Uncategorized | The Mango Memoirs

Are You a Warrior?

Posted on August 16, 2011 by Angela @ The Mango Memoirs • 1 Comment

I enjoy running. Although I don’t get to do it as often as I would like, I get out when I can. I’ve always imagined it would be great to run with Pete, maybe even do a race together, and be one of those couples who can chat through the entire thing or run along the lake while pushing their kid in a stroller. Can you picture it? Lovely.

I had almost given in to the reality that Pete just doesn’t like to run and would probably never run with me when I came across an ad on Facebook (you know, the annoying ones on the side of the page that try to target you). The ad was for the Warrior Dash. This was way last fall or early winter. After reading that the race was 3 miles up & down on a ski hill and included 10 crazy obstacles, I immediately sent Pete a link. And just like that, he was hooked. What can I say? I know my man. He just can’t resist a hardcore challenge like this one. So we registered and trained together. Then, on July 24, we dropped little Ella off at Miss Shauna’s so she could play with Bella, and headed south of the Cities to see if we could meet the challenge.

We were pumped waiting for the shuttle bus to take us to the ski hill.

Once we were at the hill, we met up with Jen & Mike and Jen’s sister & brother. All these pics came from Jen. So glad she has a sweet camera! Keep this pic in mind. You’ll see it again later.

Jen & I had to practice our warrior faces.

Mike & Pete were ready to take on the competition.

This was not my warrior face.

The obstacles were sweet. We climbed over junk cars and hopped over tires, jumped over walls and crawled over cargo nets. Just before the end, we slid down a huge hill with water and leaped over fire. That’s Pete in the black. Nice air.

Then we reached the mud. This was the part I was most looking forward to. We crawled through it with strands of barbed wire overhead.

We are warriors.

And warriors eat turkey legs.

Remember this from the beginning?

Tons of people donated their shoes. An organization collects them, washes em up, and sends them to third world countries. Love it.

In the end, we celebrated with the other 24,000 warriors over the two days of the event. I seriously recommend this race. They take it all over the country. Check out warriordash.com for info.

Ah, the end to a perfect day. Friends, turkey legs, beer, and mud. I’m looking forward to the next one.

Thanks, Jen, for the picture
s!

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A Hot Afternoon

Posted on August 14, 2011 by Angela @ The Mango Memoirs • 0 Comments

I absolutely love that Ella has a cousin so close to her own age. The girls have spent lots of time together in the last two weeks playing at the park, celebrating birthdays, and running through the sprinkler. This was just such a day. Mama Bex & I relaxed on the deck with Baby Maira while the girls played in the water and had a few adventures.
(This post is being sent from my phone, so the formatting may be a bit off. We’re staying in Sauk Centre this weekend while we celebrate our friends’ wedding! Pics to come.)

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Photo Friday: Canal Park

Posted on August 13, 2011 by Angela @ The Mango Memoirs • 0 Comments

We’ll never get tired of watching the ships come through the canal!

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L&J's Wedding

Posted on August 10, 2011 by Angela @ The Mango Memoirs • 0 Comments

Last month we made a weekend trip to Milwaukee for Louis & Jillian’s wedding. (Jillian is Pete’s cousin and made a gorgeous bride.) Ella was (nearly) an angel in the car. I’d say that’s pretty good considering we spent more than 18 hours driving. We headed out of Aitkin right after Pete finished work on Thursday and made it all the way to his parents’ house in Marshfield. The next morning we completed the drive to Milwaukee in time to check in to our hotel and head downtown for the rehearsal dinner.

The ceremony took place in a picturesque cathedral where Louis & Jillian met more than 8 years ago. It was fun to be a part of that history. Ella almost made it to the ceremony but was whisked out as soon as the bride made her entrance. We thought they didn’t need to hear Ella’s little voice making comments on the dress and the windows and violins playing in the balcony, especially if they were recording it. Pete very sweetly took her outside to play so that I could enjoy the ceremony. He knows how much I love weddings. What a man.

