wandering thoughts

2012-02-05T12:36:00.000-08:00

She Is...

1.) That voice. The one that can calm you, bring you to tears after trying so hard to hold it together, the one that reminds you that everything will be OK.

2.) A servant at heart. Always giving of her time, always helping, always taking on the task that needs to be done, always showing love in this tangible way. Never putting herself above others, but seeing to it that everyone else around her is taken care of.

3.) Thoughtful. You know that at all times you are present in her mind. No matter where she is, near or far, you are with her and you know it.

4.) A steady guide. The receiver of many questions throughout the years, some big some little, but always there to lend advice. Never one to force an opinion but always there to lend it if needed. A quiet source of wisdom.

5.) The best darn cook I know. Year after year of delicious meals, countless hours of effort and time put into feeding her family with not only food but love.

6.) An amazing quilter. Which shows incredible talent and patience. Her work is stunning and perfectly crafted far above the quality of any others I have seen. Her work and love is spread throughout our homes, keeping us warm at night and cozy on rainy days.

7.) Generous in many ways. Her time, always coming for visits, spending time with her family. With her love. With her hands, always lending a hand and doing what she can to help. And with her resources, sharing what she has with those around her.

8.) A wonderful hostess and friend. Never turning anyone away. Always making people feel special and welcome. Even if it's not a good time for her. Rolling out the spread and sitting back to enjoy your company. Always there for her friends, in both joy and sorrow at any moment of the day or night. She is kindness and gentleness.

9.) Our first teacher. The one who showed us right from wrong, how to be kind and gracious and so many other things. And still today is teaching, but from a distance. Because she let us go, let us learn some things for ourselves, let us make our own mistakes and achieve our own successes. She gave us the freedom we needed but still provides a safe landing place - just in case.

10.) An amazing grandmother. Adored and missed terribly by the kids when she's not with them. The object of much excitement and anticipation when she will soon be with them and the source of immeasurable joy when she is with them. How she invests in them, how she dotes on them, how she soaks up every moment with them. What she wouldn't do for them.

11.) She is my mom. She is love. She is right there at the center of the family. Showing me what it means to be a hard worker, a loving wife, mother, sister, daughter, friend. I think that sometimes as a parent we think (and feel grateful for) that God has blessed us with our children, but I feel blessed and grateful that He gave me this mother. I can't imagine a better mom for me.

Happy Birthday Mom
you are so loved.
have a wonderful day!!

2012-01-27T22:25:00.000-08:00

Crisis averted!
I found Season 6 of LOST (the final season).
I think it was meant to be.
It had a sticker on it that said "complete your collection".
Now if that's not a sign, I don't know what is.
I hope my slight sarcasm is translating.

2012-01-25T23:11:00.000-08:00

A couple of you have asked me where I have been in regards to the blog world. Well.... I've been busy bringing the definition of unproductive to a whole new level. I'm trapped watching LOST. I got the first 5 seasons for Christmas and now I CAN'T stop. I can't help myself. It's like crack... or so I imagine. I'm already half way through season 3. As long as I can find the final season before I get to that stage I'll be OK, if not.... it might get ugly around here. Honestly, I'm out of control.

2011-12-21T10:32:00.001-08:00

How does it feel to finally be done with this problem tooth that has plagued me with pain September and minor problems since last year?

Hmmmmmmmm..... I DON'T KNOW!!!!!

In spite of being as excited as a person could be about going to the dentist yesterday for the reason of finally, at long last, being done with this tooth I somehow managed to leave the dentist in tears. What began as a broken tooth has become a MAJOR part of my year. I can't even remember how many times I have gone in about this tooth. 2 months of tooth aches, fillings, antibiotics, and at this point 2 stages of a root canal. Last night was to be the 2nd part and final part of the root canal, putting my out of my misery. But the completely unexpected, and unbelievable happened. A piece of the file they use to clean the canal broke off in the canal and is too far down to be removed without a microscope. And no, I'm not joking. Who does that happen to? Apparently me! I've never heard of that happening. So I have a piece of file in my tooth, covered by yet another temporary filling until I can get in to see a specialist. The first of which I called is now closed over the holidays. Not only do I need to wait longer to resolve this, and not only will I need still more dental work, and not only will I probably be feeling twinges of pain, but it will probably end up costing me more money because it's a specialist. ARGH!!!!

So after those first 10 minutes of shock thinking "are you for real?!" I cried in my car and spent the night discouraged knowing that today would probably be a better day. Hoping that today would be a better day. I've yet to see if that is the case since the tooth is pretty sensitive right now. I am pretty sure it's not residual dental work tenderness, but I'm hoping. Did you ever touch a key or foil to a metal filling when you were a kid? It feels like that but a bit stronger. I can't chew on that side. I am spending lots of time thinking that this better not affect my enjoyment of turkey eating.

So here is to HOPE. May 2012 keep you all (and me) from dental drama. I've been reminding myself about my new Katie Daisy print and saying it over in my head....

BE FILLED WITH JOY
BE FILLED WITH JOY
BE FILLED WITH JOY......

2011-12-19T23:56:00.000-08:00

Mckenzie's version of quadruplets = fourtilettes.

I don't know why but I find that REALLY funny.

I laugh every time I think about it.

2011-12-17T13:32:00.000-08:00

The day after the Burnaby Village Museum maybe wasn't quite as fun, but it was still a busy little day. It started out with a class performance of the Grinch Who Stole Christmas by Mckenzie's class. They held 3 shows throughout the day and not only did the parents come to watch but several other classes came as well. And they rocked! It was flawless, smooth, loud, animated... perfect. Even Mckenzie spoke loud and clear. A Christmas miracle. I went to the first show and Mike went to the later one when he was able to forfeit his lunch break to see it. Love his teacher, she's doing something right, all the kids love her and even Mckenzie finds school much more enjoyable and easy this year. I'll take that as a victory.Then after school, it was time to go to the dentist. Both kids had cleanings and both kids did great. A big advancement from just a year ago. Kalea got the best hygienist in the city. She's so good that I've seriously considered changing my appointments around to come in on her schedule. The best part is that no one had any cavities. Always a welcome report, but especially so for Mckenzie because he had so many issues at the wee age of 5. Like $3000 worth of issues. Never again I pray.
This next week, both Mike and I have dentist appointments. Gosh, this Fall has pretty much been all about the dentist. Ready for a new year with less trips to the dentist.

2011-12-16T18:16:00.000-08:00

I am filled with JOY thanks to my lovely, thoughtful friend Leah. What a happy surprise it was when a couple of days ago I received a special parcel on my front step. I knew right away it would be something good when I saw that it was from the etsy shop of Katie Daisy,(click on her name to see her website) who makes the most deliciously wonderful, bright and bubbly, colorful prints. I have ogled them for some time now and had just recently told one of my sisters about my love for them when she asked about Christmas ideas. Naturally I thought it was a Christmas gift that was mailed directly to me by mistake and though I knew I would love the print, I didn't know which one it was, so I refrained (with jittery, anxious fingers) from opening the package deciding to keep it a surprise in case it was intended to remain that way until December 25th. Instead, I called my sister and questioned her about it and was even more curious after discovering she was not the sender. My only other thought was that it MUST be Leah. The only other person who I've talked specifically about Katie Daisy with. Today with the inability to refrain any longer, I opened it up and found the most lovely print (the one above) and a little sweet note from lovely sweet Leah. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU. I'm in love with it and can't wait to brighten my walls with it. It truly did fill me with JOY!

2011-12-15T23:16:00.000-08:00

Burnaby Village Museum

For years we've lived within an easy drive of the Burnaby Village Museum, we've driven past it countless times, wondered what it was like, thought about going in. But we finally did it. A couple of weeks ago I drove into the park for a reason I can no longer remember, but while we were there I noticed a sign that said the village was free between Nov 26th and Dec 14th. Since we didn't have time that day, I told the kids we'd go another time. And with the Christmas season here, life kept rolling past pretty quickly so it was on the 13th that I remembered and decided to go straight from school to the museum to take advantage of the free showing.

It was pretty chilly but the kids were good. They, and I had a nice time walking around checking out all the old time shops and services. It reminded me of Barkerville a bit. It was dressed up in old fashioned Christmas decor; and I must say I'm happy that candles are no longer used in lighting the tree.
The kids clearly oblivious to the "Do Not Touch" sign on the stove top.
We took in a few minutes of an old movie at the theatre.
The main street.
A cute little cabin dressed up like a gingerbread house. I'm thankful to live in this era especially during the winter months. Yikes.
The kids went on the carousel which was so beautiful. I think it took Kalea off guard at first as it started out pretty much at full speed, which was pretty darn fast. I could see her clinging to that pole for dear life. I thought for a moment she might lose it and freak out, but she regained her composure and enjoyed the ride.
Milo, watching all the lights and listening to the music.
The barber shop
I have a vague recollection of someone getting married in this church, but I'm not sure. Maybe it was another one. I'm confused. It's that lack of REM sleep. Anyways, there was a violinist playing, which we didn't take the time to enjoy.
It was great, the kids also went into the old school house and got to see what it was like having 7 grades in one classroom. Not quite as colorful and fanciful in those days. We also looked in the pharmacy, the Chinese herb shop, the post office, bank, bakery, the farm house and a few others. It was a great little outing. The kids and I had a good time. Maybe we'll go again sometime.

2011-12-14T21:57:00.000-08:00

Busy Weekend

Sometimes life around here is pretty ho hum. Nothing much new going on, but this weekend was a busy one. It was nice. I started out attempting a DIY project. I took a canvas and covered it with sticker decals.

Then I spray painted it.
Finally I peeled off the decals.
Which left a fun little print. The plan was to light it from behind allowing the light to shine through the print. But I just wasn't as happy with it as I had hoped. There is a crossbar in the middle of the canvas and the light I was using wasn't even. So maybe I'll revisit it again after Christmas.
Then Danielle and Bryce came down for a quick visit. It worked out great that they were here for a few reasons. First, it was nice to see them, second we could exchange Christmas gifts between the whole family and avoid pricey postage. Third, Danielle has decorated the Christmas tree with us for 8 years so happily we were able to do # 9 also.
On Saturday Danielle and I went to the Quay to check out the Got Craft fair. Which was small and poorly advertised. The one on Commercial Drive is a huge one, but this being the first year in New West and not being advertised, it was a bit of a fail.
Fourth, I made sugar cookies and we decorated them together. A long standing Christmas tradition. ( the whole batch is about 5 cookies away from being gone)
Earlier this day, Kalea had a birthday party at the theater with lots of little girlfriends. They got to watch Happy Feet 2. She brought her little friend home to decorate with us. They alternated between loading up the icing and making pretty little cookies. On Sunday, both kids were in the church Christmas presentation. Mckenzie was outfitted with the perfect costume for his personality. He got to hide away in a box the whole time and really didn't have to say much. He was quite happy hiding away in there.
Kalea was one of the Wise Men. Their Sunday school class recited a poem and she and another boy had their own little part. She did really well, finally starting to come out of that shyness a bit.
After church and a bite to eat at home, we headed over to Mike's work party for the kids. Milo ran amuck while Mckenzie and Kalea sat watching a magic show. But Kalea and I had to leave early to go to yet another birthday party. But not before getting a very cute and fun glitter craft project. Milo loved the Santa and kept hugging him.
It was a gorgeous day. I couldn't help be reminded that in spite of living in the city, we really do live in a beautiful province. Surrounded by snow capped mountains and water. This was taken from the Quay where Kalea's birthday party was. It was at the Vancouver Circus school. I've often thought it would be fun to be in the circus so I was happy that she could go check out some fun things. They did trampoline and silks.
She loved the silks, and her favorite part was wrapping herself up like a little cocoon.
In the evening the kids watched a few Christmas cartoons. I worked on a couple other DIY projects and wrapped presents.
So those are the major things we did. Mixed in with a few more regular routine stuff that I won't bore you with. Hope you had a fun filled weekend too.

