When I started this blog, I meant for this to be a place where I could store all my favorite memories and things that I would surely forget like family outings, funny things the kids have said, etc. Clearly, I let this thing tank as it has been damn near six years since I have posted ANYTHING. I am actually 100% shocked that I was able to keep this URL handle. I do not want that to happen again. I plan to actually give this blog thing a go and work at it. I don't want to lose these awesome memories, and I'm afraid to say that I probably did over the past six years out of sheer laziness.
So... this is the first post in what I hope is many to come, and I am going to lead with the question: what has happened in the past six years? A whole hell of a lot, that's what.
Married Life: Jae and I are coming up on 11 years together and 8 years married. It has not been without its ups and downs, but at the risk of sounding cliche, our life is still full of love, laughter, and friendship. There were certainly times when we probably both questioned whether or not to continue moving forward, but I am happy to say that we have stuck through for the better. I absolutely love my life and am happy I get to wake up every single day and share it with a wonderful man who happens to be my best friend.
Careers: Both Jae and I have shifted gears in a big way as it relates to our careers. A few years ago, I made the decision to go back to business school full-time, pursuing my MBA. It was one of the best decisions I've ever made. I am happy to say that I treasured my time in the program and have come out on the other side to a career that I am excited to go to every day. I am challenged, constantly learning, and interacting with incredibly intelligent individuals daily. Jae has moved to commodity-management, something that he is very talented at. In his current role, he really loves the team he works with and is able to excel with everything he does.
Kids: There will obviously be more to come on this front. In fact, I plan on completing one post per kid since so much has happened (that's a lot of posts). This year, we completed our family. We are officially Chong, Party of Six. It's a wonderful thing. There are now four of them. Kaeden (13), Bennett (6), Mila (3), and Kai (almost 4 months). They are so unique in every way and keep us on our toes. Life is crazy with all these kids, but I wouldn't wish for it any other way.
Home: When I graduated from my MBA program, I was offered a position at Land O' Lakes. Given the HQ is in Arden Hills, the commute from Chaska would've been WAY too crazy, so Jae and I sold the house and moved to Maple Grove. We live in a beautiful neighborhood that is perfect for raising our family. Sometimes we feel a bit like outsiders to our neighbors, but I would like to believe that if anything happened, we could reach out to them and they would be willing to help.
So that's that. Here's hoping that I actually keep it up this time.
MCC
Monday, October 29, 2018
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Holy Cats... It's been a while!!
So everyone... yet again, I say, "it's been a while!"!! Yowza! I cannot believe what a whirlwind the past month and a half has been! As I tend to think in segments, I think I will have to tell the past month and a half in segments:
- My new job: As we all know, I recently left General Mills for Schwans. I am now ending my seventh week on the job, and have been candidly having mixed feelings. I honestly miss all my past coworkers - so much more than I thought I would have. I also miss some things the company offered, having processes in place, and knowing what I am doing. I have also had days where I feel like I am making a huge difference, thriving, and finally getting my new job. Then there comes a day where I feel like I have failed. I know I will get it eventually. There is just a lot to do. Even more so than just learning the job. I am virtually helping my team build these jobs, processes, guidelines, etc. This is what is making it so much more difficult. I will get it. I just need to be patient.
- Thanksgiving: This year was Bennett's first Thanksgiving! We actually had a wonderful time at my parent's house. Kaeden was able to join us for the first part of it, and he had a wonderful time playing with the Carlson kids - specifically, Lucas. He loves it when he can see Lucas!! Natalie, Lucas' sister, loves babies. She just hovered around Bennett. It was really sweet! I do think Bennett got a little overwhelmed though! Black Friday actually started at 9 p.m. on Thanksgiving, so of course our family was gone by 7 p.m. so Laura and I could get back home to go shopping and get our deals on!
