Sand.

For my sister. 

After landing, we drove out of the way to zaxbys (SC fav). Then to the beach. We woke up in bismarck and hours later feet in sand. That is a nice day. 

-Heather

So Many Photos.

I'm seriously behind on photos in the last months. I'm plugging away at Christmas photos, making my Shutterfly album (that is getting crazy long). It's pretty great having fun family times to capture in an album. I will look at my stack of albums when I'm older and reminisce and laugh and well up with tears because I'm a sentimental sap.

Since our time in Arizona was so beautiful, I finally got some fun shots of the kids being outside. Though this week is WARM here in ND so we will get more outside time. Hip Hip Hooray!!

Here's just a few from our last full day with Grammy and Gramps:

There were hummingbirds all over the place. Mainly because my parents have loads of feeders so they all know "hey go to the Tysse's for some good grub."

Our "spring" photo album is looking to be another long one!

-Heather

Trip Up North, Eh.

Vacation = awesome.

They had their TEN year anniversary yesterday. Good work, Lipperts!

And this handsome man (the older one) had a birthday last Sunday. I love him. Glad he got some golf in on his vacation.

She's 11 months now. This doll. 

Farm wannabes! 

HUGE thank you to Dale and Ilene. They are so kind to all of us and we love spending time with them!

Even though I didn't get to go to Canada, it was still a great week. Can't wait 'til next year!

-Heather

$$$ Anniversary Present.

Nine years with this amazing man. And he went ALL out this year and bought me a house!

Details soon!

-Heather

Why Not Minot.

We had another whirlwind weekend. This time in Minot. Greg's cousin played in the state basketball tournament so we wanted to be there for that plus our good friends from back in our just-married-living-in-Grand Forks days live there so we crashed with them.

Greg enjoyed watching cousin cousin Ben (one of ten Mr. Basketball nominees in the state) and Eli and I enjoyed watching him on TV. Eli now thinks Ben is playing anytime he sees basketball on TV. And if you ask him who he is when he's shooting hoops, he says "cousin cousin Ben." He also says when watching bball "those guys are saying "pass me the ball please"". Which makes our kid the most polite basketball player ever.We were bummed Ben's team lost the championship game but proud of the Saints for a stellar season and making it to the very end.

Thanks to our friends for the hospitality! It was so fun to see their kids and their little personalities!

Cousin Lilli joined us for an evening of fun

Oh fun, hilarious Ruby (four months older than Eli)

Eli, oh Eli. Perhaps we should be worried?

-Heather

Booked.

Highlight of my week:

My sweet husband texted me saying he had a surprise for me. I love random, no-reason thoughtfulness so I was excited. He gave me a piece of paper: he booked me a ticket to spend a week in South Carolina in April (15th - 22nd). I will get to introduce Annalee to our friends! And meet at least one new baby (see below post)! And enjoy truly beautiful weather, the way spring was meant to be! And enjoy as much as I can of all that we miss not living there anymore! And finally, being back in SC shortly after Maelee's birthday will be a gift.

Since Greg has two days off over Easter, he figured he can watch Eli (and Grandma graciously agreed to watch him while Greg's at work the other days). He also went ahead and booked it without telling me because he didn't want me to spend any time comparing costs or airlines, etc. He knows me well. What a great gift! I am thrilled! I just wish the daddy and the boy were coming, too. I feel I can battle the drive to/from Fargo, two flights plus layover with a six-month old by myself, but definitely not with a three-year old added in the mix. Sorry bud.

Thanks, Greg, for this gift! South Carolina, here I come!

-Heather

Inconvenient Ice.

We have made it back to Bismarck. It's been another bad weather, bad road adventure but we are grateful to be safe and sound in a warm home. My parents drove the kids and I four hours yesterday thru decent roads and Greg drove thru some crazy ice rain to meet us. We had planned on staying in Moorhead with Greg's grandma 'til Sunday but it's supposed to get horridly cold so we took our window of decent weather and made it back today. And on the small road near Greg's parents, we saw four beautiful deer welcoming us home. They looked cold. 