2011-12-09T21:23:00.000-08:00

HE IS....

1.) He is so so loving. You always feel so loved and special around him. You can feel his love for you.

2.) He is so generous. In every way, he is giving without reservation.

3.) He is a great story teller. When he tells a story, especially about his rascally past, you just want to hear more and more.

4.) He is a joker, he's got a great laugh. That hearty laugh that is so contagious.

5.) He is determined. Whatever it is, he'll keep on going until he figures it out. He spent many hours figuring out homework with me, putting aside his own plans.

6.) He is a very hard worker. He does it right, he does it efficiently, he does it with pride.

7.) He is a man of integrity. His word is good and can always be trusted. He is respected and well loved.

8.) He is your biggest supporter. Whatever it is, he will back you and maybe let you fall, but he'll always be there to help you back up and try again.

9.) He is a very devoted husband, father, and grandfather. Family is always first. Always his top priority.

10.) He is a fighter. Nothing has held him back. In spite of circumstances that would have broken lesser men, he never quit, never doubted, never gave up or gave in to self pity. He persevered and thrived.

11.) He's my dad. He's the best father I could ever imagine having. He set the bar pretty high.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD. I LOVE YOU

2011-12-07T23:45:00.000-08:00

MY FAVORITE THING
at the moment

unsolicited baby kisses.
soft.
sweet.
gentle.
100% pure.
never refused.
sometimes sloppy.
always perfect.

2011-12-07T11:21:00.000-08:00

Kalea had an open house in her class last week. It was great to go in and see what they do all day. Very cute class and such a great teacher.
Looking at Milo in this first picture fills in some gaps for me about where he may have caught that viral infection that gave him croup. Hmmmm.......
Apparently Milo fell onto one of his Duplo legos and gave himself quite a little mark. It almost looked like a burn, if we hadn't known better. But the little circle was a perfect match for the legos. He gave one quick little cry and he was onto more mischief.
Direct sunlight in the face = not so good photos
Milo: "OK, photo OP is over!!!"

2011-12-03T23:49:00.001-08:00

Round 2 of croup for Milo =

* even more emphasis on the last post.
* poor little guy with a barky painful sounding cough.
* 4 AM visit to the bitterly cold outdoors - for Mike and Milo.
* testing out the inhaler we got for Milo and learning quickly that he loathes it with all his being.
* sleeping half the night on the recliner with squirmy, sick baby.
* extra snuggly midnight wake ups.
* hyper sensitivity to his every raspy breath.
* fun for all .

2011-12-01T21:40:00.000-08:00

This is SO true. I go to bed at night thinking about tomorrow's nap (which I never take). And during that time when I'm "not napping" I'm day dreaming about my bed at night (which I never seem to find before midnight). But for once, I think I'll be in bed before 10 tonight. Just in time for my sick little Milo to wake up and be "needy" again. Gosh, he's such a BABY!!!!! I don't even remember what it's like to sleep more than 3 hours in a row. It SOUNDS heavenly. One day.......

2011-11-30T21:15:00.000-08:00

Is it just me or does it seem like consent forms are getting more and more scary? The latest one the kids came home with was labeled: For Child Participating in High Risk Activity

One of the 5 sections I needed to initial included the following:

I am aware of the risks and dangers inherent in participation in all of the activities associated with this trip, and of the possibility of personal injury, death, property damage, or loss resulting from the activities. The dangers and risks may include, but are not limited to: unorthodox or high risk travel arrangements, program locations, rugged terrain, rock fall and avalanches, weather, equipment breakages, failures, delayed rescue, accessibility, conduct of the guide, chaperone or other group members, human error, risks particular to the specialized outdoor environment of the activity, risks associated with participation in a water activity or sport, or the possibility that my child may not heed safety instructions or restrictions given to the group.

What the heck are they going to be doing?!?!?!?!?! Going on climb to the summit of Mount Everest? Feeding the lions on an African Safari? Swimming with sharks off the coast of Mexico? Maybe visiting soldiers in the middle East. Perhaps going on a police ride along in downtown Hell's Kitchen New York.

I would think probably not judging by the cute cartoon characters also on the form, but maybe those are just to soften words like DEATH, ROCK FALL, RUGGED TERRAIN, DELAYED RESCUE etc....

let me check....... umm yeah.... they're going ice skating!

2011-11-24T16:15:00.000-08:00

A very very dear friend of mine is expecting a baby, any day now actually. I'm also very happy to say that I plan to be there for the labor and birth. I'm a little concerned about how Milo will do if I'm gone during the night because he wakes several times a night. But in the past, things have always worked out so I'm keeping the faith that they will this time too.

Anyways, another girl and I threw a shower for her last weekend. I decided to go with a nesting theme. The pictures are truly horrendous. It was just that perfect time of the afternoon that it was too dark to take them with natural light and the flash on my camera is terrible making everything look washed out, stark and dark. Too bad. Plus I had no time to take photos because just as I was finishing the last of the decor the guest of honor arrived. So I was in a flurry of activity.
But at the end of the day, everything looked great (in spite of what the photos show), and best of all my friend had a great time.
Bunting is so fun. I just love bunting. I did two different sizes in the same fabric that I used for a little quilt I made for baby. It also inspired the color theme of the party.
We did several games, and the little brown envelopes with birds and doilies were the prizes.
I made these little nest necklaces which turned out really cute I think
Some broaches I made. So simple and cute.

2011-11-23T22:18:00.000-08:00

Exhibit A on why spelling is important. This is Mckenzie documenting the "construction SITE" across the street for a mapping assignment for school. Mike thought it was too humorous to erase and correct so we just put the correct spelling below. Hopefully his teacher will find it just as humorous. Are we bad parents?!

2011-11-21T22:04:00.000-08:00

AS I've mentioned before my latest addiction (aside from Tylenol and Advil - just kidding) is Pinterest. So many ideas so little time. But I do try to do as many as I can. And one of the ideas I tried today was a recipe called Loaded Mashed Potatoes. I tested it out on our home group potluck tonight and it was a hit, even with the kids; which is a huge plus. Now I'll share it with you too, so you can try it out

LOADED MASHED POTATOES

5 lbs potatoes
3/4 C sour cream
1/2 C milk
3 tbsp Butter
salt and pepper to taste
3 C shredded Cheddar (divided)
1/2 lb cooked and crumbled bacon (I used the whole lb)
3 green onions, sliced (I used the whole bunch, probably about 6)

It's so simple.
* Cook the potatoes
* Add sour cream, milk, butter, salt and pepper
* Beat on low speed till light and fluffy
* Stir in 2 C Cheese, bacon, and chives
* Transfer to 3 Qt baking dish and top with remaining cheddar
* Bake uncovered @ 350 for 30 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted.

2011-11-21T17:30:00.000-08:00

Well after 2 months dealing with an achy tooth, I went in again today. Time didn't help. Antibiotics didn't help. So after weeks of keeping myself on a steady stream of Tylenol and Advil, it was time to go back in and get this party started. No one likes going to the dentist and I'm no exception. But getting to the bottom of this tooth issue is pretty high on my to-do list so I was happy they could squeeze me in today. Now I'm sitting here trying to ignore the pain of a partial root canal. They couldn't finish it all today so once again I'll be going back for this stupid tooth. But now the freezing is gone, I've maxed out on the pain relief I can take and I'm not enjoying the aftermath. But I'm happy to have started it, and happy that those little nerves are dead. As soon as the gums calm down I'm sure I'll be feeling better. I hope!!! I pray!!! We'll see. At this point it feels like that tooth will never leave me alone. Those wee little nerves are like a stalker that I've had to tip toe around for weeks while they caused me nothing but pain. Finally I have just decided to hire a hit man to kill em'. I'll find out in a couple of days if he actually pulled the trigger.
Fingers crossed....

2011-11-17T13:05:00.001-08:00

Mark the date. It has officially begun. The age of:

* wild curiosity,
* intense determination,
* extreme failure to cope with disappointment,
* fierce frustration,
* intense emotional outbursts,
* undetectable patience level
* death defying acts
* incredible retention of dangerous places, objects and the need to return to said places/objects
* shrill, savage screams (say that 5 times fast)
* over abundant attitude
* the need to hit everything

and the list goes on. And only some of those things are me. But ALL of those things are Milo the mischievous. So taking on this new era of child rearing should be fun. I'm already basking in all of it's glorious lessons. I say that people always rise to the challenge, but I'm not sure I'm all that excited about rising to the challenge RIGHT NOW. And given that I'm functioning on roughly 4.5 hours of sleep a night for the last year and a half (I'm including the fun last months of pregnancy), I should be a super fun mom to be around. But, I hear that zombies are all the rage right now, so I should fit right in.

And like the picture says, This too SHALL pass. And when it does I'll miss all those wonderful special moments that hide themselves away in between the craziness. So I'll do my best to revel in those moments when they flitter in like little butterflies, because I know they will flitter away just as easily. I'll take an extra moment to rub cheeks with a sleeping baby in my arms even though all I want to do it sleep. I'll give up trying to keep my Tupperware in the drawer and just laugh at whimsical ways when I would really love to have a tidy house. And I'll giggle and lean in for those sloppy open mouth kisses just moments after a meltdown, because soon enough, This Too Shall Pass.

2011-11-11T00:31:00.000-08:00

So remember how I said we needed a new water pump for the van? Did I also mention that a few months ago we were also told we needed a new air conditioning clutch. (yeah, I didn't know there was such a thing either). We were told that would cost us roughly $1000. Well, today we brought the van in to get the water pump done. Part way through the day I got a call saying we needed a new serpentine belt also. By the end of the day we had spent about $250. Pretty reasonable when you think of getting both a new water pump and a serpentine belt. Pretty incredible and awesome when you think about how the clutch problem we thought we had was really just the water pump and we saved ourselves $750. Yup, pretty happy about that!

As for a dental update, nothing new. Still fending off the toothache by way of Tylenol and Advil. I'm pretty certain a root canal is on the horizon.

2011-11-05T22:31:00.000-07:00

Weekend Update

The dental drama continues. I had to go buy more Tylenol and Advil today so I can continue my constant stream of pill popping to keep the tooth ache away. I've had to resort to keeping a very detailed record of it so that I can keep myself out of trouble. I hope it will Finally be resolved this week sometime.

Milo started walking in the past couple of days. He went from the odd step here and there to full on walking. However if he really wants to get somewhere in a hurry like past the unlocked gates he drops to his knees and makes his escape. He can sense an open gate 2 rooms away.

On Friday I took our 3 kids plus 1 to costco after school. Just for a quick run, there and back - or so I had hoped. On our way there I noticed that the route back looked very congested so I decided to take a longer, but hopefully more open route back home. That didn't work out, so I abandoned that one also. After about 6 more abandoned routes due to stand still traffic, a hail storm, rain, lightning, hungry complaining kids, an empty gas tank that was dinging to be refilled, I made it just within an acceptable distance to ditch the van and walk home in the rain with 4 kids, 3 bags of costco meat and a light sprinkle of rain accompanied by a very pretty rainbow. Even though the driving distance was only about 1 km and would have taken us about 3 minutes under normal circumstances I think it would have taken us at least another 45 minutes. Turns out it wasn't regular rush hour traffic (I never have to drive in rush hour so I didn't know if the madness was typical or not. It was CRAZY NUTS!!!!). Unfortunately it was a much more tragic reason. I later heard someone jumped in front of a semi truck. The freeway was closed, the bridge closed, and traffic was backed up from Port Moody to the North Shore. Sad, very sad.

