New Swoon

Picture this:

A New Moon movie trailer comes on the television. I instantly perk up because it is one that I have not seen before. I chide myself for being such a 14 year-old. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Lance watching me with a smirk.

Inner dialogue- "Be cool, Kira. Nonchalant."

Outer dialogue- "Oh... I guess that movie is coming out pretty soon. I'll probably get around to seeing it sometime."

Totally nailed it.

Later that evening, my defenses are down and I find myself saying, "I can't wait to see New Moon!"

Lance's smirk is back.

I just feel so unoriginal and cliche. Most of the time I think about the Twilight saga and can roll my eyes and make fun of myself for that silly phase I went through-- in which I read the books repeatedly. And then BAM! a new movie trailer comes out and I feel giddy again-- like my 9 year-old self at a New Kids On the Block concert.

Will I never grow up?

The Rasmussens Go Country

This past weekend we joined some friends at River Ranch, a dude ranch about two hours away. It was the most fun this family has had in a while.

Some highlights include:

The petting zoo, the pony ride, seeing buffalo, taking a hayride, going skeet shooting, riding an airboat, playing at the park, riding around in a golf cart all weekend, and of course, watching the rodeo.

We even got bashful little Zoie to chase calves around the arena in the middle of the rodeo. (We realized later that she was running away from them out of fear of the baby cows).

The kids were in cowboy/ cowgirl heaven and even Baby Chase was well-behaved. He spent the weekend being "worn" by me in the carrier.

The only down-side: More country music than anyone should ever be forced to listen to. EVER.

Here are some pictures from the trip:

The kids at the petting zoo

Tobin and Zoie on the pony ride

This picture cracks me up. This mini-horse came meandering over and Zoie was sure that it came over to say hi. She was so excited to pet it and talk to it. Turns out, it had other plans and Zoie was in its way. I managed to take the picture at the exact moment it barreled right past Zoie-- taking her by surprise.

At the Rodeo

Thanks to our friends for setting the whole thing up. It was perfect to get away, relax and spend time "in the country".

An Obnoxious Family Letter

This post is reminiscent of those silly family letters people write around Christmas-- in which they try to sum up a person's life in three sentences (deep down I enjoy those letters and plan to write them myself-- starting now).

The weather has dropped down to the sixties and seventies this week. On the first day of the cold front, my kids were on the back porch twirling around (as if they were experiencing their first snow) and yelling, "Its cooled off!" All summer whenever they asked to go to the park or Busch Gardens my answer was "when it cools off". I guess they took that to heart and now I have to honor the promises.

CHASE no longer saves his crying jags for diaper changes. He is a bit temperamental and generally cries unless he is being held. He is still, by far, the easiest baby we have had. We can't help but spoil him a little and give in to his wishes to cuddle with the kid. Thankfully, he sleeps great at night. We call him our "pretty boy" due to his naturally spiky hair with frosted blonde tips and his unmistakably blue eyes. He tipped the scales at 11 lbs. at his one month appointment. He loves to eat and poop.

TOBIN is ridiculously well-behaved and adorable. He is proud of his recent haircut. He loves to play (and fight) with Zoie and is apparently fond of bumping his head on hard surfaces. We just couldn't ask for an easier or better two year-old.ZOIE had a rough spell (to put it mildly) adjusting to changes after Chase was born. She tended to take out her frustrations on Tobin and her shoes (long story). She has, however, returned to her usually sweet self. She continues to entertain us with her off-the-wall imagination. She loves school and spelling words. She tries to teach Tobin everything she knows and helps us spoil Chase.I (KIRA) love being a Mom. Some days are overwhelming, and some days I am very tired-- but overall, I feel great and am enjoying this time with three young kids. I am anxiously awaiting the "ok" from the doctor so I can take advantage of the cool weather and begin running again. Lance and I are working on losing the baby weight (and sympathy baby weight).

LANCE has taken up running in the evenings. He was just assigned a big project at work and is thrilled, as he loves his job. He spends his spare time tinkering with his motorcycle (more on that later). He is very hands-on with the family and I don't think I would be able to handle these kids without his help.

So there we are in an obnoxious family letter post. Now we are all caught up....

The Boys

If you had asked Lance and I about a month ago, we would have told you that Tobin is our baby.

After taking these pictures yesterday, I couldn't believe how giant our "baby" looked compared to Chase. Look at that head! No more Baby Tobin!



I love these boys. What a lucky Mom I am.

Its True

I totally do.

Life As Usual

My mom flew back to Prague this morning.

Last night I gave myself a pretty great pep talk-- a whole "this is the first day of the rest of my life as a mother of three" yada yada yada. I woke up determined to be the very best version of Kira and throw myself head-first into my roles as housewife, cook, chauffeur, etc. (basically, all the things I have been neglecting while my mom has been here spoiling me). My pep talk was worthy of a movie scene (right before a great montage of me being amazing).

After I dropped Zoie off at preschool, I fed the baby, straightened the house and started some laundry. Then I donned my running clothes, packed the boys into the double stroller and (since I am not allowed to run for another 4 weeks) proceeded to walk three miles and visit a friend.

I am Super-Mom. Neither a recent c-section or lack of sleep can slow me down!

Fast forward to 4 pm. Lance comes home to find me, pajama-clad, fast asleep. The laundry is only half done and dinner has not been defrosted.

Well, tomorrow is a new day. We miss you, Mom!!!