We had to deal with icy roads today, saw a handful of vehicles in the ditch and various highway patrol fixing the messes. The worst and scariest was seeing a truck pulling a camper spin out and go toppling into the ditch about 50 yards in front of us. Both kids asleep in the back seat stayed asleep thru it all. Grateful for wonderful visibility, great driver, good van and God in control. 

Below you can somewhat see a semi in the ditch jackknifed: cab facing north, its trailer facing east. Yikes. Also we are in ice fishing territory again...little shacks on a sea of white. And the place where it's so cold the cows huddle together. 

Glad to be inside while it gets crazy cold! However I am unhappy about road conditions being such a major part of our lives again. The newest apps on my phone are the 511 MN and ND department of transportation. All for road condition info. Lame. 

-Heather

Red, Yellow, Green.

This is really happening. We are really moving. I don't think the reality of this has set and probably won't for a long while. Here's the latest if you want mundane details.

We bought the (insanely expensive) plane tickets for Eli and I. Greg has reserved the (decently priced) moving truck. We will all depart July 30, barring any difficulties. After consulting with my doctor, he said flying or driving would be fine but that I'd need to get out every hour or so and walk around. With a 32-hour drive plus a two-year old, driving didn't seem the ideal choice. So a short, direct Charlotte to MN flight will do and Greg will pick us up in MN for the last leg of the trip to our new hometown.

Our house is officially on the market. We met with a realtor Wednesday and he was taking photos and putting it on MLS by Friday. Let's just say without the help of our friends on Thursday, that couldn't have happened! We will try keep the house in show-ready mode for the next weeks, but any prospective buyer will need to be warned we are in the process of moving. I hope our house sells quickly but the market here is far from great. It's much better than a few years ago but it's still not thriving. I think once it's sold, we will do a happy dance. It's a buyer's market here. Bismarck is definitely a seller's market. Guess we are opposite. Good thing we don't feel that life is all about piling up loads of money or having an extravagant house. And yay for some great in-laws!

Our spare room is the catch-all room, half full of furniture and boxes already. I'll also start one wall of our living room with completed boxes which will pile up slowly but surely. I will not lift more than Eli's weight, don't worry. Since we are moving into Greg's parents basement for the time being (hopefully just for a few months), packing is slightly complicated.  I have a three-part labeling system. I am packing for long-term storage, plus items we may need after baby arrives or in a few months (ie, winter clothes) plus the obvious items we'll need right away. Red, Yellow, Green (thanks for the color suggestion, Sidni!). Red for long-term storage (won't need until we get our new place), Yellow for in-between items to keep accessible, Green for needing now. Plus I added a little Green-Yellow category for baby items I for sure will need but not until we see this sweet girl.

Sidenote: the labeling part is by far my favorite. It feels so good to make labels and color code them and have all the boxes stacked up, labeled and organized by category. Happy sigh. It may be overkill but I'm convinced it'll help lessen the stress at some point.

All three of us have taken long naps yesterday and today, either the stress or the lack of sleep the week prior is hitting us. I have also started taking loads of photos for the "South Carolina" book I want to make soon. I know Eli is too young to get to remember much of his time here but I know if he has a book, he'll remember people and places better. 

Besides house and packing, we are going to try accomplish a few things on our bucket list. Yesterday we ate the best pimento cheese around (super yummy, thanks DiPrato's) and tried local grits (made in Columbia since 1902, but not super yummy). Hopefully we can check a few more things off our list in the next weeks as we try say good-bye. I caught Eli saying "uff-da" a few times last week. That about sums it up!

-Heather

Changing Times.

A week ago I did not know we would be moving to Bismarck.

A year ago Eli couldn't walk or talk.

Four years ago I was about to become pregnant with Maelee.

It sure puts perspective on life when you realize how much can happen in a short amount of time... and how change is certain. Life will change. Drastically or not, it will change.