- Black Friday: Laura and I had made our lists on Thanksgiving, and went out together on black Friday to get all of the amazing deals we could. As Target and a few other retailers opened at 9 p.m., we made coffee upon arriving at home and went out ready for a long night ahead. We got to Target, where we stood in line, however, got some AMAZING deals, that was totally worth the wait!! We ended up going to a few other stores, and overall, our night was successful!
- Friendsgiving: The weekend after Thanksgiving, we had decided to have a "friendsgiving" dinner with Jae's friends. WE had everyone over to our house to catch up over a nice meal. It was so wonderful to see everyone and hear about what was going on with them as we rarely catch up or see eachother even though we mainly live in the same neighborhood... crazy.
- First Snow: A few weekends ago, it was the first big snow of the year. Nearly blizzard weather! Of course, we didn't have boots that fit Kaeden, so out I went in the blizzard to Target so Goob could go outside an play. It was totally worth it when I saw how happy he was building his snow forts :) What a wonderful feeling! We also tried to get Bennett outside. We bought these cute little bib snow pants, however, Bennett was not having any part of it. He hated it!
- Bennett's Milestones: Bennett is officially 11 months old right now. I have no idea where all this time went! I love him so much, and it feels like just yesterday I was holding him as a newborn! Now he is scooting, crawling, sitting, walking around furnitur - well.. you understand where I'm going.
So that pretty much sums up our past month and a half. WE have been one busy, happy, crazy family! Looking forward to early next week and the week after! Christmas time is going to be the best few days! I love my family. They make me incredibly happy! Im case I am not on here for a couple more days, Merry Christmas!
- My new job: As we all know, I recently left General Mills for Schwans. I am now ending my seventh week on the job, and have been candidly having mixed feelings. I honestly miss all my past coworkers - so much more than I thought I would have. I also miss some things the company offered, having processes in place, and knowing what I am doing. I have also had days where I feel like I am making a huge difference, thriving, and finally getting my new job. Then there comes a day where I feel like I have failed. I know I will get it eventually. There is just a lot to do. Even more so than just learning the job. I am virtually helping my team build these jobs, processes, guidelines, etc. This is what is making it so much more difficult. I will get it. I just need to be patient.
- Thanksgiving: This year was Bennett's first Thanksgiving! We actually had a wonderful time at my parent's house. Kaeden was able to join us for the first part of it, and he had a wonderful time playing with the Carlson kids - specifically, Lucas. He loves it when he can see Lucas!! Natalie, Lucas' sister, loves babies. She just hovered around Bennett. It was really sweet! I do think Bennett got a little overwhelmed though! Black Friday actually started at 9 p.m. on Thanksgiving, so of course our family was gone by 7 p.m. so Laura and I could get back home to go shopping and get our deals on!
- Black Friday: Laura and I had made our lists on Thanksgiving, and went out together on black Friday to get all of the amazing deals we could. As Target and a few other retailers opened at 9 p.m., we made coffee upon arriving at home and went out ready for a long night ahead. We got to Target, where we stood in line, however, got some AMAZING deals, that was totally worth the wait!! We ended up going to a few other stores, and overall, our night was successful!
- Friendsgiving: The weekend after Thanksgiving, we had decided to have a "friendsgiving" dinner with Jae's friends. WE had everyone over to our house to catch up over a nice meal. It was so wonderful to see everyone and hear about what was going on with them as we rarely catch up or see eachother even though we mainly live in the same neighborhood... crazy.
- First Snow: A few weekends ago, it was the first big snow of the year. Nearly blizzard weather! Of course, we didn't have boots that fit Kaeden, so out I went in the blizzard to Target so Goob could go outside an play. It was totally worth it when I saw how happy he was building his snow forts :) What a wonderful feeling! We also tried to get Bennett outside. We bought these cute little bib snow pants, however, Bennett was not having any part of it. He hated it!
