Life Lately

Things are so super busy as usual!! (hence the lack of blogging...)

The snow here right now is crazy and we all (except for Chris) had a pajama day. I don't mind days like this once in a while and in fact the snow doesn't really bother me, it's the temperture that I don't approve of.

We FINALLY got new tires on the van yesterday and can now make it up the hill we live on...this is a good thing! We got stuck on Wednesday night and the hill one over from us after picking up one of Hallies friends for Awana. My friend was trying to help push the van as all of these men were walking right past on their way home from work looking at us. It was annoying. Finally, I said to the kids, how about we pray? SO, we did. The next man that walked past offered to help us. It took a few minutes but he ended up getting the van onto the sidewalk and driving it, rather quickly, to the top of the hill for us. I was so thankful for him. We ended up just coming straight home because we were 40 minutes late for Awana. Hallie ran in the door and said to Chris "Dad, you aren't going to believe it, God saved us!" she was SOOOO excited. "We prayed and God sent this man to help us, isn't that amazing....if we are ever stuck again, we'll just pray and God will send that man again!!!" She was so pumped about it and it was great for her to experience something like that.

I also saw God work this week and I'm still in awe...seriously!! Our church puts together baskets of baking for the merchants in our community of Mckenzie Towne because most of them sponsor our various events in some way or another throughout the year. We needed to fill 53 baskets and on Tuesday morning when it came time to assemble them there was hardly any baking. We were all a little saddened and didn't think it would work out. One of the ladies prayed before we started and asked God to multiply it like he did with the loaves and the fish and I'm not kidding you..........the baskets were filled SO full that we couldn't cram more in and there was leftovers!!!

Hallie's been really sensitive lately...like in a good way....towards other people. Some friends of ours both lost their grandfathers last week (one on the friday and one on sunday) and Hallie keeps reminding us and meal time "don't forget we need to pray for pete and jill"

Raya has been getting more and more frustrated when she isn't being understood and has HUGE meltdowns. It's really hard on everyone, especially her. She is getting a new speach aid on Monday (finally) and I'm really hoping it works out!

Theo has two molars now and is a bit of a grumpy pants lately. He definately knows what he wants and has a 'two year old' tantrum when he doesn't get it. That being said, he is super super cute!!

I'm done my Christmas shopping!!! I ended up buying a little bit more than I had initally planned but not by much. We were only going to get the kids each one gift and we told them that. Hallie came to me a few days later and very gently said "Mom, I know you said that we were only getting one present for Christmas and that's okay with me, but Christmas is about giving remember, and I don't think you are doing a very good job!" HA!! So cute...so, in the spirit of giving...they each got two!

Chris had strep throat last week and it's my turn this week. He's been super helpful this weekend, I think because the feeling of "crapiness" is so fresh in his mind!

I didn't do Christmas cards this year so if you are waiting for one, please don't. I am VERY excited to get my brother and sister-in-laws card though as it always tops the list!! (hint hint j&n ...is it on the way?)

I think that is about all for now....

I"m to lazy to edit so I hope it all makes sense!

Ode to Auntie Cheremi

So, I'll start off by saying that I am the WORST blogger ever and will hopefully get back to it! It seems like I always feel that whatever I have to say isn't important enough but I think I'll just start blogging it anyway.

Raya is alot like her Auntie Cheremi...in looks, sibling placement, temperment, her dislike of waking up in the morning and she has now carried it over to this......

Cheremi used to sit on the register every morning for as long as mom would let her. She needed it in order to wake up at least somewhat happily. This morning Raya woke up (quite grumpy as usual) and I sent her away until she could be happy. I found her a few minutes later in Theo's room sitting on the register. It brought back memories :) SO GREAT!

funny story...well maybe not so funny

I was laying in bed with Raya today and I asked her if she wanted to rub my back. She said yes and started to rub my back by my shoulder blades. Hallie says
"I want to rub your back too mom!"
So I tell her to rub my back at the bottom
"Where's the bottom?" she says.
"The lower part of my back, below where Raya is rubbing"
"Where??"
"Right Here" as I show her the lower part of my back
"OOOHHHH, you mean the squishy part?"

Apparently the lower part of my back should be called the "squishy part". Isn't that uplifting!!!

Raya wanted to be like Uncle Jesse too!!

Raya fell down the stairs at a friends place today.

So much to do, so little time

So, I just have to say that I have tried to blog recently and it the website hasn't been working for me...however, I still recognize that it's been WAY to long...

3 kids is obviously keeping me busy (or I'd blog more often). Here is a brief little update on each of us.

