The over-due post...

It's been quite awhile since I wrote last or even visited my own blog. And now reading back, I left on quite a sad note. So let's restore happiness and lighthearted conversation...

I've written dozens of posts in my absence. I promise. My only problem? They never make it out of my head and into writing. Laziness? Perhaps. However, I like to think of it from a perfectionist point-of-view. I like to think that there are no perfect words to describe what I see. The words I write in my head are those only I can fathom; only I can understand. By writing them down, words, images and happenings get lost in translation. It's like watching the movie prior to reading the book. One or the other never lives up to your expectations.

So for you avid readers, the one's who read the book first, this one is for you.

Life. It's been a whirlwind lately. A beautiful colorful whirlwind of work, baby laughter, baby steps and crisp cool summer rains.

I was sitting on the floor playing with my baby a couple weeks ago and I realized something that made me both giddy with joy and slightly saddened; Amaias is growing up.

I knew it was bound to happen. I never put a brick on his head or stunted his growth with coffee. I never fed hm that special "keep baby a baby for forever" magic pill. And really, I am so thankful I didn't. You know why? I have been given one of the highest honors of motherhood. I have witnessed some of my favorite "firsts" yet. The first bite of solids, the first scoot around the living room floor on his hands and knees, the first attempt to stand alone, the first few steps and of course, the first face plant. But the most fun has come in learning his definitions for certain objects. Let me enlighten you:


Definition: An informal term for a father; the person who has whiskers that make it difficult to kiss on
Word used: Daddy

Definition: A highly variable domestic mammal (Canis familiaris) closely related to the gray wolf
Word used: Daddy

Definition: A female parent; maternal tenderness or affection
Word used: Daddy

Definition: What provides amusement or enjoyment; a mood for finding or making amusement
Word used: Daddy


Apparently, I have much to learn about the English language. We have made it so complex and far too deep. Why can't the this language solely consist of the word "Daddy"? Daddy, daddy. Dada daddy dad. Daddy daddy daddy da. It might just solve the language barrier; little children might read more often; it would empower the imagination- ignite a flame and open up a whole new world in the eyes of children and adults alike. Just a thought.


Another sweet and tender moment, brought to you today by Amaias. Introducing the whisper. It is heartwarming. He has learned to whisper ever so tenderly the word "this". In a world of wonder and new environments this little life approaches, Kelly and I are infatuated with introducing new objects and new sounds as we quietly say to him, "Amaias, what is this?" And he quietly responds by whispering, "this". I am reminded of this verse when I hear him softly and gently respond to me. "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight." 1 Peter 3:3-4. He has such a gentle, quiet spirit. Something that I know I once had but almost daily find myself searching my heart for. I thank God for giving me such a treasure and such a wonderful son to learn from. May we all learn to be quiet once in awhile. Just listen. Absorb. Evaluate. Just be still.


Now, don't let the whispering fool you. If need be, Amaias will gently yet soulfully inform you of his excitement, (or lack there of), in an object. Thank goodness the giraffes at the zoo were not too phased by his squealing...

We began our zoo adventure with none other than the giraffes. I felt like a kid in a candy store while watching Amaias feed them. It was priceless. This kid has no fear.

Some days are like ice cream.

Sweet, refreshing and by golly, one of the finest gifts given or received.

This day was just that.

Notice how tenderly he gives the cracker and how gracefully his fingers flair as he brings his hand back in the last picture. He is gentle. Until he decides to drum. I mean, really drum. On everything...

We are all convinced he will be a drummer some day.

I'll leave you with these last few pictures from our family photo shoot taken by none other than my dear friend, Abby Mortenson. You can check out some of her beautifully unique work here. 

There you have it. The over-due blog. I know I could just keep going but it's been a few days now working on it and I know that if I don't end now, it may turn into a novel instead of a blog post. 

I know I have such a beautiful life. Many lessons learned; many I'm still trying to understand. But thankful nonetheless for each moment I have been blessed with.

Ephesians 3:14-21
"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."

 

Somedays I wish I were a bird...

What a wonderful baby daddy. Meet Hal, Shallow's man bird. He is steady, strong and caring. Every woman's dream.






