regular four, but it only made class easier on everyone.  Because the class was full of toddlers, it ended fifteen minutes early and I got a jump start on my cleaning. This made me happy, as Lon and I had a lot of plans in between my two shifts. We were planning on going to the bank, going to the gro

I'm writing this post just to bring everyone up to par on my crazy, wild life. So if you already know what's up, please bear with me. :) Thanks! I am a 21 year old mother to a 13 month old little boy named Alan Mikael. I am married (by common law only, we plan on having our wedding in a year or two) to the greatest man for me, Lon. We live in Billings, Montana-  under the beautiful Big Sky. :) And I wouldn't change anything about my life. <3 Lon and I aren't your average couple, but of course you expected that. :D We met September 5, 2008 through Lon's older brother, Tyler. The interesting thing about our meeting date is it was exactly a year before Alan's birth date. Anyways, we hit it off immediately and by the end of the night we became... how should I put this, friends who are also intimate lol. I don't like using the cliche term "Friends with benefits" as it seems so high school when Lon and I are adults.  But we were primarily friends