- Bennett's Milestones: Bennett is officially 11 months old right now. I have no idea where all this time went! I love him so much, and it feels like just yesterday I was holding him as a newborn! Now he is scooting, crawling, sitting, walking around furnitur - well.. you understand where I'm going.
So that pretty much sums up our past month and a half. WE have been one busy, happy, crazy family! Looking forward to early next week and the week after! Christmas time is going to be the best few days! I love my family. They make me incredibly happy! Im case I am not on here for a couple more days, Merry Christmas!
Friday, November 9, 2012
Halloween (and after)
So as you know, we have been one busy family. Starting with me: last week was my last week at General Mills. I grew up with General Mills, have worked there for a total of approximately six years, love that company and even more - value my relationships with the people that work there. It was also the week of Halloween... which made everything go by that much faster!
We had the best Halloween yet. The entire family was able to get together! Kaeden was a "black spy ninja" which equated to the little costume (with padded muscles) that should have mimicked the outfits of the GIJoe movies :) Bennett was a bat. Mainly because of the massive bat ears that spurt out from his hood. It was wonderful. Jae and I brought the kids trick-or-treating while Laura manned the door (which rarely actually gets called upon). Kaeden got a half-pillow case full of candy... we will have enough (even with Jae's appetite) for quite some time!
This week started my first week at Schwan's as the Associate Manager of Shopper Marketing. While I knew it wasn't going to be a breeze - learning an entirely new company, job, boss, etc, it ended up being a really wonderful week. I feel like I am really catching on, adding immediate value, and most of all, I don't feel as though I need to keep my opinions and suggestions to myself. I have a feeling this is going to be a wonderful change of pace!
This past weekend, we took family photos. They really turned out better than I had hoped for! We made our first-ever Christmas card! I cannot wait to actually send it out!
Family's First Halloween:
Bennett as a Bat:
Kaeden and I with our pumpkins ;) :
We had the best Halloween yet. The entire family was able to get together! Kaeden was a "black spy ninja" which equated to the little costume (with padded muscles) that should have mimicked the outfits of the GIJoe movies :) Bennett was a bat. Mainly because of the massive bat ears that spurt out from his hood. It was wonderful. Jae and I brought the kids trick-or-treating while Laura manned the door (which rarely actually gets called upon). Kaeden got a half-pillow case full of candy... we will have enough (even with Jae's appetite) for quite some time!
This week started my first week at Schwan's as the Associate Manager of Shopper Marketing. While I knew it wasn't going to be a breeze - learning an entirely new company, job, boss, etc, it ended up being a really wonderful week. I feel like I am really catching on, adding immediate value, and most of all, I don't feel as though I need to keep my opinions and suggestions to myself. I have a feeling this is going to be a wonderful change of pace!
This past weekend, we took family photos. They really turned out better than I had hoped for! We made our first-ever Christmas card! I cannot wait to actually send it out!
Family's First Halloween:
Bennett as a Bat:
Kaeden and I with our pumpkins ;) :
Monday, October 29, 2012
New Job
This past month has been a bit of a whirlwind. I actually have big news regarding myself (and not about the kids - first time and probably last time for quite a while)... I have accepted a position at Schwan's as an Associate Shopper Marketing Manager. The opportunity came to my attention in the very beginning of October, and I will start my new position there one week from today (on Monday, 11/5), so needelss to say, the whole process was very accelerated. I am already having incredibly mixed emotions about the change. The opportunity is exciting, will be challenging, interesting, stretch me and my abilities, and I cannot wait to get started, however, I am going to miss Mills. I have had a wonderful experience here at the company and I grew up knowing all about the products, etc. In total, I have spent nearly 6 years of my life working here, it is going to be difficult to leave. I will dearly miss all the people here.
Wish me luck in my new role!
Wish me luck in my new role!
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Our Fabulous Fall
We have officially entered my favorite time of year. I love fall - I love the weather, I love the activities, but most of all, I love all the holidays that are on their way! Our family has been a little crazy lately - not because of any activities that are solely for Jae and I, but instead with the little ones.
