Denver

It is football clinic time of year again!  If you don't recall, it's when Coach broadens his knowledge of football by attending clinics.  These clinics are offered in many different parts of the U.S. and we take advantage of these opportunities to go on one trip together by ourselves - make it a mini-getaway, mix business with some pleasure and add a little 2.5 month old baby into the mix as well.  We must take little Max with us since he needs to eat, right?

This year we chose Denver, CO as our destination.  The last time I was in Denver was for World Youth Day.  I remember really liking the city and wanted to return.  I also know from reading Facebook, that my friends that live there love it.  It's another state with a lot of beautiful outdoorsy stuff to do and to see.

This trip began the day after Lent  - no TV, no sweets, no alcohol.  Also, we left on Valentine's day.  Not that it's a big deal because Valentine's day is every day in the Patterson house, right?

I didn't take a lot of pictures of this trip again.  It's pretty tough to take photos when you're cuddling a little baby - all the time!  I was pretty nervous about the plane ride because Max is a little harder to soothe when he cries compared to my other babies.  I didn't want to make national news being kicked off the plane due to an inconsolable baby. 

We survived the plane ride, but it was a long 4 hours sitting in a cramped seat with a little one.  I couldn't watch the movie being played to pass the time nor could I read comfortably either.  I did try, but I also got annoyed with the author of the book and had to put it away.  My flying buddy seemed to be very productive on his lap top next to me.  Max and I were able to get some sleep - Max more than I.

We picked up our rental car and zipped off to our hotel which was about 15 minutes away from downtown Denver.  We stayed at a really nice hotel, wish I could have shown you with my camera!  We were pretty tired and went from getting dinner out, to celebrate Valentine's day, to just eating at the hotel which ended up being a great dinner!  No wait, no crowds, great service and yummy food.  We even got some chocolate covered strawberries, on the house, from the waiter.  We went ahead and ate the chocolate part - it was given to us, we didn't ask for it and it was Valentine's day!  Max cooperated and slept through dinner. 

All of a sudden, I felt really tired!  It just hit me like a brick!  I was feeling the time difference - uggh!  A bit tough in the evening, but when you end up in the Fitness Center at 6 a.m. wide awake and ready to get a workout - jet lag seems to come in handy.  Here I would insert a picture of the treadmill - way cool.  It was a nifty machine to use with all these cool features to make it the best jogging experience.  Meaning, while I was walking/jogging, I spent time pressing numerous buttons to figure out how to use everything, thus the time flew by.  Also, since I forgot my accessories for my iPhone, I felt I could walk/jog until my phone had a full battery!

After working out, Max was still sleeping, Joe went to his clinic and I enjoyed a very long, long hot shower.  Max and I hung out in our room for a while until it was time to go meet a really good friend of mine that I went to high school with.  She now lives in Denver with her husband and three kids.  I'd insert a picture here, too if I had taken some.  We had a good time catching up with each other.  She also gave me some ideas as to where we could go while in Denver.

When Joe & I met up later that day we decided to get dinner downtown.  We had heard about the 16th Street Mall with shops and restaurants.  This is where I started to take pictures.

We parked near the Clock Tower.  I started just taking pictures of things I saw without a thought since I didn't want to go home with nothing! 

I was reading the tourist guide at the hotel and decided that going to the 16th Street Mall was a good place to start to get a flavor of the city.  It was cold - we walked toward Denver's Capitol looking for places to eat.  It was Friday, so we were looking for seafood.  I also felt like Mexican food and found a little place called Diego's.  Food was ok.

We headed back to the hotel and plotted out our plans for the next day.  My friend had recommended going a place called Garden of the Gods out near Colorado Springs.  It seemed like a great idea since we wanted to see more of the outdoorsy stuff rather than the city itself. 

Garden of the Gods is National Park that has these amazing rock formations made of red and white limestone that came out east of the Rocky Mountains.  My friend said it was just really beautiful to see.  We left before noon and enjoyed a beautiful drive through Colorado Springs.  We were blessed with such perfect weather.  It was 60 degrees with blue skies!