Afterward we took a few pictures outside. Ella loves her Papa Olsen.

We thought it would be quite nice to have a family picture taken since we were all dressed up. Ella would have none of it, though. With the lack of a nap, we couldn’t blame her. (But wouldn’t this make a great Christmas photo?)

Between the ceremony and the reception, we did some exploring along the lake (Michigan, that is) in Milwaukee. We ended up at a Whole Foods Market for a little snack.

Ella loved the noodles. Daddy tried to show her how to eat them.

A little ended up on his shoes.

Ella didn’t make it long into the reception. Good thing she had a big, cozy bed to cuddle in! Well, that’s what she had hoped, anyway. She slept in the Pack n Play. We got the big, cozy bed. But she did get to do lots of cuddling with us while watching cartoons over the weekend.

Big beds & TV. Exactly why we like hotels!

It was a great weekend in Milwaukee celebrating such a great couple. We also got to spend lots of time with Grandma & Grandpa Olsen and Aunties Kristin & Kathryn. We hope to see you all again soon!

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Potty Training Success!

Posted on August 6, 2011 by Angela @ The Mango Memoirs • 1 Comment

What a girl! Miss Ella is practically a pro on the potty chair after just 2 days of training! Not exactly what I expected. One day in, I would have told you I was ready to quit and try it the regular way. I’m so glad I didn’t. The girl has got it down.

So here’s how it happened. Months ago, my neighbor gave me the book Toilet Training in Less Than a Day after having success trying the method for both her son and daughter. I was a bit doubtful, but looked into it anyway. I randomly heard from a few moms that it had worked for their kids, too, although none of them were close friends of mine. Therefore, I didn’t really have anyone to ask when it came to the actual details of the whole process. Judging by the list of readiness signs in the book, I thought Ella was nearing the point of starting a couple weeks ago. I read the book, bought some training pants and big girl princess underwear, and was determined to get started on Monday morning. (Last Monday, August 1)

The whole idea of this crazy method is to teach the child what it feels like when they need to go to the bathroom and then how to do just that. Well, that takes a whole lot of undivided attention. I put together a big basket of treats and stickers along with sweet and salty snacks to make her thirsty and want to drink a ton. Idea: lots of water = lots of wetting = lots of teaching opportunities. We sat in the basement bathroom ALL DAY on Monday and Tuesday. Every 5 minutes I asked her if she was dry. When she was, she got a reward. (M&Ms quickly rose to the top as the fave.) Every 15 minutes she sat on the potty chair for 5-10 minutes.

Let me tell you, as the parent in this situation, I wanted to bang my head against the wall. I felt like we were making zero progress. She had so many accidents on Tuesday morning that I nearly threw in the towel. However, something must have sunk in because as soon as she woke up on Wednesday (day 3 of training) it was like she was a pro. I was so proud of her, I got teary. Never did I think I would cry at the sight of my little girl proudly emptying her bladder on her own little chair. The joys of parenting!

Ella has done amazingly well since Wednesday morning. She was completely dry for a day and a half. I don’t blame her for the accident in the middle of her cousin’s birthday party on Thursday. That’s too much excitement to remember to tell Mama she needed to go. She stays dry through her naps but sleeps in a diaper at night. We’ll continue that until she gets a little more control. (It talks about the science of a growing little body in the book and why different abilities happen at different times. So helpful.)

I know a lot of you have little ones that are nearing the training stage. I definitely recommend this method if you’re able to put the time in. Like I said above, it’s pretty time consuming. It is recommended to carve out 3-5 days of being at home so they get the hang of things. We ventured out for a short time on Wednesday and did more on Thursday and Friday. She’s even used to using a regular toilet now, so she does well anywhere we’ve been in the last couple days. I’m so glad we were able to squeeze training in in before classes start again in September. After that, free time will be rare again.

Yay, Miss Ella! I’m so proud of you!