Kaeden has been wonderful. We have really been able to spend so much quality time with him now that we have consistantly had him all weekend, every weekend for quite some time. Also, he has been performing well in school. He rocks at math - it just comes naturally to him! Also, on the weekends, he has been playing flag football. At first, he was not very excited about it - at the games, he was slow and uninterested. Then, a couple of weekends ago, Jae, Laura, and I went outside to spend some one on one time teaching Kaeden football. Now that he understands it, he is really enjoying it (and becoming very good at it!).
Mr. Bennett is growing like a weed. Tomorrow, he will be nine months old. It is so hard to believe how big AND how old he is getting. It is officially time to start planning his first birthday - OH MY GOSH! He is constantly chatting, giggling, and playing. Still no crawling though... he is a stubborn little man and hates to be on his tummy. He loves to sit and play or stand. No tummy time. We have been practicing, and he seems to kind of be getting the hang of it... although, I have a feeling he is just going to go from laying to walking (and skip the whole crawling thing). Also, he is loving his Cheerios now that he officially has two teeth! Before the teeth came in, I was thinking how much I would miss the gummy smile - now I am so in love with his goofy toothy grin...
Kaeden Playing with his Future Football Pads :)
Bennett and Kaeden Playing - Trying to Get Bear to Enjoy Tummy Time:
BBear and Goob Being Goofy:
Bennett Playing at Dinner Time:
Bear Finally Beginning to Enjoy Tummy Time:
Kaeden has been wonderful. We have really been able to spend so much quality time with him now that we have consistantly had him all weekend, every weekend for quite some time. Also, he has been performing well in school. He rocks at math - it just comes naturally to him! Also, on the weekends, he has been playing flag football. At first, he was not very excited about it - at the games, he was slow and uninterested. Then, a couple of weekends ago, Jae, Laura, and I went outside to spend some one on one time teaching Kaeden football. Now that he understands it, he is really enjoying it (and becoming very good at it!).
Mr. Bennett is growing like a weed. Tomorrow, he will be nine months old. It is so hard to believe how big AND how old he is getting. It is officially time to start planning his first birthday - OH MY GOSH! He is constantly chatting, giggling, and playing. Still no crawling though... he is a stubborn little man and hates to be on his tummy. He loves to sit and play or stand. No tummy time. We have been practicing, and he seems to kind of be getting the hang of it... although, I have a feeling he is just going to go from laying to walking (and skip the whole crawling thing). Also, he is loving his Cheerios now that he officially has two teeth! Before the teeth came in, I was thinking how much I would miss the gummy smile - now I am so in love with his goofy toothy grin...
Kaeden Playing with his Future Football Pads :)
Bennett and Kaeden Playing - Trying to Get Bear to Enjoy Tummy Time:
BBear and Goob Being Goofy:
Bennett Playing at Dinner Time:
Bear Finally Beginning to Enjoy Tummy Time:
Friday, September 14, 2012
Almost Fall!
It is almost my favorite time of year! Fall/Winter brings so many wonderful things - apple orchards, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas shopping, Christmas Music, Christmas lights, you get the idea... So while we are waiting for that, a lot has happened in the past few weeks:
Bennett has been a doll as always. He is (still) officially teething, and it had gotten REALLY bad last week. You could just tell he was in an incredible amount of pain - he was always very irritable, he wasn't sleeping at all, and was drooling as much as a dog. Sure enough, at seven months, out popped his first tooth! While I am going to miss the gummy little smile he always gave me, his new smile is as cute as ever! Also, Bennett has really started to enjoy playing "So Big!" (see below). It is just the cutest!