Our water pump is going on the van and so we're not using it. So into the shop it goes this week. So that means we've got 2 super fun things to spend money on this week: teeth and van. Ugh!

With no van, Kalea and I went on a little adventure today riding the bus and skytrain to metrotown for a birthday party. 21 kids at build a bear. That had to be a bit pricey. Yikes!

Finally got all our carrots in from the garden. We now have 4 very large grocery store bags full of carrots.

Tomorrow is another birthday party; this time for Mckenzie at the wave pool.

And that's our weekend in a nutshell. Super exciting, but I know you grandparents are all about the little details so there you go. Once again I'm feeling just way to exhausted to write anything witty or humorous. And now instead of going to bed like I should, I'm going to do something mindless and just enjoy the downtime without being on mommy duty.

2011-11-03T13:10:00.000-07:00

Halloween came and went once again. And every year the kids get more and more into the groove of efficient candy hunting. No longer are the days of strolling from home to home. It's been replaced with running the quickest route possible from door to door. Gone are the days of being afraid to go to doors alone and being easily frightened in general. There were a couple moments when Mckenzie had his freak freaked. Like the time he walked up the walkway only to have a large skeleton with green eyes drop from the sky right in front of him. But it wasn't enough to deter him, he simply slinked around the edge of the property and cautiously awaited the candy lady to deliver it to his open pillowcase.
Another time was when he wandered up to a home which has a talking gypsy head controlled by the owners who gathered info like his name from us. While he was asking the gypsy head how she knew his name, a man wearing a grim reaper outfit crept out behind him. Other than a very high pitch squeal, Mckenzie held his own until the reaper backed off. In years past that would have ended the night in terror right then and there.

Carving our 4 pumpkins.
Here are the skeleton cupcakes I made for Mckenzie's class party. I hand painted the skeleton head suckers then put the stick through yogurt covered pretzels which were separated by mini marshmallows. Done. Easy. Fun.
The cutest little garden gnome I've ever seen!
Dorothy, gnome and skeleton posing after school. Anxiously awaiting the post dinner candy run.
Ready to go. Thankfully it was a beautiful day and not raining. It was however pretty cold and a bit windy, but like I said, no rain, so that it all I hoped for. I couldn't decide on what to dress Milo as, so he had two costumes. He really didn't mind wearing the chicken costume, he just wanted to be free and not pose for a photo.
And here is the big haul. Both kids got lots of candy. Mckenzie more than Kalea though because she got tuckered out after 1.5 hours, whereas Mckenzie didn't tire out till about midnight. Thankfully they had a pro-d day the next day
And now all the trades are done, the candy with nuts or caramel has been passed to the grown ups and they are consumed with thoughts of consuming their loot. Hope you all had a fun and prosperous Halloween too.

2011-11-02T23:41:00.000-07:00

oops, I see it's been a while. I've gotten myself all addicted to Pinterest. So whenever I do get some limited and unpredictable time I have to do my rounds and often run out of time to blog. Apparently.

So what's new with us? Milo had his first round of croup. Always a fun little viral infection. Nothing like the sound of your baby croaking and rasping for breath. I knew immediately it was croup because both other kids had it. So I knew that one of those nights I would probably be taking him to the ER for a little nebulizer. And sure enough, I did take him in. Thankfully they're pretty good at getting kids in as they have their own kids section. This time though he just got a mouthful of medicine rather than the inhaling the other kids had to do. Not sure it helped much; I think the drive to and from the hospital did more for him than the medicine.
The next day he had an appointment at the family Dr and by the end of the day I had spent nearly $80 on his own inhaler just in case he needs it. I cringed at the cost but if he's anything like the other two, he'll have croup at least a couple more times and having that on hand will be reassuring.
But he's better now and only waking up at night now, just to torture us, not because he himself is being tortured. Oh how I am baffled at how other parents can magically get their babies to sleep through the night so early on. I have no such talent in that area.
I'm in a perpetual state of sleepiness.

As for me I've been having a little dental drama. I believe it when people say having babies messes with your teeth. Since Milo was born I've had 2 molars partially fall out. Just suddenly popped out. The first one didn't bother me so I left it, but after the second one it became more difficult to eat having what felt like two gaping holes on both sides of my mouth. So I got the second one fixed and shortly after that the original tooth began to ache. So I went in straight away (about a month ago) and got it filled. Turns out that it was quite deep and they had to also put a sort of ring (for lack of the proper term) around the remaining tooth so they could fill it in properly. After much pressure, pushing and prodding it was done and I was looking forward to a pain free mouth. But after the first few days it was still aching after eating or hot and cold. At first I thought it was just because of the extra fussing about they had done in there to fix it, but it continued and then became pretty much constant. So after enduring a few weeks of increasing pain I went back for x-rays. Turns out the filling was bigger than the space meaning that it was encroaching on my gums. So I had to go back again later in the day to get it fixed. Keep in mind that our dentist is at least 30 minutes away if traffic is OK.

So I got that filling taken out and replaced. About 5 needles later and still with nerve sensation, more prodding, more fussing about. I got home hopeful. Happy to be done with the pain. Then the freezing wore off and holy Hell I was in for it. I had all 4 wisdom teeth out with less pain. It was the bang your fist on the counter, pleading with the sweet Jesus in Heaven, make you want to cry but you're afraid it will make it worse, grab your jaw and pray for instant unconsciousness, knock your tooth out with a skate blade from the movie Castaway kind of pain. I remember thinking that at least with labor there are breaks between contractions.

I called around and found someone with T3's for me and sent Mike to get them. He did and also some Advil. Unfortunately I had already taken 1000mg's of Tylenol and was unable to take the T3's which was indeed unfortunate because they weren't working at all. But I could take Advil with it so I dropped 800 mg's of that. Now I was sitting at 1800mg's of medicine in me and trying to relax in the bath. When that Advil kicked in I finally felt goooooood. I'm not sure what being high feels like, but I imagine it felt a little something like that. Suddenly I was exhausted.

I gave the pain a day or two thinking that it would be typical after the aching and work that had been done, but a week later, the pain was still there and getting worse again. Ahhhhh!!!
So back to the dentist who seems just as stumped as I am as to what is causing the pain. He's not sure if it's a gum issue or a tooth issue. I think tooth. He's said the filling is very close to the root so a root canal is a possibility. I'm so over this. I'm over taking medicine non-stop. I'm over having this be at the top of my awareness chart right now. I'm over having to travel back and forth to the dentist again and again.

I went back in on Monday thinking and hoping they'd just give me a root canal and be done with it. Kill the tooth, kill the pain, I don't care. But because he's not 100% sure what the cause is, he wants to be cautious and rule out the gum issue so now I'm on antibiotics, root still in tact, on a steady stream of medicine to keep the pain mostly at bay.
I have a feeling I'll be back in next week getting a root canal. While I just wish it was over, I do appreciate having a dentist who is not hasty in doing irreversible work like killing a tooth.

And today, just to join the fun Mike had a part of his tooth fall out. What the heck is going on here? It's not like we're Appalachian hillbillies or something. We have normal regular dental hygiene, we go to the dentist. Thank God Mike has benefits and we can actually go to the dentist. Once again I'm reminded that dental work should absolutely positively 100% be covered by medical, for everyone. General dental upkeep and maintenance is crucial to your health and it should never be a service that people can't afford. I know way too many people who haven't gone to the dentist in years and years because of that very reason. It's outrageous.

I'm hoping that very very soon, I'll be done with my visits to the dentist for quite a while. And now I must say goodnight so I can go take my scheduled dose of medicine to push back the pain that is creeping back in.

2011-10-22T19:51:00.000-07:00

THANKSGIVING PART 3

Even though it was a bit early, we decided to celebrate Milo's first birthday with all the family and our long time family friends over Thanksgiving. We went with Eric Carle's "Hungry Little Caterpillar" as the theme. And we went simple.
I made up a Hungry Little Caterpillar game. They rolled the dice and moved along the board, collecting all the little food pieces that are in the book. No winners, just complete it and get a treat. I'm by no means a talented cake decorator, but I think the basic idea came across and I think it turned out ok. It couldn't have been more simple.
Happy Birthday sweet Milo
First taste of cake. He wasn't feeling himself that afternoon but the cake went a long way in changing his temperament.
ATV rides from grampa were a big hit with the kids. It doesn't seem like that long ago that neither kid wanted to go anywhere near it.
And I'm hoping to get some photos sent to me of our after party reminiscing. My friend Cyndi and I took a roll down the hill in a barrel which I have no pictures of. So if you have any, please email them me.

2011-10-21T22:21:00.001-07:00

I just added another blog to my sidebar. It's actually another one of mine that I just started. It's called lovelylittlethingsiheart.blogspot.com

I have been collecting photos of things that I find pretty or interesting, or just little projects I'd like to try. They've been taking up space on a file on the computer and now we're about to get it all wiped off to clean it up and hopefully make it run faster and better. Soooo.... I needed somewhere to put all of those lovely little things i heart and this was the solution.

So if you like click on the above website link or check it out via that sidebar.

2011-10-18T13:02:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY!!!

It's hard to believe my baby is 1 today. This year has been the fastest year ever. It really does seem like yesterday that we brought this sweet boy home. It's amazing how fast they grow and how much they learn in just 1 year. He is such a lovable little guy. (These top 3 photos are from today - his actual birthday)

Day 1 (October 18)

Day 3

Day 5

1 Week old

2 Weeks

3 Weeks

4 Weeks

5 Weeks

6 Weeks

7 Weeks

8 Weeks

2 months (December)

3 months (January)

4 months (February)

5 months (March)

6 months (April)

7 months (May)

8 months (June)

9 months (July)

10 months (August)

11 months (September)

2011-10-17T11:34:00.000-07:00

THANKSGIVING PART 2

Sunday was turkey day. But the morning and early afternoon we spent out at a little spot called Pinnacles. The day was perfect for it. So we left Milo with nana and grampa and the four of us went out with the rest of the family. When we got there we were surprised at how many people were there because it's usually a pretty quiet spot. But who could resist a day like this and the views that Pinnacles provides.
Looking out over the city of Quesnel.
Some of the rock formations beyond the fence.
But of course we didn't stay inside the fence. No one does. And once you climb down a bit you can go out on the cliff above. Plus you can walk under and beside these great sandy, rocky walls that people carve their names into.
And the answer to the question you might be wondering is, YES. I was very nervous watching Mike and the kids out on this narrow and treacherous rock jetty with the huge drop off.
Yeah, look at that little walkway above. Gross.

But the views are so gorgeous
Kalea was nervous too. But she did great. At least I don't have to worry about her running off and falling.Just has to get right out on the edge. Drives me nuts. So freaked out on the inside but I think I mostly held it together.
Looking back up to the fenced area. The little walkway where you can carve out your name is behind the trees at the bottom of the picture.
We found a bunch of snakes. Probably about 5. My sister Janeane couldn't resist picking up a baby snake which peed on her. It promptly went back on the ground.
Watching the snakes slither away. So much fun for the kids.
And then after returning home to the heavenly smell of turkey in the oven we ate and ate and ate some more of my mom's fantastic dinner. Followed of course with pie. And later after the food had settled we all headed outside for the worlds largest bon fire. And while we sat there a bear rustled in the bushes nearby minding it's own business as he passed on through.
It was such a nice Thanksgiving day. Family, food, beautiful surroundings. Couldn't have been more perfect.