We stopped to get a good look at those mountains.  I'm assuming those are the part of the Rocky Mountains?  Absolutely beautiful!  I don't get to see something like this every day.

 
I was so excited when we drove up, because I was certain I was going to enjoy this.  We headed to the Nature Center first to see what info we could get there.  I took a picture of the rock formations from afar.  We skipped the movie, but watched a small portion of an animal presentation geared towards kids.  I was wishing my kids were with me since they love animals. 

While at the Nature Center, we saw a celebrity sighting!  How exciting!  It was Smoky the Bear!  We got a picture taken with him.  I dig him in those jeans!

I was immediately drawn to the contrast in colors.  The sky was so blue and the rocks were so vibrant red - stunning.  I took a lot of pictures.

Do you see the little guy rock climbing on the right?

I stood there watching this guy climb.  It was like watching paint dry.  I kept wondering how rock climbing worked.  Look at this picture.  How did this guy get the ropes to stick to the rock like that?  He had to climb there to get them on, right?  Why put them on if you can climb without the ropes?  Did he shoot a gun of some sort that would fling some sort of hooks into the rock?  Wouldn't that hurt the rock?  If rock climbing happened all the time, wouldn't we see a bunch of man-made holes in the rocks?  How could that be allowed?  How would you get them off and then get down the mountain?  It looked like the guy was climbing up, but didn't he just come from that direction?  I didn't get it.  What if those rope hook thingies didn't hold you securely?  Hmph...  I guess I could read up on rock climbing.  I didn't stick around to find out how he did everything.

We did a little rock climbing of our own until we saw this...

Joe quickly climbed down the rock.  Joe didn't need any of the fancy gear, he's just very talented.  Almost made it to the top, too ;-)

This looked like shark fin, right? 

So neat!  Joe was telling me how he wanted to see the Balancing Rock.  The what?  Where did he hear of that.  He saw a picture of it at the Nature Center while I was in the bathroom.  I immediately thought of  a balancing rock in my head.  I've seen a picture of it, too - but where?  Not from the Nature Center, but from the Disney movie, Cars.  So, as we drove around following the signs to the Balancing Rock, I kept thinking of the movie Cars and expected it to look like this.




It ended up looking like this.

There were so many neat hiking paths and rock formations to see, but we didn't have time to do it all. 

I asked Joe to move the rock over so I could get a picture of the view behind it. 

See, the view was definitely worth it.  Don't worry, Joe put the rock back.

Thanks again to my friend who suggested Garden of the Gods!

Ooops, one more picture.

Oh, another one.  They are all beginning to look alike.

We left very satisfied and headed towards Denver to go to a vigil Mass downtown.  Afterwards, we met with one of Joe's coach's (also attending the clinic) friends who own a restaurant in Denver.  Forgive me, I forget the name of the restaurant right now.  I can't even tell you what part of Denver it was in, but it was a really quaint and snug part of town.  That's how I would describe it, anyway.  This restaurant had a fire pit outside and a lot of lively people inside.  It was busy, full and seemed like a great place to gather and eat.  The owners of the restaurant were so friendly and made us feel like special guests.  They ordered all this yummy food which were all your normal sports bar kinda food, but had such a unique and modern twist to them.  All done really well, too.  All exciting for me since I'm such a food lovin' kinda person.  Joe was in heaven because the owner had such a love and knowledge of beer not to mention a beer cellar in the back of the restaurant.  He shared his favorites with Joe and brought him to the cellar.  Joe was like a little kid at the candy store.  All in all, a great evening.

We were up early the next day to make it to the airport.  This was the sun rising.  We don't get sun rises like this in DC. 

I'd be happy to wake up to this every morning.

We were very pleased with our trip to Denver. I know there is a lot more to see and do.  Looking forward to visiting again.