Hallie- She only has 3 more days of preschool and then it's all over. She has had a great year and has learned SO much over the past 10 months. She has made some little friends and loves playdates. She has become a very techincal girl and takes almost everything you say as literally as it could possisbly be. She is our big helper and is almost always willing to lend a hand. She is the sensitive one in the family and is on a misison right now to make sure everyone she knows will be in heaven with her :)

Raya- She is alot of fun right now while still maintaining her "right" to switch her mood at any moment. She is getting another two year molar right now which proves for some trying days. She is super good at independant playing and LOVES crafts. She also loves to be tickled which I just don't understand. She will be going to preschool in the fall and is really excited.

Theo- My little boy will be 1 in just over a week :( I've tried to keep him little but it just hasn't worked. He is started to move around and is super happy most of the time. He got his front two teeth this past week and no longer has the "chicklet smile" I'm so curious to see how he will be as a toddler.

Chris- He is busy as always with work, ball, and stuff around the house. The upstairs of the house has been painted and most of the main living area has new flooring now. The stairs are all that's left to complete.

Me- I'm busy too. Seems like there is always something on the go. I fell down the stairs with Theo last weekend and that's made for a painful week. I'm doing MUCH MUCH better though thanks to a few massages and chiropractic treatments.

We spent this past weekend in Lethbridge. We hadn't been since Easter and it was so good to go down there. We had a really great time and the only thing missing was Barb and Jesse (and their spouses of course!) We had a picnic on Fathers Day at Indian Battle Park which brought back huge memories for me. I remember so many great times there with my grandparents and cousins and am excited at the thought of my kids experiencing the same thing.

That's about it...I'll try to post some pics but it rarely works for me so you might have to jump over to facebook.

quick update

Theo is 9 months old today....man, time flies. Theo has been teething which means LOTS and LOTS of messy diapers. It's quite disgusting actually. I took video yesterday just to show Chris the messes I'd been cleaning up but I'll spare you all from the visual!


We are in the middle of painting and will be getting new flooring hopefully on Saturday. First comes laminate...then carpet...then...maybe sell??? Don't know, not sure...it's nice to have options. Chris is crazy busy as he took on a contract job to pay for the carpet. The laminate we are getting for free from generous friends.

I took Hallie to see CBC Kids on Wednesday because they were in town. She had a blast!! I should have taken Raya too but I wasn't sure what it was going to be like. It would have been good for her too. Now I know for next time.

For some reason I'm unable to upload photos. I've been trying but I keep getting an error. You'll have to check facebook if you want to see the latest pics I guess....sorry.

Our "Family Day Getaway"

We decided late this past week that some time away from home as a family before Chris leaves for his trip would be a good idea! Okay not really we but once I mentioned it to Chris he was 100% onboard. We didn't go far, only 3 hours away to The Medicine Hat Lodge. I grew up going there almost annually and have great memories from there! I was very excited to get away and have a nice relaxing trip with the fam. The only thing with spending a decent amount of money and driving anywhere longer than 5 minutes is that the kids have the potential to ruin it and make it REALLY not worth it!



We were hoping that my sister and her family would be able to join us but it didn't work out for them to come. (hopefully next time!!!...hint hint...nudge nudge). We were all set to go on our own and were packed and ready to hit the road right after church on Sunday. We mentioned it to some friends of ours that we were heading to the The Hat for one night and they wanted to join us. Sure, why not!!! The more the merrier!



The kids travelled great. Raya and Theo slept for half of the trip and Hallie was so excited to be in a Booster Seat for the first time that she did really well too. She did have to go to the washroom and couldn't wait until we got there. We pulled over hoping she would go on the side of the road but apparently she is to "princess" for that!! She made it to the hotel. It is a very boring drive though. There is NOTHING for miles...no sign of civilization at all. In fact, on the way home today Hallie shouted out... "OH NO, we are in Africa" I asked her why she thought that and she said "because, this is the desert!"



We arrived right at check-in time and the kids were so excited they could barely stand up straight. Nate and Erin had arrived just a few minutes before us so we met them down at the pool. The kids LOVED the water and were SOOOO good. Theo did amazing. He just hung out in the kiddie pool the whole time. Chris and I took turns trading off with him. We also took turns taking our crazy daughters on the waterslide. I honestly thought that Hallie wouldn't even try going but she did right away and there was no turning back. Raya's favorite word this weekend was "more more more". They would have gone alone had we let them.



We went out for dinner, hung out with friends, had a great complimentary hot buffet for breakfast, swam and did the waterslides some more and packed up to come home.



Everyone slept really well and we didn't get up until just after 7. It was SOOO nice. Once the kids fell asleep, I did my biblestudy book. My ladies Bible study group is doing a Beth Moore study that I'm really excited about but I have to say that it does come with some extensive homework that I have a hard time making time for. It's about 45 minutes a day/5 days a week. Chris did some reading as well. When we were done with that we...just kidding!!