It's crazy all that is happening right now. Insane really. But it's welcome change. We've had great peace amongst the stress that we are doing what we are supposed to do. Granted some things are not enjoyable or welcome (ie, selling our house and hoping we come out in the black, finding out no insurance will take six-month pregnant me so we'll be forced to do COBRA and pay out-of-network costs for everything, starting those stupid, hard good-byes, etc). But overall we are ready and excited for this change.

If you are the praying sort, pray for all these crazy details. Or maybe that we wouldn't become crazy with them!

-Heather

Also, isn't it crazy to think of Eli when he wasn't walking or talking? The kid is all over the place physically and verbally now! Kids, they do remarkable stuff in a year!

Look at this boy one year ago this week:

Awwww!

Two Weeks' Notice.

Here's some seriously newsy news for you.

We are moving.

We are moving back to the land of open prairies, endless skies, loads of european-decented white people, oil booms, insanely cold weather, knoephla soup, and family.

We are leaving dear friends, humidity, oceans and mountains and cities, the best fried chicken, gorgeous arrays of scenery, fun shopping, ample adventures and entertainment, getting to be outside most everyday, delicious fruit, variety of people and culture, laid-back life, and that feeling of being an outsider.

It has been our big picture plan for awhile to move closer to family, to build relationships in the years left with them. We knew our roots were not to be planted forever in South Carolina. Reminding ourselves of that is important because we do love it here. We came here after two years of marriage knowing no one, we bought a house without jobs or a plan besides Greg going to school, we knew nothing about southern culture, we bonded as a couple, we formed deep friendships, learned a ton, and we had our children, the sorrows and the joys here. We built our lives. It is not going to be easy to leave.

It's especially going to be hard doing it in such a short time! Greg will start a senior writer position with Kat Communications in Bismarck, North Dakota on August 6. That gives us a few weeks to pack, say good-bye, sell our house, and move ourselves across the country. Greg is excited to be doing writing and editing and proofing and creative things for this ad agency.

Because this is all so sudden, we will be taking over Greg's parents' basement and putting our belongings in storage for a few months, until we find a place and get adjusted. I'm excited to have help with Eli during the end of this pregnancy and for the help when baby girl arrives! Moving mid-pregnancy is NOT ideal, of course. Sadly my doctor and his practice are not willing to move with us. We are thrilled that we'll be there for the birth of our niece and for the gift our girl will get to grow up with a cousin so close in age in the same town.

There will be much processing for us in these next weeks and months to come and I plan to continue on with this here blog as an outlet for those thoughts. And of course, to share our family to those we won't get to see as often.

We also plan to visit South Carolina. Every winter.

-Heather

Mo Please.

We are back from Arizona vacation and we are tired. And sick. My sister shared a cold with Greg and I (thankfully Eli has only had mild symptoms). We are all congested and coughing and whiny. Okay, maybe that's just me.

But really, it is so hard to come back from family vacation. I want more! It's always so fun but it's also usually draining! We were busy busy doing so many fun things together. Add that on top of the fact you usually aren't sleeping as well, plus up at 4:15am for a day of traveling (and then a cold) and well, you got some tired folks.

Worth it? Completely! But we sure could use a few days (week!?) of nothing to recharge and get healthy. Maybe we need two weeks in Arizona, one for fun and one for nothing. Actually there were a few times during our trip where Greg and I felt like we could have had more relaxing fun...if our sweet Eli weren't here! He does make life full, and we wouldn't trade that for an easy, relaxing life. No way. But we did start planning our ten year anniversary trip in 2015.

Here's us at San Tan Flats outdoor bar and grill place. It would have been an awesome date! Eli was quite crabby (kid wants food when he wants food) so it was not as much fun waiting for our delicious steak with him... plus we had to leave early. You could crop him out of this photo for a good couple shot but he's our boy and we love him even when it's not convenient.

I took some great shots of the family so get ready for a photo barrage!

-Heather 

AZ.

This was us a few minutes ago. We are on our way to Arizona!

Dreams.

Here's me and the man of my dreams.

Well, I usually have really wacky dreams but if I had normal, movie-like ones, he'd be my leading man for sure.

