Piano, redecorating, Calories and cuteness

Maddie started piano lessons yesterday!! She was so excited. I am having a girl in our ward teach Maddie. Shayla has come to babysit several times and is very sweet to my kids. Maddie absolutely loves her, so when I told her that she would be teaching Maddie piano lessons my girl was ecstatic. I hope she is remains excited when she realizes that she will have to practice every day. We have been talking about piano for months now. Maddie seems eager!

I don't have a picture yet, but Dan and I have started redecorating our room. We got a new bed spread (an earthy green color maybe sage) and found some gorgeous micro fiber light brown chairs. We have always wanted a sitting area where we could relax, unwind, kick our feet up and watch TV. We have also found some nice pictures, and a gorgeous ottoman to match. We rearranged the furniture too. It is absolutely beautiful. I still have a lot of finishing touches. Our room feels a little plain, so I need to find some pillows or something to help, but it looks great. I still wake up thinking I am in some grand hotel room. Once I get my room looking perfect I will post some pics on the blog. Dan and I were amazed at how cheap it all came together. Everything we bought was on clearance, even the chairs!! I love it.

At dinner a few nights ago Maddie declared that Dan and I are always talking about calories. I guess we didn't realize that we talked about it so much. As many of you know, Dan and I are on a diet. My family it doing a "biggest loser" competition, and the winner gets $80.00. Dan and I are very competitive, but also very supportive of one another. I know I don't have a lot of weight to lose, but one of my new years resolutions is to be healthier. I am proud to say that Dan has lost over 15 lbs and I have lost 12 lbs. We are feeling great!! The competition lasts until the end of March, by spring time Dan and I will look like cover models. By the end of our twelve week diet I hope we have established some really good eating habits!! It is nice to have Dan so fired up about this, it makes dieting easier knowing that I am not the only one going to bed hungry.

Finally I just had to post a picture of my totally adorable three year old. I found that cute coat at Target, with a matching hat and some adorable Lightening McQueen gloves that go really well too. Everything was 75% off. I felt like a girl in a candy store!! He loves it too. In fact he wore his coat most of the day and didn't want it off. I finally peeled it off of him, only to find him dripping wet with sweat.

Feeling Patriotic

Most of you know I swing a little left when it comes to my political views (much to Dan's dismay), and I can't help but feel a little patriotic on this day as I watch the Obama inauguration. I worry that Americans' expectations are a little high for one man to undertake, but I am excited for a fresh start. I'm a history teacher at heart, my favorite part of American history would have to be the Civil Rights Movement. I may be too young to have experienced it first hand, but I am proud to think how far America has come. I am sure Dr. King is smiling today.

MRI Update

So many of you have asked how the MRI went and I want you to know how much I appreciate your thoughts and prayers!! It went GREAT. Maddie was so brave. She didn't even have to be put under which meant NO NEEDLES!! Maddie and I were both relieved. We did a trial run by using a CD that had all of the noises of an MRI machine, she laid in the machine perfectly still and wasn't scared a bit. So, after ten minutes of practice we did the real thing and she did great. We both had to wear scrubs because the MRI is very sensative to metal. I sat in the room while Maddie laid on the MRI table. If she moved or opened her eyes I was allowed to give her leg a squeeze to remind her to hold still. It lasted about 25 minutes and she was done. They smothered her with prizes at the end, and by the time we were finished she decided that MRI's weren't "stupid" after all. We won't have the results until the end of the week, but thanks again for being worried about her.

Mom, I Think I Need To Say a Bad Word!!

Maddie is having an MRI tomorrow morning. Nothing serious at all, Maddie just has spastic movements in her body that cause her to rock. Her doctor just wants to see if there is an explanation for it. . .probably not. . .but an MRI might catch something that we can't see otherwise. I have been waiting as long as possible to tell Maddie because even the sight of blood makes her cry. Today during lunch I tried to ease into the conversation as if it was small talk . . .it didn't work. In fact she was in tears for probably and hour, and is sure that the I.V. they use to help her sleep during the MRI will hurt. Through tears she says, "Mom, I hate MRI's, they are not fun, they are dumb, and Mom, I think I need to say a bad word!" Knowing exactly which bad word she was thinking I said to her, "Maddie, I think that word is probably appropriate at this time, go ahead and say it." Maddie yelled "and MRI's are STUPID!" I actually think it made her feel better. After the hour of tears Maddie came up with a great solution, "Mom, I'm going to pretend that I don't have to have an MRI tomorrow so I wont worry about it for the rest of the day." Poor kid, seriously how many eight year olds have ever had an MRI?? It wouldn't be a normal year for the Dinger's without at least one trip to the hospital. 2009 didn't disappoint.