Kaeden is doing so well in school (and finally enjoying it!). He is a math pro! We practice his math problems all the time, and he always surprises me with how quickly he learns new things I teach him. Also, he had been mentioning that he wanted to spend halloween with us this year as it is going to be Bennett's first Halloween - we spoke with Sonja, and we are going to have him! I am so excited I can hardly stand it! Last weekend we purchased his costume (black spy ninja). He is so cute running around with the mask on and the little trident swords :)
I have been busy as a bee. I have been taking on some really fun projects at work, and loving it! Also, I have been trying to figure out what business school I should attend and whether to go full time or part time. The latest decision is to try to get into the Carlson Full Time MBA program. It would be such an amazing opportunity. I hope it works out! Jae and I have done some numbers crunching, and we could make it work (albeit with lots of student loans) financially. Keep your fingers crossed! Application deadline is November 1st - hoping to hear back by mid-November.
Jae has been busy as well - last weekend, he spent some time paintballing up north with Billy. It sounds like he had a wonderful time! It's good for him to get out with the boys!
This weekend, we have quite the busy weekend - tonight, we are getting together with "the couples" - The Cliftons and The Kachmans - for a "dirty" theme night - based around dirty martnins. Jae and I are going as hobos. Can't wait! Tomorrow Jae's Coworker - Celnida is hosting a first birthday party for her daughter Olivia. Here's hoping to get a little bit of rest time in before we have to do the whole "work week" thing all over again!
Bennett is "So Big!"
Bennett Playing Before Daycare
Bennett has been a doll as always. He is (still) officially teething, and it had gotten REALLY bad last week. You could just tell he was in an incredible amount of pain - he was always very irritable, he wasn't sleeping at all, and was drooling as much as a dog. Sure enough, at seven months, out popped his first tooth! While I am going to miss the gummy little smile he always gave me, his new smile is as cute as ever! Also, Bennett has really started to enjoy playing "So Big!" (see below). It is just the cutest!
Kaeden is doing so well in school (and finally enjoying it!). He is a math pro! We practice his math problems all the time, and he always surprises me with how quickly he learns new things I teach him. Also, he had been mentioning that he wanted to spend halloween with us this year as it is going to be Bennett's first Halloween - we spoke with Sonja, and we are going to have him! I am so excited I can hardly stand it! Last weekend we purchased his costume (black spy ninja). He is so cute running around with the mask on and the little trident swords :)
I have been busy as a bee. I have been taking on some really fun projects at work, and loving it! Also, I have been trying to figure out what business school I should attend and whether to go full time or part time. The latest decision is to try to get into the Carlson Full Time MBA program. It would be such an amazing opportunity. I hope it works out! Jae and I have done some numbers crunching, and we could make it work (albeit with lots of student loans) financially. Keep your fingers crossed! Application deadline is November 1st - hoping to hear back by mid-November.
Jae has been busy as well - last weekend, he spent some time paintballing up north with Billy. It sounds like he had a wonderful time! It's good for him to get out with the boys!
This weekend, we have quite the busy weekend - tonight, we are getting together with "the couples" - The Cliftons and The Kachmans - for a "dirty" theme night - based around dirty martnins. Jae and I are going as hobos. Can't wait! Tomorrow Jae's Coworker - Celnida is hosting a first birthday party for her daughter Olivia. Here's hoping to get a little bit of rest time in before we have to do the whole "work week" thing all over again!
Bennett is "So Big!"
Bennett Playing Before Daycare
Monday, August 27, 2012
The Blur That Was August
As you can see, I have been slacking yet again! I wish I had better excuses, but all I can really say is that August has flown by so quickly, the air has been knocked out of me... Given it has been so long, I have a lot to catch up on! In the typical board-game fashion, we will go youngest to oldest :)
Bennett has been such a doll! He is officially seven months old and getting bigger by the minute. Last night I tried to put on his 12-month sleep n play, and it was as tight as casing a sausage. Bennett is clearly eating well, lots and lots of formula as well as two servings of solids a day. He isn't crawling just yet, but rolling around, scooting, and sitting beautifully by himself (no help needed - at all)! B-bear has turned into such a happy little baby! He loves to play in his exersaucer, take showers with daddy, play with his toys, and read his books. He is almost always happy, smiling, laughing, and chatting!