This was our quick trip to Myrtle and it was cold. But the ocean is still beautiful. And us posing without the kid doesn't happen often so I thought I'd share.

-Heather

Take 2.

Eli and I are back at home after a long day of travel yesterday.

We were stuck in traffic for a bit on the way to the airport because the roads were icy with a brushing of fresh snow. Then our flight kept getting delayed another five minutes, ten minutes, etc. It wasn't too bad but Eli was getting antsy waiting in the gate area. We made it on the plane, up in the air for 20 minutes and then heard the captain saying "We're going to have to turn back to the airport...something is wrong with the plane. Don't worry, though, the landing gear is fine. There will be fire trucks with lights following us when we land, but that's just a precautionary measure."

What?! But things were going so well! There was an empty seat next to us (praise God!) and Eli had already fallen asleep. Though to be fair, I was glad for them being safe. We turned around, landed with fire trucks and a police car escort, and unboarded the plane. And then waited (with no details or time frame) for them to fix the problem. They fixed it in an hour or so and we were off again... taking off the pilot said "thanks for flying with us, take two." This time we made it all the way to Charlotte with no issues I'm aware of. We were only three hours late I think, but it felt longer. The unknowns of it all and the twelve days of being on Eli sort of hit me like a brick the last hour of our flight.

Thankfully our little man flew like a champ. He had a few little moments but mostly he did great and was complimented on his good behavior by our plane-mates (consisting of all business travelers, one couple and a handful of hunters with their pheasant). To keep Eli behaved, I had the kindle with headphones (that he didn't keep on long), his new leaptop from the Lipperts, blankie, two books, and a whole lot of food. Plus, he basically got whatever he wanted.

Oh and that extra seat was still there. What a blessing. 

Love my traveling partner! More photos and stories from our trip soon.

-Heather

On a Trip.

Yesterday I went through the Culver's drive-thru and then to Rainbow Foods to go grocery shopping. Where am I?

Anyone?

Hum...

Minnesota!

Eli and I came here for twelve days. Since we won't be seeing my sister and her family over Christmas, we decided to make a trip north. Eli is having fun with his two cousins and their (crazy amount of) toys. Currently he is enjoying a blanket fort with Ali and Ava and being told what to do. Love those girls.

I had to send my beloved Nikon in for service as it's been acting up. That means I'm borrowing cameras. This means the photo barrage of this trip may not be so extreme. But don't you a worry, there will still be photos of these three red-heads.

Sidenote: Culver's is the Chick-fil-A of the Midwest  Instead of yummy chicken, it's beef. Good, sweet, wonderful butterburgers. Goodness.

Second Sidenote: I was talking to myself in the grocery store. And then really wishing I was at Publix where shopping truly is a pleasure and they bag your groceries and bring them to your car... instead of having to bag them myself?! What?! I have gotten so spoiled.

Oh and if you are wondering, Greg is still in SC. My guess is he is reading, playing guitar very loudly, running, taking a nap, computing and all the other things he doesn't get to do very often with us around! He is missed, of course.

-Heather

Apple Picking.

Growing up we had a crab apple tree. Every other year it had a butt-load of tart, tiny apples. Excellent pies and crisps and other desserts but usually not awesome off-the-tree goodness.

Yesterday I learned that if there were a competition in my soul of North vs South, the South would win in apple growing/picking category.

We spontaneously went apple picking yesterday. We drove to the mountains for a few hours. We were heading to a yummy bakery and were gladly sidetracked by the you-pick apple place. The orchard is huge. There were a ton of people there. Granted many were standing in a line as long as a football field to get apple cider doughnuts... which we did not get this time (oh man did they smell good).

They have probably 10-15 different types of apples growing on acres and acres of land tucked on one of the first mountains you hit shortly after you enter North Carolina from I-26.

Do you see him in there?

I was determined to find one I could reach that was good enough to pick...thankfully they had short trees full too!

At one point, Eli face planted into the ground. It was hard walking on a mountain with apples all over the ground to trip you up.

Apple Orchard + Mountains = Family Photo Op!

So peaceful!