The kids did great the entire time...no issues. PRAISE THE LORD!!



We are hoping to make this an annual event!



Tomorrow we will be celebrating Hallies 5th Birthday with a few of her friends. I'll post about that later in the week hopefully.

The girls sleeping together

Hallie doing a "back float"

Daddy and Raya

Dad hanging out with Theo and Hallie while making friends with the old woman beside him :)

Three happy kids!

The girls!

Hallie and Raya tonight at 6pm!!! check out those bags under Hal's eyes.

yes, raya is sleeping already!

A Crazy Morning (and slightly embarrassing)

So everything was going just fine this morning. The girls were playing downstairs, Theo was in his jumper and I was sweeping the kitchen floor. All of a sudden I hear crying that isn't familier. I could tell it was Hallie but it sounded really strange. Well, here she comes up the stairs with her mouth STUCK OPEN because she has one of Theos toys stuck in it. Yes, this is the same girl that swallowed a "jewel" a few months ago! It is a toy that you can hang on to things so it has a clamp at one end. She had pushed down on the clamp, put it in her mouth, and then released it. She was totally panicing and I couldn't get my fingers in her mouth to close down on it and get it out. She was started to gag and said she needed to "oh ah" which was translated to be "throw up" Then her eyes started to roll back and she was swaying from side to side. So, I called 911. They sent the ambulance right away. Hallie kept wanting to lay down but I was instructed not to allow that. She was in alot of pain and this clamp was putting pressure on her pallet and she couldn't swallow. Raya was downstairs oblivious to the whole thing while Theo was screaming his head off.



Well, the EMS arrived and got out their flashlight and looked in her mouth. They were able to remove rather simply I have to admit. I felt quite stupid but they assured me that I wasn't and that I had done the right thing. They were quite fond of the girls and stayed to play with them for quite a while. I kept telling them they could leave but they were having a good time. It was quite amuzing. One of the paramedics went outside to the ambulance and came back in with 2 Medic Mooses (stuffed animals). He gave one to Hallie and was handing one to Raya. I was thinking in my head...just take the Moose Raya, take the Moose!!!! But, of course she didn't. She said "No Moose! I got OWN MOOSE" and she ran to her room to get her own Medic Moose that she got last year when she was taken to the hospital from falling out of her highchair at a restaurant. I was so emabarrased that not only did my almost 5 year old get a toy stuck in her mouth but now they also know that my 2 year old already has her OWN MOOSE from a previous episode. They thought it was really funny, me, not so much!



When the toy was removed from Hallies mouth, this was the conversation:



Me: Was that food or drink?

Hal: No

Me: What is supposed to go in your mouth

Hal: Only food or drink

Me: So will you be doing that again?

Hal: No, because it's not food or drink.



Paramedic: WOW, that's impressive, I'm going to try that on my son. I like how you put that. You are a really good mom.



Me: You might want to rethink that since if that parenting technique was effective you wouldn't be sitting in my living room right now!



All I have to say is thank goodness I was dressed because I haven't been dressed before 9 all week.

Hallie looking a little rough afterwards...but posing for a picture with one of the men that "saved her life!"

The girls and there very own Medic Mooses!

long awaited photos!

theo and cousin sam at christmas

theo sitting like a big boy!

raya wanting to go outside and play

licking the beaters after making cookies yesterday

big boy theo with a sippy cup!

raya fell asleep on the back of the chair while playing computer with hallie. she looks like a cat all curled up

hallie playing "dr".

theo and max

sisterly love

Time Flies...

I'm sitting in my living room watching the blizzard outside. I was able to convince Hallie to stay home from preschool today by promising finger painting, a friend over, and baking! Looks like my day is going to get busier. At least I don't have to brave the weather! The girls are playing downstairs with a friend and Theo is sleeping. I love the peacefullness of a sleeping baby in my house.

Theo is a really great baby. He is still so content. He goes to sleep so easily. He loves his crib and his minky blanket. He still sleeps all swaddled up like a newborn. He will be 8 months in a couple weeks. It's been the fastest 8 months of my life! Theo still has a cold and I'm hoping it's gone soon. It's so sad to hear him cough :(

Raya is talking more and more and more and more.... She is such a comedian. Her personality is so hard to describe. She has big highs and small lows. She loves to giggle and is often lifting her shirt up to be tickled.

Hallie is growing like a weed. Her pants are turning into flood pants. I'm hoping to make it till the spring before having to buy her to much. We've been busy planning her "Almost Pajama Party" birthday party. She is having a few friends over and they are coming in their pajamas. We are going to have pancakes for supper, do a couple crafts, play a game, and eat cake!. I've already started her cake. I'm excited about it.