Maximilian

This is my Max.  He is now 2 months and 3 weeks old.  He is doing really well and growing fast!  I find it amusing how time slows down the weeks before birth and then speeds up once they are born! 

I've had 6 kids and with each one comes a new personality to discover.  I have been enjoying getting to know my little guy.  Once he was born and put into my arms, he seemed very content and took to nursing like a champ!  The second day, however was a different story.  He went from being content to not content!  He kept crying and crying and when he didn't want to nurse, I tried carrying him in all different positions, changing diapers, walking him, etc...all my bag of tricks of soothing a baby were empty - I wanted to put him back into my belly.  When he did stop crying and took to nursing and fell asleep - he was just exhausted and so was I!  I started to worry.  I kept thinking there was something wrong.  I didn't recall it being this difficult the first 5 times - perhaps, Anne but I shrugged that off because of being a first-time mom.

I kept asking about colicky babies from all these mothers with experience.  I started reading about it on Babycenter.com.  I started preparing myself!  However, as time went by Max turned into a baby that could be soothed by just being held or nursed.  THIS, I'm familiar with.  Max still leans on the side of crying a bit more than what I'm used to, but I'll take it.  Bring it on! 

Max is now smiling a lot.  I can just sit in front of him forever just trying to make him smile because it just melts my heart... and keeps him from crying ;-).  Anne and I spend time every day just trying to get his first giggle out of him which just happened the other day.  It was a short but definite giggle!  Wee hoo!

Max is my biggest baby so far.  He is growing fast, but we'll see if he will continue this trend or slow down and take more the Patterson trend which is dwindling off the growth chart somewhere in the 5th percentile?

Max is thriving!  I look forward to watching him grow and learn!

Pro-Life March 2013

My family and I attended the Pro-Life March in DC.  We weren't sure if we were going to make it or not, but schedules worked out and we were all able to go together.  I took the kids out of school (they were being released early anyway, snow) and we met up with Joe at home.

In the morning, I spent my time picking all the warm fuzzy clothes out of all the unfolded clean laundry.  I'm so behind in laundry!  I wanted to make sure the kids were very warm since it was going to be frigid outside.  There was snow in the forecast which I was excited about!  I also had to gather all the gloves, scarves and hats that always seem unmatched and in different parts of the house.

I was most worried about Max, but he had his car seat and layers of blankies to keep him warm along with the stroller's umbrella tops to shield wind and snow.  Do you see his eyelashes coming in?  I hope they are as long and lush as his siblings'.  Mine seem non-existent.

We decided to take the metro instead of driving into DC.  The kids love taking the metro.

I'm always scared of losing one of the little ones in the shuffling in and out of the trains. 

Kids enjoyed riding the metro and reading the map while keeping track of the stops till ours arrived.  My kids wanted to stand up and hang on to one of the poles rather than sit.  I wasn't so keen on that but Joe convinced me that I was being a kill-joy, perhaps.  They did fine standing up during the ride.

We arrived at our stop and walked to the March. 

There were so many people.  I keep hearing differently about the actual number of people marching, from 500,000 to 750,000.  How does one really know?

We had family we trying to meet up with, but weren't able to find them or get in touch.

Bernadette was warm, but since she wasn't walking she got really cold.  I should have brought a blanket.

 

We eventually jumped in the march and walked to the Supreme Court.  It was really cool to read all the signs and march for LIFE with others who traveled from so many other parts of the country. 

It started snowing while we were marching and it made it even more beautiful - and cold.

We reached the Supreme Court said a few prayers and left.  We headed towards Union Station to catch the metro home.  As we were walking away, I spotted Franciscan University's banner!  That's where I went to college. 

The kids spotted a frozen pond and we stopped to take a look at it.  At this point, the kids' feet and fingers were frozen.  We made it to Union Station and hopped onto the metro.  We defrosted all the way home.  The kids had smiles on their faces despite the long march and cold weather. 