I also learned that I don't ever want to go picking without Greg. His tallness and abnormally long arms are prime for picking! He did get stung once by a hornet so it wasn't without its pain.

We (mostly Greg) picked almost a 1/2 bushel of apples (whatever that is) and it cost $14. Here's most of our loot (minus the few we've eaten):

Ya'll should be glad I don't have a smart phone and Instagram. Seriously. There would be so many apple photos this week.


-Heather

Happy 2nd Birthday Ava Maelee Linn!

Business Trip.

Our wonderful man of the house left us for a few days this week to attend a conference for work in Chicago. He had an eventful trip... the flight was delayed three hours and when he finally arrived at his downtown hotel, they didn't have a room for him even though he had a reservation. He ended up sitting in the hotel lobby bar for a few hours until they found another hotel for him. After his taxi ride there and getting settled, he ended up getting only four hours of sleep that night.

Uff-da, right? Did I mention we considered having Eli and I join him for this trip? Imagine how stressful that would have been with a 14-month old! Thankful we decided against tagging along. His flight was also delayed two hours yesterday. Seriously, United gets one star in my book. Maybe no stars even, but definitely not five stars.

Oh and I should mention the hotel felt really bad. They gave him a awesome room the next day and a fruit basket. Nothing says a corporate "I'm sorry" like a fruit basket.

I made Greg take photos. Here are a few:

Ah, a real city.

Soldier Field... da Bears!

The view from his (final) hotel room... pretty awesome with Navy Pier in the background.

One person trips are bummers for taking photos, but Greg got smart here.

It was a good trip for him but we were so, so excited to have him back home. Thanks to our friends that helped me with Eli. Those breaks were a blessing and helped me make it through the few days without being totally burned out on mom-duty.

Happy Weekend!

-Heather

Seven!

Greg and I have been married for seven years today. It was a cold, snowy day in Grand Forks, North Dakota back in 2005 when we said our vows in front of some really great people. Today we went out on a lunch date and then went and put our feet in the sand. Not quite Jamaica beach sand... more like the banks of the Missouri river sand. Great stuff. It was a beautiful day out there and so peaceful. Exactly how you want a spend every Monday if you could. Almost 70 degrees and sunny with a sky so huge you just want to reach out and take a bite out of it.

But even if the weather was crappy today, it still would have been enjoyable because I got to spend it with my favorite person in the world. I love my husband and I am so grateful to be married to him. I wish there were more Greg Kasowski's in the world, then there would be a whole lot more happy wives out there.

That's not creepy, is it?

I'll spare the mushy romantic fluffy words because Greg's not a fan of me gushing about him. Just know he's a catch and I'm giddy about life with him.

-Greg's Wife

Out for Some Sky.

I had a "meh" feeling all last weekend. Just didn't feel great or motivated and maybe feeling a little stuck. For me some of the best medicine is a nice drive. I'm certain this stems from growing up in flat land... plus the fact there is really wasn't a whole lot to do back home so for entertainment we would drive around. And around. And around. I know a large chunk of my high school days were spent in Jillmarie's car on some gravel road around Williston or sadly, dragging main. Yes, driving around was the thing to do.

Thus my itch to get out once in awhile and see some sky through the passenger window. Thankfully last Saturday, Greg took Eli and I on a drive to a small town and we had an early supper (only ones in the sub shop) and a little walk around. Then we came home. We were probably gone three hours but it was exactly what I needed.


Pretty cool clock on the Newberry Opera House plus brick road:

He is a South Carolina boy after all! (this is the SC flag for you non-southerners):

Also, the funny moment of the day was when we decided to get some ice cream for dessert. The man was explaining the different flavors: "Sherbet, Chocolate, and here's a seasonal one" as he pointed to the pink one with the sign "Peppermint Candy Cane." That really should have been our first clue. We preceded to buy some Butter Pecan. I had one bite and knew that stuff had probably been in the case for a few too many months. Old sugar = so not tasty. We should have realized it's mid-March and their seasonal ice cream did not involve St.Patricks Day or Easter. They obviously don't go through a lot of ice cream. Lesson learned.