Over the past few weeks, Kelly, Amaias and I have had the privilege of watching these birds live a life similar to you and I. And it was perfect. The perfect nest snuggled into the most desired location, a tree tucked in the far back corner out of sight and nestled in between a series of branches which held it firmly in place. Shallow sat for days on what I believed to be an egg or two. Very rarely did she leave the nest and when she did, Hal stood watch.

Saturday, after work, Kelly called me to the window and revealed the most amazing sight. Two beautiful baby birds had hatched that morning and their song they sang was wonderful.

 Meet Willow and Grace. Aren't they beauties?









Hal and Shallow both took turns all day long feeding the seemingly bottomless pits. One would stand watch while the other would dig up the worm. Team work. A single parental unit. They worked so well together and it was inspiring.

Today, they were wanting to fly. They were almost ready. Shallow had raised such independent children.

Yesterday, I wanted to be a bird. I wanted to soar on the breeze with my feathered friends and feel the wind beneath my wings pushing me up and pulling me down. I wanted to see what it was like in that nest with three birds. I wanted to hear the conversation between mother and father as they watched in awe over their young children. Yesterday would have been a perfect day.

Today, however, is not one of those days. Today I mourn. I mourn for my dear bird family. Man interfered with natures natural course. The perfect nest in the perfect tree now lays on the ground empty and cold. The tree that once sheltered this family is now gone and my window is quiet. And I mourn.

I went searching next door for my baby birds. We looked everywhere. Sadly, the contractor responsible informed me he had stepped on one and the other fled the scene.

With my baby in my arms, I watched as Hal returned to his missing home with a big fat worm hanging from his beak. He looked frantic. I cried. I did. I can't imagine returning home after a hard days work and finding my entire home and my children gone. Everything you have worked for.

I really don't understand why this hit me so hard. They are birds. I eat turkey in my sandwich almost every day. I mean realistically, I've probably eaten close to 10 whole turkeys in my life and I really could care less! But today. Today has been a rough one.

Tonight, I hold my baby a little tighter; a little longer; thankful that today I am not a bird.

Well Past My Bedtime...

Not much to write tonight. Well, I am sure there is plenty to write. I am just wanting to go to bed but I told myself I'm not allowed to go until I blogged. So here it is. The blog before bed.

I'll leave you with a few thoughts:

1. This television fast is proving to be one of the best things we have done for ourselves. We are talking more and enjoying each others company. Things are getting done around the house. We just feel better all around!! I highly recommend this for every family. Flip the switch!

2. I've officially enrolled in school for the fall. I don't know why I am so nervous but I am. Regardless, I have high hopes of a wonderful academic filled next 8 years of my life!! :)

3. I'm working tomorrow, Saturday. Come visit me at Colorado Coffee Merchants from 8-2!!

4. I am starting to observe that I over use the exclamation mark. I'll refrain from doing so at this point.

And for my final thought, “All the flowers of tomorrow are in the seeds of yesterday”. Plant wisely and prosper.

Goodnight, my dear friends.

Hi. My name is Kirsten

...and I'm a T.V.aholic. No, really. Let me break it down for you.


Mondays. Oh glorious Mondays. Mondays provide a good dose of CBS' "How I Met Your Mother" and the must see CBS' "The Big Bang Theory".


Tuesdays provide quite the entertainment with an episode of ABC's "Wipeout" along with an occasional viewing of FOX's "Hell's Kitchen".


Wednesday evenings are reserved for the tiny dancer within. "So You Think You Can Dance" on FOX makes me want get up and get down. It reignites that fire with in me every season. Perhaps I should stop watching and actually get off my butt and take a dance class or three...


Thursdays. Why do you have to be so cruel to me? Thursdays prove to be a difficult night for television. You see, at 8 o'clock, all battling for my attention are "Glee" on FOX, "Community" on NBC and another dose of "Wipeout" followed close behind by the results show of  "So You Think You Can Dance".


Fridays are old news filled with rerun after rerun.


And if that wasn't enough for you, for fun, let's just throw in a 1/2 hour a night of your local evening news, the World Cup and maybe a couple reruns.