2011-10-15T20:53:00.000-07:00

THANKSGIVING PART ONE

Last weekend all five of us loaded up the van, and I really do mean loaded. Mike took off a couple of extra days and so did the kids and we headed to Quesnel for the holidays to spend it with my family. Since I have just a few photos I thought I would divide them up into parts. The top picture is somewhere around Clinton I think at a rest stop near the Begbie summit. It was just one of about 9 stops we had to make, most of which were for little Milo. But Mike and the big kids took some time to run around in the grassy slopes while Milo ate.
On Saturday the kids, my sister and I went to the local farmers market which turns out is a pretty busy little spot then we met up with Cyndi and her family and made our way to the corn maze. I had no idea there was one, I guess it came along after my life in Quesnel. It's actually about 30+ kms outside of town. It's quite a pretty little spot and not only does it have the corn maze, it's got lots of animals to look at, hay rides and a haunted house, which as you'll see was really something.
These two are like little besties. They are just 4 months apart and have always been so close even though they live so far away and don't get the chance to see each other often enough. Cyndi and I grew up together from about 4 and 5 years old so it's so special to watch our little girls love each other and get along so perfectly.Pausing and deciding which way to go.
I guess we'll go this way.Nope, I guess we'll go THIS way. Around and around we go.... when we'll get out nobody knows.
We made it! And it didn't take too long. It wasn't muddy or cold. It was just right.
Such a beautiful place to live.Colors of Fall everywhere.
There were lots of chickens running around loose.
And now for the Haunted House which was the first real sign that we were no longer in the city. They really do, do some things VERY differently in smaller towns. I thought it was pretty fun, a bit of a shake back to smaller city life, but a good shake. And the kids, ESPECIALLY Mckenzie, loved it.
So a little back on the property, over a little creek and bridge is an old house. A regular sized, old farm house and a barn. And hanging in front of the barn are some gigantic, very real, very fresh rib cages and other such cattle bones. Still with flesh and blood on them. This should have been a sign of things to come.
So first you walk in through the fur pelt tunnel. They were old and dirty and yet another sign of things to come.
After the fur pelts you enter the kitchen complete with a real, old deer head with an eye missing. Then over the window, behind the two ghost things is a real stuffed bat which looks much smaller in the photo. But the real crowning glory of the room were the counter tops. They were covered with real, somewhat (in the last couple of days) fresh animal organs. There was also real blood smeared all over. You can sort of see the blood on part of the counter at the bottom of the picture but I forgot to take a good photo of it.
After the kitchen was the living room. They had fake stuff too but I hardly noticed anything besides the real blood and organs and the thoughts of pre-hibernating bears catching a whiff of the dead carcases and joining us on the tour.
Even though the table cloth had fake blood splatters, it also had plenty of real blood too. Along with more organs, eyeballs, a skinned goats head with the knife stuck in the skull... etc. You get the point, no pun intended.
I think just the fact that this is in an old farm house way out of town, in the woods is creepy enough, but add the real stuff and it has the makings for a good horror movie. People actually go through it at night! I don't know who those people are, but they aren't me. Too much for this gal. And just for the record, the owners are farmers, they didn't just kill the animals for the haunted house if you know what I mean. They also only run it for a few days because of the blood and guts. Have fun cleaning that up. The smell and fear of wild animals lurking around will be a real treat. Now I wish I had taken more time going through it and really looked at everything. It was small but effective. The kids were ahead of me though so I was rushing a bit to catch up. They didn't seem phased at all that I wasn't with them.
Back over the bridge, all the kids happy and mostly thinking everything they just saw was fake, except Mckenzie. And I'm happy to report that no one had nightmares. Miraculous! It was a pretty fun day. And now I know that I'm currently a little more city than country than I thought.

Driving home from the corn maze.

A stop at McDonalds for lunch makes for happy little kids.

Babies bonding and making messes.

There was no way we could stop in Quesnel without going to the bakery and snatching up the best long johns ever.

More time with the girls for dinner.

And top the evening off with a little daddy daughter wrestling.

2011-10-07T00:34:00.000-07:00

Tis' the season for skeletons and yellow leaves. A random post, yet again.Mckenzie is wearing Milo's hoodie. I am actually surprised he managed to get it on.
The leaves are coming down like mad now. Yellows, reds and oranges all over the place. So pretty.

2011-10-05T11:13:00.000-07:00

So here is the Fall garden report. Very exciting stuff. With our rainy, cold and windy Spring and early Summer, I had low expectations for our garden this year. But once again it pulled through. We planted peas which for what we planted, we got quite a few. We got lots of Rhubarb which was to the delight of Mike who loves Strawberry Rhubarb pie. We planted tomatoes which this year we had quite a few of, but the blight got most of them. Still I was able to make a big batch of tomato barley soup and a pile of salsa. We had lots of lettuce, more than we could handle. And we have so many carrots, hundreds and hundreds of them. Including some mutant ones like this one...And potatoes. We planted mostly red and have gotten a good haul. The sizes of them are all over the place. This photo was from 1 hill. The average potato is somewhere in the middle of this row
Then this past weekend Mckenzie and I dug out the rest of the potatoes and I happily found that the Yukon gold I tried planting actually grew. And it was wild. I got 34 potatoes from 1 hill. Including 3 monster sized potatoes.
This was one of the bigger ones, though, not the largest.
Still not the biggest one.
Here are the 3 monsters next to an average sized potato. It's hard to really gauge the size, but you'll just have to take my word for it I guess. I've never in my life seen a bigger potato.

2011-10-01T23:32:00.000-07:00

Milo came with me on a novice pregnancy photo shoot I did a few weeks ago (for a friend - NOT me!). How could I resist sneaking a few of him into the mix.I came in to do the late night check and found her sleeping like this. Funny girl.
Kalea showing off her treasures from Nana and Grampa for her birthday. Sparkly jewelery and one of nana's beautiful quilts.
How does that little rhyme go? Little girls are made of sugar and spice and everything nice and boys are made of snails and puppy dog tails? Something like that right? So true. My always charming son thought it was hilarious to stick this rubbery worm up his nose. I could have been grossed out, but instead it made me laugh to see the glee in his face as he proudly presented it to me.

2011-09-28T22:15:00.000-07:00

Ah this kid. What a great boy. I can't believe he's getting so big, so fast. But not too fast that a pair of ripped jeans can't be turned into a cool pair of monster jeans - and still be cool. I saw this idea and knew it would be the perfect project to try. I mean, really, 9 year old boys are destined to have worn out knees. Normally I hate patching knees on jeans, but this was fun and simple. Instead of denim, use red fabric or felt as the mouth, white felt teeth and eyes. The more imperfect the hand stitching, the better it looks. I have a feeling I'll be doing more of these in the future. The only problem is that the felt can quickly get a little fuzzy because after all that area of the jeans gets a lot of action. I hear that at least one other kid immediately requested his mom patch his jeans so I think they're a hit. I only wish I had thought of it.

2011-09-27T21:52:00.000-07:00

I admit, I was slow to jump on the digital camera bandwagon. But for anyone trying to take photos of children, particularly more than one child, the invention of the digital camera should be heralded as one of the greatest inventions of our modern times. We have a great old film camera which takes beautiful photos, but the down side is that you only get 24 and who knows what they'll turn out like. That can be fun, the anticipation, but with kids each moment is here and gone in the blink of an eye. There are very few second chances when it comes to photo retakes. I would love to have a "fancy" digital camera. We have a simple point and shoot which gets the job done and of course we have very cute subjects, but there is only so much a simple camera can do. I really like taking photos and would love to play around a little more with that. One day. As for now, we still have fun trying to capture the moment. And thank goodness for digital since we all know that with kids, it takes at least 78 tries to get 1 or 2 good shots. I'll chalk it up to "capturing the true moment". Here are a few of the photos we took a couple weeks ago. In all their glory....And let it be said that although one might assume that taking photos of 11 month old wiggly babies is tough, taking photos of 9 year old boys often proves equally as tricky. It's a good thing that 6 year old girls like to pose ans shoot rays of sunshine out of their mouths.

2011-09-26T22:18:00.000-07:00

OWLS

I know; this is a very random post. But I have to admit that I think owls are
so fantastic. Here are a few I've seen lately that I think are pretty great.

2011-09-25T22:47:00.000-07:00

After a very slow start to our garden this year, I think we made out pretty well. I didn't think we'd get much this year because everything was so slow to start. Now we have really more than I know what to do with. We've got hundreds of carrots still in the ground, most of which are pretty big. And as you can see, a little interesting looking.We've got lots of potatoes still in the garden also. I love hoeing for potatoes, it's always a surprise what you'll get. How many? How big? This photo was from 1 hill.
Thank goodness we love carrots. I now have to find recipes for the many many tomatoes we have. I took the rest off the vine today because it's getting cold and wet and quite a few were getting "the blite". After making and freezing tomato barley soup, I'll be making some salsa tomorrow. But I still need more ideas of things to make and freeze. Any ideas?
I guess it's getting to that time when I have to get out there and clean up the garden bed. hopefully it will stop raining again so I can get to it. I have a feeling that the rainy season is here already. It's so fun having a garden, especially one like ours which thrives even under our neglectful care.

2011-09-19T23:51:00.000-07:00

Loving this ring.

That's it.
Nothing else to say.

2011-09-17T21:18:00.000-07:00

It would appear, and feel, that the warm sunny days of summer are over. The days of sprinklers spraying the trampoline are put away for another year. Only a week ago it was hot here. Very hot. Sweaty, sticky, bright blue sky hot. And now, Fall is here. The air is cool, the sky is gray and the ground is wet. Goodbye summer. We'll miss you terribly. I'm sorry that your stay this year was so short. I hope you can come earlier and stay longer next year.

2011-09-14T23:28:00.000-07:00

What was I saying back in July? oh yes, I remember now. Lice is a party! Still is. It's baaaaack! Well, barely. I heard about a sweet little friend who was struck with the pesky little bugs so I checked Kalea after school and found 1 lice and a handful of nits. So happy we caught it this quickly. I can't even tell you how much easier lice is when you have very few AND you are at home, not camping. I feel like the lice hunter, or the lice lady. I think once you have to deal with it, you become a bit of a pro when it comes to the little buggers.

So today I went through 3 different children's' heads hunting down these critters. There is something very satisfying about destroying them. We're all clear here now. Head is treated, nits are picked, laundry is done. Feeling good.

One thing I have come to realize is that until you come face to face with this lovely little dilemma, you have no idea what to even look for, you have no idea what to do. So here is what I know. I hope you never need to know it too.