*side note - what we thought was his ringworm was not - it was just a very, very bad case of his eczema. It is almost all gone, and his skin is finally as beautiful as it should be!
Goob has been wonderful as well!! Kaeden officially started second grade today. Last week, we had a "meet the teacher" night, where Jae, myself, and Kaeden all went to meet his teacher (Mrs. Butchert), see his new classroom, desk, and locker. Now that he is in second grade, he is located on the second floor - it's a big deal. The goobster is starting to come out of his shell. He loves being goofy, he's climbing nearly everything (last night I saw him climb our walls... it was crazy), and he has started to enjoy going to the park and meeting new friends.
*Kaeden's quote of the week: "I'm going to get you in the legs and butt ocks! Do you like that? I just made up a new word!" (referring to butt ocks... yes... he pronounced it as two words) Silly goon.
I have been crazier than ever. Work has been changing drastically in a really great way - I am enjoying my new tasks more than ever! - however, that also means that I have been working much longer hours than I normally do. In addition to the longer hours, I had spent most of the month studying for my GMAT; it paid off! I got a really good score and plan on applying to business school to begin class in the spring semester! I am really looking forward to going back, but also nervous as to the time commitment it entails (and what that means in regards to being with my family). Hoping it pays off!
As for Jae - he has been so great. As I have been studying and working, Jae has been doing so much with the kids, around the house, and all-in-all being very supportive. It has been amazing.
Bennett being a mischievous little man, stealing his dinner spoon and making a mess:
Bennett having fun with daddy after his shower:
Bennett playing in his exersaucer:
Bennett has been such a doll! He is officially seven months old and getting bigger by the minute. Last night I tried to put on his 12-month sleep n play, and it was as tight as casing a sausage. Bennett is clearly eating well, lots and lots of formula as well as two servings of solids a day. He isn't crawling just yet, but rolling around, scooting, and sitting beautifully by himself (no help needed - at all)! B-bear has turned into such a happy little baby! He loves to play in his exersaucer, take showers with daddy, play with his toys, and read his books. He is almost always happy, smiling, laughing, and chatting!
*side note - what we thought was his ringworm was not - it was just a very, very bad case of his eczema. It is almost all gone, and his skin is finally as beautiful as it should be!
Goob has been wonderful as well!! Kaeden officially started second grade today. Last week, we had a "meet the teacher" night, where Jae, myself, and Kaeden all went to meet his teacher (Mrs. Butchert), see his new classroom, desk, and locker. Now that he is in second grade, he is located on the second floor - it's a big deal. The goobster is starting to come out of his shell. He loves being goofy, he's climbing nearly everything (last night I saw him climb our walls... it was crazy), and he has started to enjoy going to the park and meeting new friends.
*Kaeden's quote of the week: "I'm going to get you in the legs and butt ocks! Do you like that? I just made up a new word!" (referring to butt ocks... yes... he pronounced it as two words) Silly goon.
I have been crazier than ever. Work has been changing drastically in a really great way - I am enjoying my new tasks more than ever! - however, that also means that I have been working much longer hours than I normally do. In addition to the longer hours, I had spent most of the month studying for my GMAT; it paid off! I got a really good score and plan on applying to business school to begin class in the spring semester! I am really looking forward to going back, but also nervous as to the time commitment it entails (and what that means in regards to being with my family). Hoping it pays off!
As for Jae - he has been so great. As I have been studying and working, Jae has been doing so much with the kids, around the house, and all-in-all being very supportive. It has been amazing.
Bennett being a mischievous little man, stealing his dinner spoon and making a mess:
Bennett having fun with daddy after his shower:
Bennett playing in his exersaucer:
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