Chris is busy preparing for his trip to Uraguay. He's got alot of reading to do, immunizations to get, and some things to buy. Each person on the trip needs to take their own shoe box along and so I'm excited to get to be a part of that. I think it will be phenominal for Chris to be able to hand deliver a box that our family has put together!!!

I'm just as busy as ever. I'm trying to work extra hours to pay down some debt. I just can't wait until the line of credit is gone so we can pay back some family debt and work at being debt free, other than our mortgage. It weighs so heavy on me and stresses me out. I hate owing money to people. I had the flu earlier this week and thankfully Chris was able to stay home and help a bit. I go to Ladies Bible Study on Tuesday mornings and Craft Night on Wednesday nights after Awana. I still help lead Hallie's Awana class and she loves it that I'm there. Next year Hallie will move up but I'll stay with the Cubbies because Raya will be in that class next year. I also look after little Max on Thursday afternoons. He is so cute and I love that Theo has a little buddy to play with (ok, stare at) once a week.

I gave up Tim Hortons coffee from Monday-Friday during Lent. It's honestly a HUGE sacrifice for me. I don't have it every day but on average about 3 times/week and I really look forward to it. I was explaining to Hallie what Lent was and this was a part of our conversation:

me: "mom isn't going to go to Tim Hortons during the week"
hal: "you aren't going to have coffee every day?"
me: "no, only on the days that daddy stays home."
hal: "but mom, you have to have coffee every day...you are going to be so grouchy!"
OUCH! that hurt! pretty sad when your kid knows you're addicted!

Two weeks ago at breakfast time Hallie asked me if God was old.
I said "yes".
She said "like super duper old?".
"yup".
"hhmmm is he like 31?"
WHAT!!! 31 is NOT old...is it? I guess it's all a matter of perspective.


Well, I should probably start making lunch and preparing for finger painting (i hate finger painting, i hate painting...painting leads to mess, mess leads to clean up and clean up is a never ending job around here.)

no time to edit...theo is now crying. sorry if there are spelling/grammar/puntual errors.

Long Overdue

It's been a while since I blogged so I thought I'd try and update everyone on the happenings around here...

Christmas was great. We went to Lethbridge and had a really good time. We hooked up with quite a few of Chris's cousins before Christmas and the girls had a blast running around in a big gym. We spent time between both of our families over Christmas day and the balance seemed to work out okay. After Christmas we went out to visit some of Chris's cousins again and got to see Adam and Dana as well. Near the end of the trip our kids seemed to be worn out, tired, and getting a little sick. We did manage to escape the flu though that alot of friends and family ended up having over the holidays. We were able to get together with my extended family too before coming home and it was a really nice time catching up with everyone.

We came back home on the 30th and right away had a party to go to with our old homegroup. It was a blast and our kids really enjoyed playing there with old friends they haven't seen in a while. The girls there are a bit older and so they LOVE Hallie and Raya and do whatever the girls want so of course they loved it! New Years Eve we had some friends over that were visiting from Winnipeg. It was awesome to see them but it was just too short! We then got together with two couples from church to bring in the new year. We had no intention of staying until Midnight but actually managed to stay much later!

Chris is preparing to go to Uraguay in Febraury on an Operation Christmas Child trip with Samaritans Purse. It's a great opportunity for him to go and see how the organization impacts the lives of people less fortunate than most. He will be gone for 15 days and the only big negative is that he will miss Hallie's 5th birthday. I will be going to Lethbridge for the first week and then Chris's sister, Barb, will be coming with her baby for the second week. I'm hoping the time goes by fast...I'm definatlely going to miss him.

I'm still working parttime and have also started taking in a little boy the same age as Theo. I only have him once a week for a few hours and it's nice for Theo to have a little buddy to stare at :)

I registered Hallie for Kindergarten this week. I can't believe that time has come. It's been a stressful time for me as I'm trying to decide which education route is the best. Private, Public, Christian..... who knows!!! She is registered at our community school and on the wait list for another public and charter school.

Raya is starting to increase her vocabulary quite nicely which is great as I've been a bit concerned about it lately. I'm sure it won't be long now and I'll actually be able to understand what she's saying when she is telling me off :)

Theo is growing, growing, growing!!! He is a smiley and content young man! I can't believe that my baby is growing so quickly. I'm so sad that our baby stage is almost over and there won't be another. I am looking forward however to all the fun things we can do when we no longer require a diaper bag, bottles, snacks, sippy cups, change of clothes etc...

thats about all for now....sorry....i know that was all boring stuff that most of you know already but...it was a blog none-the-less.

i'll post pictures later when i'm downstairs on the other computer.