1) you really will know them when you see them. You will not mistake a full grown lice. Especially if there is more than one. The nits are harder to tell, because they are so small. But they stick to the hair and do not come off like a flake or fluff will. They are typically not white as many people think, they are sand color which can range from nearly translucent to a deeper brown
2) Do not go racing to the Internet to look up what a lice or nit looks like. You'll freak yourself out. If you can, find a friend who knows what they are looking for and they'll show you. It's not as horrific as you think it will be.
3) the first mention of lice and you will suddenly become very itchy
4) just because you or your child isn't or hasn't been itchy doesn't mean you don't have lice. Often you/they will not be itchy at all.
5) lice can't fly or jump, they can only walk/crawl
6) they like clean hair - it has NOTHING to do with hygiene
7) lice are about the size of a sesame seed
8) nits are about the size of a grain of sand and can be next to impossible to spot
9) natural light is by far the best way to hunt
10) wash everything you can wash in hot water and dry on hot also. This means, bedding, pillows, stuffies, clothes.... anything that may have come in contact with the lice
11) if you can't wash something, you can put it in the dryer on hot for a full cycle OR you can freeze the item, however, finding space in the freezer might be difficult. Bigger items can be sprayed with a spray you can pick up in the pharmacy
12) don't get too obsessed over lice being on things. They need a host (your head) to live and they don't want to leave. They actually have little claw like things that help them cling to your hair
12) as soon as you find one, use the shampoo to treat your hair.
13) retreat your hair with the shampoo about 7-10 days later
14) the shampoo kills the lice and nits by suffocating them.
15) there is a small chance that the shampoo may not kill every nit. Very small chance, but that is why you re-treat 7-10 days later.
16) there are 3 life cycles of the lice. Nit (egg), nymph(hatched but unable to lay eggs), and lice (about to lay up to 10 eggs per day)
17) when you retreat you are killing any nits that have survived and made it to the nymph stage so they are no longer protected at all by the egg and still not old enough to lay eggs
18) the combs that come in the shampoo box are useless
19) if you really want a comb, get the metal one it's much more fine. But even still it's not all that helpful.
20) your finger nails will do a better job than anything else.
21) you'll have to drag them out because they cling to the hair like nothing else
22) when you find one and pull it out, wipe it on a paper towel. Then after you are done put the paper towel in a ziploc bag and throw away
23) get a clip and put all the hair up on the top of the head. Then start systematically going through very small sections of hair from the base of the hairline upwards
24) after you have gone through a bit of hair, use an elastic to keep it contained. Keep your checked hair section away from your un-checked hair section
25) once you've gone through the whole head, put it into braids, or buns, something to contain it. Then use hairspray to keep it contained even more and as a bonus lice don't like 'product'
26) I use a hot iron after I'm done just as an extra measure. I have no idea if it works, but it can't hurt
27) you have to keep checking every day for 2 weeks. But it will get easier and shorter every time. It will unfortunately not get any more fun.
28) don't get overwhelmed. You'll get them all, eventually, one nit at a time. Remember that after you shampoo them, they are dead, it's then just a matter of removing the dead lice, nits from the hair.
29) keep your kids away from school until they've been treated
30) contact anyone who may have been in contact with your child no matter how embarrassing. You'd want to know, they will too. Besides if they don't catch it, you could re-catch it from them. And the cycle continues....

I hope you never need to know these things, I hope you don't already know them. I wish for you a lice free life.

2011-09-11T21:48:00.001-07:00

Kalea's Carnival Party

This year to celebrate Kalea's 6th birthday we threw a carnival themed party. And as usual I didn't know what I was getting into until I had already started. But I enjoy planning events and this did feel like an event to plan.
Getting ready for the party. So much to do. Here we were separating tickets for each helper. The day was set up like this:
Round 1 of games (5 different stations)
snacks, cake, gifts
Round 2 of games (5 more stations)
Concession stand
cake walk
Pretty puffy pom poms all in a row.
As Kalea's friends arrived no one could resist the trampoline. For each game the kids played they won tickets which they would use later to buy items to fill their goodie bags. Every time they got tickets they would run back to the trampoline and deposit their tickets into the brown bag with their name on it.
And for the party, Mike found the most perfect carnival music to play the whole day. It was awesome. It felt like a real little carnival in our own little backyard.
One of the favorite games was the Face Wash. The kids took great pleasure in whacking Mike in the face with a wet sponge and of course Mike was a great sport sitting behind that princess cut-out
A little Safari Hunt. They had to throw bean bags at little stuffed animals and knock them over for tickets.
The Bean Bag toss. Different buckets equaled different ticket values.
And the Can Smash. Kids were able to win tickets at every game, just the number of tickets given was different.
And they lined up for the balloon pop, a fun easy way to earn some concession moola. Each balloon had tickets inside.
Our little helper and clown. A true carnie, he was paid in change and took frequent breaks.
More Face Wash photos
And snack time. It was a hot day, so there were lots of juice boxes and freezies flying about.
Oh yeah! It's cake time.
Time for gifts. Lucky little girl. Blessed with many good little friends.
Sporting a new cape and headband she got. She's looking like a little superhero.
Waiting for more instructions for the second round of game play.
Some of the pretty hand painted doilies the kids made.
Classic "Gone Fishin' " game. Throw your line over and pull back a fish with your ticket value on it.
We had to pay Mckenzie to dress up like a clown. He jumped at it after seeing Mike pull out the $$$
I think having 5 different stations during each round of game play helped a lot with the chaos. It made it so much more manageable.
The ring toss. The different colors determined the # of tickets earned.
playing the cup game. The kids liked this one because it was fast and easy. Each cup had a ticket value inside. 1, 2, or 3 tickets and all the kids had to do was follow the cups as they got mixed up and pick one.
And the always popular, spaghetti. I learned my lesson a few years ago when we filled a pool with spaghetti on the lawn. It was everywhere! This time was A LOT different. The kids had to search for numbered bouncy balls with a ticket value written on them.
This game was called road rally. Rolling the dice moved little animals toward the finish line for tickets.
And finally the pay off. The concession! All those tickets were spent on the concession buying up candy and treats, swirly straws, stickers, marbles, pencils, shells, and feathers to name a few. I forgot to put out a couple things also. They each got to "buy" their goodie bag contents with those hard earned tickets and they went round and round through the concession line up. The cute little lego head jars were made by spray painting baby food jars and drawing the faces on. However, because it was so hot, the lids got so tight that they became very difficult to open and the gummi worms and jujubes inside melted. It was a hot mess, but the kids didn't seem to care too much from what I saw.
At the end of the party, we did a cake walk. It was one of my favorite fun fair activities when I was a kid. The idea of winning my own cake was so fun. So we did 4 rounds and gave away 4 cakes. The other one was scooped up faster than we could photograph it. It was a blue sky with a rainbow and clouds.
The whole party went really well. A bit of a surprise to me since having that many kids running around can be a bit crazy. It went very smoothly I think; and we had so much help. Thanks Mike, mom, Danielle, Leah and Amber, Makennna and Mckenzie. I couldn't have done it without you!

2011-09-08T10:30:00.000-07:00

Baby Love

cute, naked, dirty rolly polly baby. He's pretty amazing!

2011-09-07T14:00:00.000-07:00

The First REAL Day of School

I have a feeling that she's pretty excited about her first day of grade 1.
Putting on a smile just for me. First day of grade 4!!! How did that happen?!
On our walk to school. What a beautiful day.
They start the day in their old classrooms and by the end of the day we should know their new teachers and classrooms. I really hope they have their closest friends with them again this year.
And of course Milo and I had to do a little walk-by at lunch time today. Just to see how things were going. Not so much for Mckenzie because he's a pro at this now, but seeing that it was Kalea's first day ever... I had to do it.

Plus we'd been given a notice yesterday saying the breaks were only going to be supervised by the vice principal and the principal - for 500 kids. Not cool. But happily there were lots of supervisors out... and lots of other parents strolling by and doing slow drive by's.
Our walk home, without the kids. Feels a little strange not having the noise and commotion around the house today. But it's good, I'm excited for them.

2011-09-06T22:18:00.000-07:00

Suddenly September

I guess it's that time of year that many parents are giddy with anticipation of their kids heading back to school. I actually like having the kids home, getting to go out and do things, or just kicking around the house doing nothing in particular.

Yes, the idea of school sounds lovely when the kids are bickering, but more often than not, their presence is so nice. It's time that they get to bond together, whether through snappy tones or through giggles and whispers.

Today was the first day back. Not even a real day. They only went for 45 minutes - maybe. But the joy of seeing friends was so exciting for them. And seeing the other parents who I've come to recognize so well, and those who I've made friendships with myself is fun for me too. A little shake up in the routine never hurt anyone.

And with the new year brings a new season of lunch making, morning routines and hustling to be on time. It means always having to be up on time (which now that Milo is a morning baby, shouldn't be a problem).
It means that both of my kids will be gone - ALL DAY. Cringe. This will be new for me. Kalea was only half a day last year. I'm not sure how I feel about her being away all day. She is such lovely company for me. She's my little helper, my little shining star. My day will miss her and her bursts of sunshine. I'll miss Mckenzie too, but I'm used to him being gone all day, and he's growing up, getting more independent, more prone to embarrassment.

But it will be nice to have this time with Milo, just the two of us. And I'm sure that running errands will be so much easier with only one not to mention having a whole 6 uninterrupted hours to do things; none of this back and forth to the school 3 times a day.

I didn't even take any 'first day of school' photos today because it didn't feel like a real day to me. Maybe tomorrow if I can remember to add that onto my list of things to do/remember in my new routine.

So ready or not, school..... here we come!

2011-09-04T22:05:00.000-07:00

2011-09-01T15:29:00.000-07:00

How bad do I want to do this!!!

I think it's no surprise that I l.o.v.e. this color. The other day when I went to pick up a bit of paint for a downstairs bedroom, I had to force myself not to even look at these shades. I already have 2 rooms a similar color to this.

I keep seeing painted pianos and they are SO amazing. I'm not really sure why we have a piano, no one here plays it, it's more of a decorative piece. And honestly, how much MORE decorative would it be in turquoise?!?!?! Hey?

It feels like a big commitment though. I guess if it doesn't ruin the quality of the music, why not?

One day......

2011-08-30T08:43:00.000-07:00

I swear God make bbaies cuter on dayds afer they don' tselpp well - for their won protection. And I swer woever thought of spellchick wasa mom afeter a bad sleep.

TRANSLATION: I swear God makes babies cuter on days after they don't sleep well - for their own protection. And I swear whoever thought of spellcheck was a mom after a bad sleep.

2011-08-29T00:00:00.000-07:00

Love these bedroom ideas for little girls.

2011-08-28T00:06:00.000-07:00

My little girl just turned 6. What happened to the days, weeks, months, years? She has become such a lovely little girl. Beautiful in every way. We are so blessed to have her in our lives.

2011-08-25T01:19:00.000-07:00

Love this song. I love the part with the water in the glasses (by the way, whose job was it to fill all of those?). I would have enjoyed the plate smashing job.

2011-08-23T17:11:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary Mike.

I love love love love LOVE you!!!

2011-08-22T23:46:00.000-07:00

Fun with Food

I saw this idea on one of my new favorite sites, Pintrest. I thought the kids might get a kick out of it... and they did.

take raw hot dogs, cut them into small bite sized pieces. Then take uncooked spaghetti and poke through the hot dogs. Boil for the time it takes to cook your spaghetti and voila! A fun little dish for your kids.

2011-08-21T22:17:00.001-07:00

2011-08-20T21:09:00.000-07:00

Today was the big day.

The big birthday, girls day

Mamma Mia day.It was highly anticipated and it didn't disappoint.

We both had a great time.

Kalea was a bit tired and a bit hungry part way through but she perked up every time a peppy song was performed. I think she liked it.

Happy Birthday baby!

2011-08-19T14:34:00.000-07:00

One More Day!!!

One more sleep until the big day. I am taking Kalea to see the musical "Mamma Mia" tomorrow. It's an early birthday present for her. Thank goodness a friend tipped me off to it being in town so we could get this perfect gift for her(they're pitching in also as their gift to her).