Yesterday Eli and I joined some friends at our local zoo. I had to share this photo of how CUTE he looks in these short overalls. And his "these flamingos smell funny" look:

I did learn that Eli is so much like his Dad (and me)  in that he is NOT a fan of the sun and being hot. He was just crabby in the stroller as we walked around the different animal exhibits. However when we took a break in the cool shade, he was happy as can be. Then mad again when we went back in the sun. And yes, he had a hat and sunscreen on. 

I told Greg over the phone "I forsee many family vacations to cold destinations, not the beach" and he replied "We can go to the beach, we'll just spend all our time in the hotel room."  Ah, yes, the perfect vacation for a family of red-heads.

-Heather

PS- Welcome to South Carolina, Sprummer. I know that it's Spring because there is a nasty yellow dust on everything, my car especially. And my nose is so congested. But I know that it's Summer because it's crazy hot and I'm dreaming of a pool. So I guess I'll just say Sprummer is here in full force. 

14-8.

Saturday was the annual North/South flag football game at the university Greg attends. This game used to be called Grits vs Cream of Wheat. Awesome. I will take cream of wheat any day over grits. Cream of wheat was created in Grand Forks, ND and I think it's delicious. To be fair, I don't think I've really had good grits yet. If there were enough bacon and cheese involved, I'm sure I would like them.

Back to the game. You can't get much North than North Dakota... naturally Greg has been on the North team each year. He's been practicing for a month. And he was pretty excited about the game. Me too. I love to watch him play sports. He's so darn athletic.

Our friends picked Eli up at the field and brought them to their nearby house to babysit while I stayed to watch Greg play and cheer for the North. There were only a handful of people on the North "side" so I had to do my part. I knew one fan and she asked me if I knew football, if I knew the basics of the game. I said "yes."

Amber, I heard you laughing all the way from MN. Stop.It.

She had a couple from Germany with her that had never been to an American football game before. And no one else around knew a darn thing about football or how to explain the game. The dude comes to sit next to me so that I can explain the game to him. All he knew was it was played on grass.

I may have just ruined American football for him.

Well, it couldn't have been that bad. I actually think I did a pretty good job. Way better than I could have done five years ago! I know what a safety is.

Greg actually played safety (come on, same name for a play and a position, geesh) for most of the game. They played a soft cover two. (This sentence was given verbatim by Greg). They did not get beat deep. They were not throwing the ball anywhere near Greg's long arms (I think they knew to stay away, like teams do for Devin Hester these days). Then the quarterback got injured so Greg went in as back-up.

He did great! He ran it some. The only other North Dakotan on the team caught a thirty-plus yard pass Greg threw. It was fun. Then on one of the last plays of the game, the other team tried to get the ball... and it ended up with Greg coming off the field with blood gushing from his right eyebrow. 

Ouch. He was wearing his glasses with a strap (he needed to see where he was throwing the ball!) and they got jammed. The sports medicine lady treated him and recommended he go get stitches. And the ER nurse (wife of initially injured quarterback) agreed. So Greg and I had our second "date" since Eli was born... going to the ER on a Saturday night!

Gratefully (oh so grateful), the ER was slow and we were in and out in a little over an hour. Greg got three stitches. The only painful part was the needle of numbing stuff. The doctor was glad Greg mentioned the LSU/Bama game... he promptly had me turn it on. I think he spent a little extra time sewing him up just so he could watch the end of the game. Greg also may have a scar because the doc was distracted. We'll see.

It wasn't an ideal end to the night. Especially because of the $225 co-pay. Yikes! But Greg wasn't/isn't in much pain and we are blessed to live in a country where he can get medical care at 11pm on a Saturday night.

And the North won. So worth it, according to Greg. Of course there was definitely a few times where we quoted Lethal Weapon "I'm too old for this...".

Tomorrow Greg will be sporting a lovely shiner and some stitches to work along with his khaki's. Nice eh?

-Heather (wife of this awesome guy, mommy to our rolly-polly boy, and mama-griever for 19 months today)