Please excuse me while I step away from my writing for a few moments to throw up. Sick. You really should know that I really don't get around to each of these every week but if I could, I would.


Perhaps you are so disgusted with me that your reading has subsided by this point. But in the case you are the kind of person that looks even though it is disgusting and find yourself still reading this, you may be asking yourself, "How?" How do you manage to fit housework, a family, work and a dog into your boob-tube lifestyle? Allow me to explain...


1. The baby goes to sleep between 7 and 7:30 pm.
2. The dog just sleeps and barks at cats.
3. I work while I watch. I guess it's more for the background noise since I can't really watch T.V. and label bags at the same time.
4. Kelly and I bond over television. (No not really. That's just wrong. But we do watch together)
5. The housework just doesn't get done. You know the the song "Burning Down the House"? That song plays in my head and a grin creeps across my jawline. No, not really. In fact, Kelly and I were just discussing our lack of attention to detail around this place. Please continue to read...


We have found ourselves in a mess of a place. Not horrific but definitely not a relaxing home environment. Just messy. I decided we needed more discipline in our lives. At this point in our conversation, my stomach dropped to basement level and I felt sick as the words spewed out of my dirty little mouth, "Maybe we should do a T.V. fast?".  (you know, you always feel better after you throw up. I know. That's really gross. But it is true, isn't it?) As I wiped the remnants of those dirty words from my face, I felt free.
 

So, today on July 4th, as we celebrate our country's freedom, we have broken the chains and flipped the switch. We are free!!! Let the T.V. fast commence!! Well, all except the World Cup and our nightly news. Gotta start somewhere, right? 

5 Years and Counting...

If you were to ask me 10 years ago where I thought I'd be today, I would have told you that I would be married and have a baby. Done and done.

How do you know you are following God's plan? He gives you dreams and you find yourself living them. 5 years ago tomorrow, I married my best friend, Kelly Ryan Havskjold. I honestly cannot believe that it has already been that long.

Kelly, thank you. Thank you for loving me and my quirks. Thank you for the wonderful life that you have shared with me; for sharing your beautiful family; for our perfect son, Amaias; for allowing me the privilege to be a part of your life. I am so so lucky to have you as a husband and also as a father for Amaias.

You are so special to me and I look forward to the next 5 and the next and the next and the next......

I love you! Happy Anniversary.

Love,
Kirsten

I will call her "Shallow" and she will lay an egg...

Meet Shallow. She has made her home in a tree right outside my living room window. My little feathered friend. She sits there in the shade of her tree snuggled in her tidy nest. I keep poking my head out to watch her be and we catch each others eyes every now and again. A beautiful friendship in the making.

I know she is going to lay an egg. I just know it. And best believe, I will be watching her every move as she raises up her young. Naturally, she has so much I can learn from. She is the mistress of he domain. The ultimate care-giver. She has made a home to raise her young in that is secure, sanitary and is out of harms way. She will sit on that egg and keep watch until it hatches; she will gather food all day to feed her baby; she will teach the little one independence, good manor and grace.

Oh good little mama bird. Teach me your ways...

To Love...

I am what you would call a hopeless romantic. To the core. I love. I love everything. I melt at the sight of new love; of old love. I could watch chic-flicks or love stories for hours on end. I love flowers delivered to me; dinner by candle-light; sunsets; sunrises. Singing and dancing in the rain.  I love walking hand-in-hand with the one I love.

Life presents itself to me in the form of beauty. Everything is beautiful and lovely. Everything, that is, except running. Running is painful, tiring, dry out your lungs ridiculous and frankly, most people look pretty darn funny when doing it. But now that I have presented such a harsh statement, I must now ask myself a question.  Why am I finding myself falling in love with this disgusting sport? Maybe I can cough it up to being an addict. That's it; I'm just addicted to running. Although, the wind in my face is such a beautiful feeling. Exploring the radiant neighborhood we live in makes me feel more connected. That hour or two or three by myself allows me to dream...about flowers and date nights and little giggles from little babies and everything else that I love.

I run for time to dream. I run to create a healthier lifestyle and to create healthy habits. I run because God has given me two strong legs and a healthy set of lungs. Perhaps running is beautiful. Perhaps, I love running. I must be sick...