Kalea is over the moon in love with ABBA music and the Mamma Mia movie. Last year she was super excited when my sister and I took her to watch the movie outdoors in the park. I've actually had to buy the movie again since she watched the first DVD so many times that it got too scratched up.

We told her about this play last weekend so that she could anticipate it all week long. She fell to the floor in happiness and all week long she's been so excited and telling me how happy she is. She's counting the days.

So tomorrow will be a little girls day for us. Go see the play at 2pm, then grab a little bite to eat. Just mom and daughter. Should be a wonderful day! Can't wait. She's not the only one who's excited.

2011-08-18T10:31:00.000-07:00

To any of you out there who are homeschooling: How do you do it?!

I've been working at doing some very limited, 'home schooling' this summer to try to keep Mckenzie in that frame of mind a little. It's not from an official home school curriculum, just working on a few areas that need some help.

Let's just say this: I'm troubled.

I wish I was better able to help. I know what it feels like to struggle through. I know that ball you get in the pit of your stomach when you have to do extra work in areas you just don't get. I had to do it too as a kid. It sucked.

But who wants to watch their kid muddle through?

Especially when you're not really sure how to best help.

I know this; it takes a special kind of person to be a teacher.

A good teacher.

That's why I'm not a teacher.

This is where parenting feels hard.

But we just keep moving.

Don't give up.

It's all there, all that knowledge.

How do we get it out? That's the question...

I want my little fish to swim, not climb trees.

2011-08-17T17:42:00.000-07:00

2011-08-14T21:59:00.000-07:00

The BIG 500

I just realized that my last post was my 500th since starting this blog. Wow, that's a lot. I'm glad it was full of pretty little things.

Today's post will be more pretty little things.

I want these stairs more than is explainable. All that sunshiny goodness greeting you all day long. I would love to have a chandelier. Any of these would do. I just love pretty lighting fixtures. I think any space is a perfect space for a chandelier. Don't you?I know the picture is small but the one below is a canvas with mini lights poked through to create that star burst look. I'm thinking Christmas....

2011-08-11T11:43:00.000-07:00

Pinterest

Last night I stumbled upon this website (which is now in my sidebar if you want to check it out for yourself). I can foresee a lot of time spent meandering through it's lovely space. I am feeling so incredibly inspired by it. I am feeling the need to plan something big and beautiful. This is the site for inspiration if you need it. Here are just a few of the fun and lovely little things I saw and had my heart leap for joy about.

I need to plan a wedding, or a girls retreat/tea party. Too many ideas.

Junk made into funk. This could be a cute little art project for the kids and all their odd treasures that you really just want to throw away.

Have an old book you don't want anymore? Why get rid of it when you can let it become a unique and interesting art piece that now creates conversation for a whole new reason.

What a fun idea for your buttons. I have so many buttons, and 99% won't be used. I mean really, what am I going to do with them other than letting the kids use them as manipulative's for math. I use some, but this is the perfect project for all those blah, mismatched buttons. By themselves they may not look like much but all together they can be something wonderful.

I am trying this FOR SURE. Don't know when, don't know if it will turn out as well as it does in these pictures, but I HAVE to try. I'm in love with this diy doily lamp. Anyone have any old doilies they want to part with?

On our summer to do list the kids and I made lanterns. We used chipped drinking glasses and tissue paper. This would be a lot prettier. Next time. Oh my head is spinning

I now want a brick wall even more. I love the look of a raw brick wall in a home and this has solidified it for me. There is a recipe to make your own wall moss art. You blend up moss, and beer, and maybe something else, not sure, but then you paint it on your wall and mist daily. Hmmm, what would I write?I'm not sure I have the time to make pancakes like these, but it sure would be fun to try it. Who knew pancakes could be so pretty

2011-08-11T00:57:00.000-07:00

This pretty much says it all.

2011-08-08T12:55:00.000-07:00

This is Strange...

Something strange is happening. The last two nights Milo has slept longer than a couple of hours in a row. In fact he even broke his one time record of 5 hours. He slept a whopping 8+ hours. He went to bed at 8:30 and I did not, so I didn't get to indulge in that full 8 hours but still. It sure felt swell.

Even more strange and now that I think about it, slightly alarming is that he's been napping for almost 4 hours. Not quite his regular 30 - 60 minutes.

yeah, so I'm going to check on him. I am going to kick myself when I accidentally wake him up, but I just have to know he's still breathing.

*** Just so you know, as I was going up the stairs to check on him he started screaming. I guess he was just reallllllly tired. Kind of like I feel right now. Time for bed.

2011-08-07T17:16:00.000-07:00

Othello Tunnels

So one of the things on our summer to-do list was to finally see the Othello tunnels near Hope. It was on our list last year and unfortunately we didn't get it checked off the list. So it was a must for this year. It takes about 2 hours to get there but it was worth it. We could have stayed there all day but grumbly tummies won out at about 6pm.

There is a short walk to the tunnels. It runs along the old train line so the trail is wide and flat. On one side there are high mountains and the other side is flanked by a beautiful fast flowing river. We slowly made our way, not rushing, just taking in the gorgeous scenery. The kids found a rock that was shaped like a phone, so Kalea couldn't resist doing her sassy phone imitation.There are 5 tunnels along the walk, which is quite short, I think only about 1.5 kms. It felt really awe inspiring. The beauty of the area and God's creation mixed with the realization that people actually built a railway through such perilous terrain.The above and below photos are together. The one below shows the rock face and up to the right of the tunnel above. It really doesn't capture the height of it. It just keeps going up and up.While the water looks so green and turquoise and clean, you would not want to fall it. It's pretty fast and powerful.coming back from the last tunnel we ran into FrankensteinA couple of the tunnels are quite long and there are no lights so it's very dark. You don't need a flashlight because you can see the light at the end of the tunnel, but while you're inside it's very black and cool and even a little wet in places.

On the way back we climbed down a little bank to check out the river rock bed. There were little inukshuks (I don't know how to spell it) all over. So we joined in. Milo was so good, just along for the ride, taking it all in.

Some of the rock markers that people have made and left.How handsome is this guy Mike made a pretty big one. He had it collapse on him a few times but he finally got it to stay. I wonder if it will be there the next time we go.Both the boys deep in concentrationKalea posing next to daddy's creation

Proud little guy.

2011-08-04T21:42:00.000-07:00

Shaving Cream Day

One of our summer to do list items was to have a shaving cream day. It's amazing how much fun you can have for a mere $2.50 and a slip n' slide to wash off in. Each kid got their own can of shaving cream and went wild. They had so much fun and I know I posted way too many photos of this one single thing, but I just couldn't decide.

2011-08-02T22:36:00.000-07:00

The Holidays That Memories Are Made Of

We started out by going to Trail to celebrate my gramma's 90th birthday. She is amazing and doing so well. It was like a mini family reunion because everyone came. It was so great to see everyone all in one place at the same time. The only reason I'm not posting pictures of that is because I'm not sure how everyone would feel about having their pictures posted on the web. But it was a beautiful, relaxed day.

We also got to spend time with Mike's parents as we stayed at their home for the first few days of our trip. The kids love seeing them and it was really nice for us to see them too. The first picture was of Kalea doing an imitation of being a boy.

After the first few days we set out to Syringa campground just outside of Castlegar to do some camping with my parents and sisters plus their family. I admit that I was a bit tentative about this years camping season considering we have a baby who was just at the stage of learning to crawl, putting everything in his mouth, and still not sleeping well at night. Little did I know that these things would be the least of my worries. Milo actually slept better than he ever has at home, giving me a good 5 or 6 hours at a time. Praise the Lord.

The kids love camping and were so excited about the whole thing. I was happy to be there with family at a great double site with gorgeous surroundings.

The first day was so sunny and warm. We spent some time down at the water, a few people went for a hike, there was bike riding going on. Loved having our campfire, visiting. All was well. Little did we know that a storm was a brewin'.

On the second day, another sunny, amazing day, we were awaiting more family to come by the campsite and visit us. I was really looking forward to seeing them again and celebrating my gramma's actual birth day with her.

They got there and were barely in their seats when Kalea came and stood in front of me to give me a hug. I looked down at her and I saw something in her hair.

Can you guess what it was?

Are you itchy?

Yep, lice!!!!!

AHHHHHH!!!!!

One of my worst fears come true. And while camping no less. Unbelievable. It was my very first experience with the little buggers so I didn't really know for sure until I saw another one a moment later and then another one. And I just knew. A weight was upon me. All the work and time and labor involved with lice.

It meant packing up Kalea and Milo, not to mention myself. Packing up everything she'd been in contact with. Clothes, pillows, sleeping bags, blankets...

My Aunt Shirley took all that laundry to the laundromat and sat there for hours doing it all.

THANK YOU SO SO MUCH!!!!!!

My sister Danielle and I took the kids to my in-laws house who thankfully live only 45 minutes away.

I mean it took so long just to get the process started because of having to pack everything up, go to the pharmacy, find the laundromat....

But finally we got to my in-laws and shampooed Kalea's hair and then set about the daunting task of 'nit picking'. A term I completely understand now. And for that matter, 'a fine tooth comb' also holds new meaning. We were so blessed that Mike's parents had a gigantic magnifying lens that came equipped with light and counter attachment. I'm not sure we would have found and destroyed as many as we did if we'd been without it.

I wish I had taken pictures now, but at the time we were so focused and on a mission. I'd pick and pick and pick, through every little strand of hair looking for grains of sand. Overwhelming. Danielle was a huge God send, watching Milo while I picked, and then picking while I was with Milo. We picked for 4.5 hours that night.

And Kalea - she was unbelievable! She sat on a hard wooden stool for that whole time with very very small breaks, mostly naked (because we had to wash her clothes), and often cold; but she didn't complain. NOT EVEN ONCE! She sat there like the best, most calm peaceable girl ever. It was truly amazing. If you have or even know a 5 year old girl, you'll understand that this was only by the grace of God. Wow. You Rock Kalea!!!!

When we finally finished I let her have her pick of treats. I didn't care that it was almost 10 at night, she deserved it 10 times over. So after a quick stop for chicken McNuggets and a McFlurry we raced out to the campsite only to make it back just minutes before the gate was to be locked for the night.

I was exhausted, just consumed by thoughts of what else could be contaminated and would need to be quarantined. Not to mention that the rest of us grownups would need to be checked because we'd all been showing her love.

Thus began the daily hair checks. The next day we found 12 more dead little suckers. At least we had help. I can't even imagine having to go through that alone. Poor little Kalea fell asleep during this check. It takes a long time. You can't just flip the hair around, you really need to go through inch by inch.

I have to say more THANK YOU'S to my wonderful family who spent their vacation looking through hair, helping with Mckenzie and Milo and even Kalea when we were checking the adults. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!! You have no idea how much of a blessing you were. Mom, Dad, Danielle, Bryce , and Janeane. And of course Mike who kept me from losing my mind a few times.

We still managed to enjoy a campfire at night though, even though the entire day (and unfortunately I really do mean 'entire') was spent on lice.

So Kalea's hair was put in braids and the rest of us put ours up too. I was so thankful that we had just given Mckenzie a Mohawk days before our trip.