"It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish." - Mother Theresa

Potty Training

Guess who is potty training?

Yes, it's Bernadette.  She just turned 3 and I'm being ambitious and starting now rather than close to 4.  I loath potty training and would rather change diapers.  However, once it's done, it's great.

I've been changing diapers for almost 10 years now.  I've potty trained 4 children and each of them were different.  I've talked to other mothers and some have told me it only took their 3 year old 3 days to learn to use the potty.  Really?  I have not had that experience. 

Potty training brings out the worst in me.  Beware - it sucks the patience out of me.  I know I wasn't easy to be trained, myself.  I actually have memories of having many accidents, so I must have graduated late from Potty School.  I remember, now, how my parents didn't enjoy it either.  It's payback!

I never liked the word "potty".  Ever since I was a kid and a teacher would ask me, "Do you want to use the potty?"  I just cringed at the word.  That word wasn't used in my house.  It was called the toilet or the bathroom.  Who came up with potty?  However, I am using the word now with my kids. 

I also wonder if it is really necessary to use the Baby Bjorne potty seat.  I've always started with it, but I transition to the toilet soon after they kinda get used to the potty seat.  I don't like cleaning the potty seat.

Also, it's about this time that some of my kids all of a sudden don't like to go #2.  They start to hide from you and then you find yourself begging them to go because it's been almost a week since they last went.  This happened with two of my kids.  I don't like that! 

Perhaps, it's me?  Does my impatience delay the process?  Do my kids sense my negative energy?  This is my purgatory - suck it up, Jana!  Put a smile on your face and get it done.

I had high hopes for Bernadette because she is very aware of her plumbing.  However, she hasn't caught on as quickly as I was hoping, but she's very cheerful through it all.  It is contagious - perhaps, this will be a quick training and I'll have only one kid in diapers?

Wish us luck!

You know, I just remembered my grandmother asking me if I had to "jingle".  LOL!!  I didn't like that either.  I pondered how that word came to be used for going #1.  I came up with nothing.  I'm using "#1" in this post rather than what it is.  Hmph...

My Dad is the Coach!

I have some pictures that I never posted that I think are really cute.  It sort of shows how blessed I feel to have kids love their daddy so much. 

These pictures were taken during the football season.  If Joe's team wins their game, I make cookies.  Players receive a certain amount of cookies depending on how well they performed.  I wait for the list of names and the number of cookies they get.  I bake the chocolate chip cookies (every one's favorite), bag them, label them and deliver them.  I've been doing this for years and it seems to be something everyone looks forward to.  I'm glad to do it especially if it motivates some players to win just a little bit more.

As the years have gone by, my kids seem to get excited to deliver the cookies while Coach is working.  Coach gets them involved and it's just fun for everyone!

This was a particularly beautiful sunny day on the turf field!  The sun was setting with that gorgeous golden light that I love.  The weather was perfect!  We arrived towards the end of the practice on the field with the cookies.

The football team push sleds on Mondays following a game.  I think for every mistake or bad play of sorts they get disciplined in the form of pushing these metal heavy sleds.  When the kids come, Coach lets the kids sit on them and they get a ride.  You'll see what I mean.

We arrived a little early and my kids are hanging out waiting for Coach to call them to the field.

It's such a large turf field, you can't help but run around a bit.

We found these pom poms on the field.  Anne is practicing her cheering.

You're bound to be kissed by Mommy if you stand around me too long.

Coach calls the kids and they come running on the field.  They take a seat on those metal sleds and wait for one of the huge football players to come and push them as fast as they can to the other side of the field at the sound of the whistle.

Ready, get set, go!  They go back and forth a few times.  I'm on the sidelines watching the excitement and fun in my kids' faces!  The football players seem to also enjoy the slight change of pace.  They are teenagers - they are big boys, but as I listen to them talk to my kids, they are really sweet to them.

Then it's time to go inside and break down film.  Look how tiny they are?