And then came the second wave. They found a few suspicious nit-like things in my hair. Immediately I told my sister to get the scissors. And with what looked like to me, kindergarten scissors she quickly hacked off about 5 or 6 inches. It needed a trim anyways. However this trim ended up being just slightly uneven. I still have yet to get it fixed. Then because it was late in the afternoon and I couldn't wash my stuff I figured I'd wait until the next day to treat my hair. So I basically quarantined myself with a bandanna under my hoodie. I looked and felt sooo pretty. By now I was in the 3rd stage of lice grief: the first is shock, action, anger. The second stage is a bit of panic, total gross out, verge of crying. The third stage is laughter. Giggles, this is so lame it's funny. We look like fools but we can't afford to care stage.

Too bad for my sister that I had already entered the funny stage and she was still in the not so funny stage.

So like I said, I was in the third stage by the time my sister and I did the treatment on our hair. The thing that put me over the top was the shirt she happened to be wearing at the time.

Not sure if you can tell, but it says "life is a party". We joked that she should change the 'f' in 'life' to a 'c' so that it would read: "lice is a party" - you know since we were having so much fun.

Nit picking central. I'm sure every camper that drove past was weirded out and thought we must be disgusting people. But we couldn't care, we were on a mission. Search and destroy. Many hand make light work as they say. Pretty much every day after the first two were full of rain. They had their moments of being sunny, but for the most part, it was rainy and made our mission difficult and any moments of free time a bit more miserable.Searching through my my hair in the very poor light with a flashlight, in the cold rain was one of my highlights.Other than the lice, we did a little family birthday gift opening with Mckenzie. He loved it all. Movie time in nana and grampa's RV. Thank goodness Mckenzie got the 2nd Diary of a Wimpy Kid movie because they watched it about 4 times.And to top things off we spent a good little chunk of change getting our brakes done because they decided to start grinding very badly on our trip. That was a fun little bonus. So our camping trip was full of adventure and unexpected expenses (since the lice thing cost us about $80).

I wish we had been able to spend our days relaxing, going to the water, going for walks, visiting, playing games, but it wasn't to be. I wish that we'd had the chance to visit with my gramma and say a proper goodbye. I wish we could have visited Mike's gramma. We really only saw her for about 30 minutes and didn't get a real visit with her. So those things were disappointing, but I have to say that this will be a trip that none of us ever forget. It will be the trip we cringe and laugh at. It will be the trip we pray never to have again. And just in time for our drive home, the sun reappeared.

And just so you know, things are all good here now. We're out of quarantine, we're lice free and starting our summer. The whole thing was exhausting and I'm finally just feeling recovered now. Though still not enough to write a witty, funny tale of it all. Just enough to blurt out the main details.

It took 2 weeks of checking heads, $80 in supplies, countless hours, endless loads of laundry and laundry soap from sun up to sun down, but we're free of the cursed little critters. Halelujah!!! Amen!!!

2011-07-31T19:20:00.000-07:00

The Learning Curve

The kids love the kitten.

The kids are terrified of the kitten.

Yes, the big bad, ferocious kitten with razor sharp talons and jagged bloody fangs.

Yes, Mike and I have been laughing a lot at our kids.

I SOOO badly wish I had a video tape right now to film and exploit this.

One moment all is well, they're petting her, holding her....

The next moment I'm running towards violent shrieks of terror only to discover the kitten is trying to "play" with one of my kids.

While Mckenzie was feeding Zooey he was so nervous that he was practically throwing her food at her in an attempt to get it in her dish. As you can imagine, more food landed on the floor than in the dish.

Kalea watched and responded: "what! Are you a man or a mouse?!?! Do I need to do it for you?"

This coming from the girl who only 30 minutes later would be sobbing uncontrollably because the kitten was "following" her.

I keep telling myself, it's only been a few days.

They'll soon figure things out.

Right???

2011-07-29T21:35:00.000-07:00

Phases
My itty bitty baby isn't itty bitty anymore.

My stationary baby isn't stationary anymore.

My pretty easy going napper baby isn't easy going napper baby anymore.

My long napper baby isn't a long napper baby anymore.

My quick little eater baby isn't a quick little eater anymore.

My wake up several times a night baby is, well, still a wake up several times a night baby.

My can't get into any mischief baby isn't a can't get into mischief baby anymore.

My days of having any ounce of productivity are no longer days of having any ounce of productivity.

This phase adds a degree of difficulty that I had forgotten about.

I still remember though....

This too shall pass

And I still think the little pip squeak is the most incredible baby I know.

2011-07-28T23:39:00.000-07:00

Kitten Love

First I have to apologize to those of you who already saw these pictures on facebook. It had to be done. Second, I will do my very best not to become the person who constantly posts pictures of their pet. I know I already inundate you with pictures of my kids. So I'll try to get out all my gushing right now and then leave you alone.

Clearly, we got ourselves a kitten. A sweet, oh so cute I can hardly stand it kitten. We hadn't been planning it. In fact Mike was pretty set against a kitten/cat. And I could see his point. But silly me, I was on Craigslist on Sunday night and for some pointless reason I looked through the pets, specifically the kittens. I saw this little one and fell in love right away. I began the campaign. It wasn't hard to sway Kalea, Mckenzie was on board after I assured him most cats aren't predators ready to scratch and bite him. And by the next day I had the reluctant go-ahead from Mike to see if the kitten was still available. By Monday night I'd made arrangements to pick her up Wednesday. When we told the kids the next day they were so happy. Kalea even had "tears of joy" in her eyes. The next day we made the long drive to Chilliwack to get her.
It's funny that down here at the coast, almost everyone requires a re-homing fee which is just another way of saying, 'pay for my cat'. But it can be ridiculous, asking up to $100. Get real. But we got her for free, and they even through in all her food, litter and box.... Plus she is my personal favorite kind of kitty, a tabby.
It was so hard to just let her be while she explored the house. We all wanted to snuggle her and play with her. It didn't take long and she's made herself very at home. The kids all love her and proudly named her Zooey. It's quite cute to watch Zooey and Milo playing together. They like the same kind of things, balls and wadded up balls of paper. They share a ball and take turns swatting it around.

I can see that having this kitten as a pet is already working its magic. Both kids are so timid and nervous around animals, even cats. I can't have the kids who are afraid of cats, that's crazy. But immediately the kids were dying to hold her and pet her. I'm so happy to watch them falling for their little friend.

And by the way, I have no idea what Mckenzie is doing in the background of this picture but it's typical Mckenzie.

But I'll stop gushing about this crazy cute kitten now and let you carry on with your day. Hope it's a beautiful one.

2011-07-27T23:55:00.000-07:00

Canada Day in Kamloops

Wow, I can't believe it's been almost a month since I last posted anything. It feels like summer is flying by and it doesn't really feel like we've done all that much. I guess when I look back at pictures we did do a few things. For Canada Day we went to visit family in Kamloops. It was so nice to see everyone. The boys went for some fun biking, we BBQ'd, we took in the Canada Day festivities in the park. So we were able to cross a few things off this years summer to do list. They had great fireworks, music, water park time, play area and artisans. We also headed out to Paul Lake for a couple of hours one day and although it was pretty windy we did do some geo cashing. It's a lot of fun pushing a flimsy fold up stroller and a 20lb+ baby up a steep hiking trail. After all our hard work hiking up and then tearing up the hillside we came up empty in the treasure finding department but it was fun never the less.

I'll try to get everything updated again in the next little bit here. I have a memorable camping trip story to share and photos of a new family friend. So come back, I won't stay away as long this time. Hope your summer isn't flying by as fast as mine is. I hope it's relaxing, warm and sunny, and full of fun.

2011-06-28T11:12:00.000-07:00

What kind of person are you? When a moment of confrontation (big or little) comes up, are you the person who finds your reply quickly and easily flowing from your mouth OR are you more like me, the person who usually is thrown off guard and left thinking about what you wish you had done or said for the rest of the day? I hate confrontation. I don't like it. I don't even like seeing other people engaged in it. So awkward feeling. It's hard to feel like you can still face confrontation and yet still be a nice person. I consider myself pretty nice, pretty passive... until I get home and think about what I should have said. Then I stew and replay it over and over again. What a waste of my time and energy. So I at least have to purge my thoughts somewhere. Usually Mike hears about them and now you get to hear them too. Lucky you!

This morning I had one of those little moments. Not a big deal, not a big fight or anything like that, but one of those moments where I was caught off guard. I guess I could be happy that I mostly stood my ground, but annoyed that I didn't say or do exactly what I wished I would have.

I was dropping Mckenzie off at school. It was a drop and dash kind of moment, but I still pulled into a space along the walkway right by the school and parked, watching and waiting till he goes in. I know he'll get in, but I like to know for sure. The bell had rung so it was only going to be a matter of minutes. While I watched him, a lady pulled up in a car beside me (in the opposing direction). I heard her loudly ask herself "why isn't she moving?!" A moment later she said to me "why aren't you moving?" I replied that I was waiting for my son to enter the building. She seemed appeased - for about 6 seconds. Then she started getting a little pushy and in a loud passive aggressive voice reassured her son "not to worry" he wouldn't be late. She then informed me that she really wanted to pull into my spot. Don't forget I'm in a parallel parking spot on the right hand side. She is wanting to pull into it from the opposite side. When I looked back at her again, I mentioned that there was a parallel parking spot immediately to her right and why doesn't she just park there. She told me she didn't want her son to cross the street and basically that I needed to hurry up and move because there were cars behind her. She told me she was sure my son would probably be fine. I said something snarky like "well as long as your son is ok, it's alright if my son isn't. This is where I got a bit frazzled. I knew that he would be fine - true, but I began to think about the other drivers being held up and I caved, moving out of the spot. She was just so snarky herself, so entitled sounding, especially when she had an empty spot beside her. It just rubbed me the wrong way. Petty I know.

What I wish I had done.... stayed put (letting some good ol' spite fuel me) until I had actually seen Mckenzie enter the school like I was intending to do. Rolled up my window and ignored her. Left when I had felt good about him being safe inside.

What I wish I had said..... "Listen, I get it, you want your kid to be safe. I want my kid to be safe. But don't ask me to compromise my child because you're too lazy to park in a proper spot on your side of the street and walk your kid 10 steps across the freakin' street. (perhaps muttering a few more choice words under my breath)

But I didn't so I vent to you and to Mike. Not really a big deal which is why it's even more annoying that I spent a good 10 (now 30) minutes thinking about it.

The year is almost done, one more day and the school drop off will be on break too. Now if I can just make it through 4 more school runs without getting into a fist fight

2011-06-20T13:11:00.000-07:00

The Kid's New Playroom

As I mentioned my sister recently moved out and we were left with an empty room. Since Milo is getting very close to crawling and is putting everything in his mouth, we needed a space for the kids to call their own. Where toys big and small could live without having any chance of being eaten. I had a lot of fun doing this room. I love the way it turned out and judging by the kids faces when we finally showed them, they loved it too.

Another great thing about this room is that it cost us next to nothing to do. We bought paint that was inexpensive and on sale ($20). We bought the silver cable that runs along the wall under the window to clip artwork to (IKEA $15 ?). I found the white storage containers at the dollar store for about $7. The banner I made was from fabric I already had. The shelf that almost didn't happen (because Mike didn't want another big piece coming into the house - and it nearly didn't because it was so big. It had about 1/2 an inch of clearance), anyways, it was FREE, yup - FREE. I gave it a fresh coat of white paint to match the trim. The vintage school desk was also FREE and I also painted it to blend into the room. The area rug, mike found 2 identical rugs on the same day from two different people on craigslist - what are the chances? Highly unlikely. One was FREE, the other was $10. He cleaned them up and they're good as new. And lest we forget the flooring. I wish I had taken a before picture of the room. It was in bad shape and the floor was the worst of it. I found some laminate flooring (after ages of searching and many many attempts) on craigslist - for FREE! And guess what... it was the exact amount to fill the room. Mike had one full piece left and a couple of small scraps left. Amazing! Not only does the room look super fantastic in my opinion, but the satisfaction of doing it for so little is the ultimate icing on the cake.

So without further adieu...

And this will probably be the last time this room looks this clean and tidy. Good thing I took photos.

2011-06-19T13:34:00.000-07:00

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY

Dad, I read somewhere recently something to the effect that only 4% of people have great fathers. I find that extremely hard to believe, and I would disagree with that statement, but even if it were true I would be one of the blessed ones to be in that 4%. You have always been a wonderful example of fatherhood. As a child you were the mould that showed me what a real man was, what a loving husband was, and of course what an amazing dad was. Always consistent, always present, always loving. We knew always where you stood on things which made staying to the good and narrow path easy. We always knew that you were a man of integrity and honor. You are a man who values hard work, truth and accountability. You are a man who is generous in spirit for all things. You are a faithful dad who always challenged us to do our best, to try new things, to be happy in life. You have led us firmly yet with great gentleness and love. You have always been our protector and our voice of wisdom. We have always without question been able to rely on you. You are our constant, our steady, our home. Your stories, your laugh, your sense of humor are a part of us that we joyfully carry with us day to day. I can see you in me as I interact with my kids. The lessons you taught me, I carry with me and try to teach to my kids. It's a great feeling to be able to share my children with you and show you the legacy that you had a part in. Thank you for enabling us with all the skills and life lessons that we needed. Thank you for holding on to us so tightly as children. And thank you for having the strength to set us free as adults. You are the most remarkable father I could have ever hoped to have. I love you very much. Happy Father's Day dad! xoxo

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And to my most handsome and wonderful husband, Mr. E; I love you. I could never imagine having children with anyone else. You are the man of my dreams, that man I will always love. You are the man I trust with our most precious treasures. Who else could love them like you? Who else could understand them and all of their little intricacies? Who else would fight for them the way you do? Who else would invest as much time into them as you? Who else would open their heart wide open for them like you? Only you. I see all the wonderful things you do for them. I see how hard you work for them. I see the time and the love you pour into them. They are blessed beyond their understanding. But one day they will have an inkling. They will never be able to know all that you do for them, but they will (and do) feel it in their hearts. They will carry your legacy of love with them throughout their entire lives. I am honored that we share this adventure together. In all of it's ups and downs I know we go together. I love you and thank you for being the wonderful man and father that you are. Happy Father's Day Mike. xoxo

2011-06-15T22:43:00.000-07:00

So I've been hearing that I've been keeping you all waiting. Sorry for the lagging posts. Just a lot of life happening. Nothing too crazy, just lots of little things. I won't even bother trying to remember all the highlights in the last month but I'll try to fill you in on a couple.

Poor sweet Milo (or should I say poor sweet Mike). When I try to sneak out to get a few errands done like grocery shopping Milo can make things quite - loud. Mike took these photos of Milo during one of my recent shopping trips. I tried to leave while Milo was eating but he saw me and apparently spent the next 15 minutes or so looking towards the door. So Mike put the chair there so he could wait patiently for me to return. Sad, and sweet that he'd stare at the door for so long hoping I'd come back We have had a few guests come to town. My mom, my sister and Mikes parents all stopped in for visits. It was so nice to see all of them.

This Spring has been unusually wet, windy and cool. It feels more like Fall than Spring, but on those very rare days when it turned for the better, we stole away outside to soak up some coveted Vitamin D

This rascal is going to be our bruiser. He has already shown he has a temper, thankfully not often . But he is a rough little guy. He loved to pull hair, hit, pinch, gnaw on pretty much anything he can, scratch... you name it. The concept of gentle may be a tough one for this little monkey.

But on the other hand, he's pretty generous with his wet sloppy kisses and tight frantic hugs. Gotta love those rolls. It would seem that "healthy" is the new word for baby chubb. People keep telling me how 'healthy' he looks.

The fair stopped by town and Mike made it a special daddy daughter time. Kalea came home with this beautiful face painting. School projects seem to be in full swing in this last home stretch of school. Mckenzie made this awesome 3 story diorama to depict a scene from Diary of a Wimpy Kid. It had lights that turned on and everything. He was pretty excited about it. He's also been writing stories and making them into books among other things. We also discovered that he's begun a thumb tack collection. Not really the best or safest collection to have around the house. So unfortunately for him, the collection in no longer.

Among other things I decided to get caught up on getting photos developed. You have no idea how time consuming this project is. I've spent hours and hours doing this. Of course when you get almost 1000 developed it's going to take some time. I've labeled, dated, named, and aged each one, placed them in chronological order and have put almost all of them in albums - well, before I ran out tonight. I HAVE to keep up on this so it's not so tedious next time. And my sister D who has lived with us since Mckenzie was born moved away. That was a sad sad day in our house. It definitely provided a unique situation for all of us, but it was so wonderful having her be so ingrained in our lives. Hope she felt the same. Life will not quite be the same. This past weekend the kids and I went to visit her as well as other family including my other sister who had her University graduation. It was so nice to see everyone and we all had a great time.

One night as the bath was running, Kalea accidentally locked the door behind her. It soon became a bit hectic as we tried to pick the lock. I was having visions of destroying my sisters brand new home within days of our arrival. Thankfully my sisters boyfriend turned off the water and took the door knob off. Crisis averted. Next time I may have to leave a damage deposit - just in case.

The twin boys.

Some other things we've been up to are: re-doing my sisters old room and making it into a play room. I'll post some photos of that soon. I just got some free laminate flooring from craigslist that we need to lay down.

Also trying to get ready for a neighborhood garage sale this weekend.

Planting our garden. Hope it grows ok, we got it in a bit late this year.

Just trying to get the yard in shape.

So although these things sound small, they are turning out to be fairly time consuming and the days are filling up fast. I'm amazed that school is almost out, and I can't wait.

Life is rolling on so quickly. I can really see it when I look at how fast Milo is progressing. He has 3 teeth, and is moments away from crawling - AHHHH!!! I'm not ready yet.

So thanks for checking back in. I promise I won't make you wait this long again. At least not in the near future.

2011-05-07T21:40:00.000-07:00

Happy Mothers Day

"When I stopped seeing my mother with the eyes of a child, I saw the

woman who helped me give birth to myself"

~ Nancy Friday "A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens all around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts."

~ Washington Irving

I have to say, that it is utterly impossible, to say adequate thanks to my mom. There is no way for me to know all the little moments, all the little sacrifices, all the tears shed, all the fears, all the heart risings that she has felt - over me. I know this because I'm a mom now. My kids will never know how deeply, how passionately I adore them. They will have a sense of that feeling when they feel it for their own children. I know that there must have been more than moments lost; days, weeks, years worth of accumulated time spent invested in the tedious, thankless moments for which she devoted to me knowing all the while that I would never know about them. Still yet, I felt them. It's a kind of grace, a kind of unselfishness that a person, man or woman only truly encounters the moment their child takes its first breath. And that grace and unselfishness never seems to leave. I've never once felt it leave with my mom (or dad). A mother walks a fine line of loving deeply and tightly yet countering that with freedom and independence. My mom is brilliant at it. Mom, I know you love intensely beyond all words and I hope that you too know that I love you with paralleled intensity and appreciation. You are the most wonderful and beautiful mother. You are one of a kind and I'm blessed that God knit us together in that mother daughter bond. Thank you mom, for all you do and have done, seen and unseen. You love is always felt.

2011-04-28T20:32:00.000-07:00

Here is a little project I did during the Easter weekend. I saw it on a blog, who saw it on another blog. It was incredibly simple and it was a great way to make use of an overabundance of mason jars and turn them into something SpringySimply place your mason jars upside down and spray them with a light coat of spray paint. I don't think it really matters what kind unless you plan on keeping them outside. Wait 10 minutes and spray again. Repeat if needed, and voila!!! pretty new vases

2011-04-24T21:52:00.000-07:00

HAPPY EASTER

2011-04-22T15:49:00.000-07:00

Today's Little Story is Brought To You By the Color Turquoise

WSo it would seem that turquoise has become one of my newest faves when it comes to color... I'm so drawn to it... It just feels so pretty to me, calm and lovely...Yesterday I found myself at Home Sense with no kids - can you imagine? How wonderful... I had a little bit left on a gift card I had been given and I was trying to narrow down way too many choices. As it turns out, I saw these bowls and just knew they wanted to come home with me... So I obliged and they just so happened to be the perfect Easter egg bowl... Sooooo pretty.......During the same trip I found myself looking at a vase that I had looked at a few times in the past, but each time I walked away not 100 % about it... But since this was my third time standing in front of it thinking about how oddly pretty I thought it was (I would look at it, walk around and come back - I did that 3 different trips to the store), I finally took a closer look...
It was when I took that closer look that I noticed a chip in one of the flowers, then another and finally I noticed something I hadn't in ALL my several peeks at it, a big crack running from the top of one side all the way around to the top of the other side... To me, I saw 'bargain'... I didn't really want it for a vase in the typical sense and since I hadn't noticed before I thought who cares... So I asked about what kind of discount they could give and do you know what they told me???? They couldn't sell it to me!!! Despite me telling them I didn't care about the crack......... and giving them my sad look, they told me that their policy required them to throw it away... I think I uttered 'what a shame' at least 3 times... So I left disappointed about the vase and happy about my bowls... But I'm sure you've guessed by now, I managed to get me some vase in spite of their policy... All it took was a little late night dumpster diving with the whole family... Yup I said it... But before you get too grossed out I'll admit that it wasn't as gross as it sounds... We drove behind the store and found their dumpster which was clean and open... I had serious doubts about finding it but after peering into dumpster # 1 (and by the way, seeing a very nice large garden lantern) I turned my attention to #2... And behold right at the very very top, nicely wrapped in a clear plastic bag, clean and glistening was my lovely vase... My heart leapt for joy... I know you think I am kidding but I couldn't believe it... I almost heard it calling my name and asking me to bring it home... Once again I obliged... Ever so happily and tenderly I cradled it on the way home as it was now more fragile from the dumpster toss... Mike was horrified at it... He thinks it's hideous and I know it does have a strange old lady mausoleum type look to it... I can appreciate that it is probably not most peoples taste, but I do love it... Mike is now worried that I'll become a regular Home Sense dumpster diver, which who knows maybe I will be... I admit there was a strange thrill about it... (laughing at myself)... Anyways, my beloved Mike crazy glued it up and it's a little worse for wear but it's still pretty in my eyes, and it's not tooooo bad if you don't look too closely at the sides... So in the end who cares if both my husband and my son mock me for digging what they think is an ugly old piece of junk out of the garbage, I know now that I'm absolutely positively over the moon 100% all about this vase.

2011-04-21T23:34:00.000-07:00

Interesting Thought

Yesterday I caught a few minutes of Oprah and although I'm not too sure of the whole show subject I did catch one little part that had me thinking... And this was it - well, the gist of it.

Nothing in nature takes more than it needs. Trees take no more nutrients from the soil than they need. Lions kill only what animals they need for food......etc....

When something takes more than it needs in the human body, we call it cancer.

As a human race we are constantly taking more than we need. We don't even realize we're doing it.... We are unconscious to our ravenous need to devour, conquer and acquire.

Maybe we all need to be a little more conscious and take some lessons from nature.

just another one of my wandering thoughts