But before they breakdown the film, the kids get to pass out the cookies to the players.  They have so much fun doing this too.

I love the fact that Coach can mix family and work together.  I love that my kids are proud of their father.  I think it's also nice for the football players to get a picture of a father (their coach) with his family behind him.  It's a rare thing nowadays to see a family intact and I feel so blessed to have that and to give it to my kids.  It is really a wonderful gift.

Even though Bernadette was a little too young to ride the sleds, she still had the best seat in the house!

Late Holiday Post

It's been a long time!  I've been pretty busy with little Maximilian and just the going on's of my family.  My camera is collecting dust. 

Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years just went by and I don't have any pictures to show for it.  That's pretty bad.  In my defense, I had a newborn baby and five other kids to tend to.  I wish I could take pictures with my eyes because I have all the great memories in my head - for now.

I do have some pictures, but they were all taken before Christmas and right after Thanksgiving.

Our Thanksgiving was great.  We spent it with family in PA.  I was 37 weeks pregnant and was hoping not to go into labor. 

At the Farm

My parents were also in town for the birth for whenever Max decided to arrive.  So right after Thanksgiving at the Farm (in PA) we drove to my parents house in Ft. Valley, VA.  We arrived too late to enjoy the bonfire my dad had prepared so we just did it the next early afternoon.

We had marshmallows and hot dogs, yum.  It's not the same as at night, but the kids didn't care.

My mom made her first long drive from FL to VA in the passenger seat of their car opposed to in the wheelchair accessible car!  Way to go Mom! 

My mom is doing really well.  She is currently still working on physical therapy so she can walk again. 

We also did some shooting.

This is not a real rifle, it's a bee bee gun.  It still has quite a kick, though.

Anne was a natural - watch out boys.

Tommy liked to use the binoculars to see how close we could get to the bull's eye.  The person shooting is a friend of the family.

We headed back home.  That week after Thanksgiving, November 29th our little Max was born!  He came a little earlier than expected but I wasn't complaining!

Christmas time was coming and while I was resting and healing and getting to know my little Max, I was shopping online for Christmas gifts.

We were deciding between a real Christmas tree or a fake one this year.  We took our trip to Home Depot to see what the fake trees had to offer and if we didn't like them, we'd go real.

Hmmm, get a fake tree or go for a real one?

We went for the fake one!

And all were happy and satisfied.  I don't think I will ever go back to real again.  Well, I will miss the smell and the earthiness about it, but the simpleness and aesthetics of a fake tree win for now.

There are so many Christmas activities I wanted to do with the kids, but couldn't get to it all.  I love Christmas cards and I was determined to get those done.  I got all the older kids outside and got their pictures done and then I woke up Bernadette from a nap that was late in the afternoon.  I should have planned better because all she did was cry, cry, cry.  That doesn't make well for Christmas photos.  I finally got a decent one of her.  Her eyes were a bit red, but I didn't care at that point!

I also wanted to try taking a photo of Max like the professionals do when they stick a baby in a cute basket naked with some sort of cute knitted blanket of sorts strategically placed on them.  Yikes, well it didn't work out too well - I'm NOT a professional.  You should have seen me trying to get poor Max to work with me.

Yah, he wasn't too happy.  "What are you trying to do, Mommy?"

Out of many, this one turned out decent.  I actually loved my Christmas card this year.  Wish I could post it on here, but don't know how.  I'm biased because they're my kids on there.

Overall, I had a blessed Christmas!  We celebrated with our newest addition to the family, we spent Christmas day with my in-laws, took another trip to the Farm where it snowed a lot and went sledding, had Max baptized with family and friends at our house, spent New Years with just the eight of us at home trying to stay awake till midnight.  We started the new year and ended vacation with a great visit from my sister and my nephew.

Now I'm in front of my computer with Max resting in my arms, boxes in the living room waiting to be packed with Christmas decorations.  Hope you all had a blessed Christmas, too.