IT'S DONE!!!

So last fall I took the kids out to Waterton during the National Wildlife film festival. I remember the beautiful day that it was and I ended up spending the majority of the day taking pictures. Go HERE to see my post on that day. A couple of months ago I decided to paint one of the photos I had taken. It is the first large painting I've ever done. (20X24) Finally it is finished! Atleast I think it is done- that is, until I look at it again. That's when I realize all the hundreds of details I need to go back and fix. I need a teacher-and I'm debating taking it to a lady in town for some help. Hopefully she could show me how to actually do bushes and trees. I need to learn some technique.



I also managed to develop and sort and file our family photos that have been stored up on our hard drive for the past year. Now all those pics are in each kid's book. Count it...that's TWO major projects of mine...DONE!


On a side note-we just had the most fantastic weekend. We watched Saturdays conference sessions at my sisters house and today we saw both sessions with John's Dad. Talk about good talks and GREAT food and AWESOME company. Thanks so much Jewel, Kendall and Dad. So relaxing! I can't wait to be able to download some of our favorite talks. With those two projects out of the way, I think I'll have some time to read:)))

If any of you know our Sam, you may understand why I found this little clip to be so funny. It reminds me of our little man in more ways than one! Luckily Sam's language development (which I have been worried about) has improved dramatically in just the past couple of weeks. We're working on it!

Still, if Sam were ever to be compared to a Muppet Character...I think this would be the one! Not only do they speak the same language- Sam is equally dangerous in the kitchen!

April Fools!

With today being April Fools day I had every intention of pulling off a joke on John. I used to LOVE a good prank, however John is not a fan of the whole "decieving people and playing with their emotions part" of pranks, so my plan to pretend I was pregnant again was out:) Besides we all know that wouldn't even have been funny! So John left for work today unpranked and I remained as boring as ever. Luckily, others were able to pull off some good and harmless fun that made up for my negligence.

John teaches at the local High School and spends a part of his day "team teaching" with another teacher, Mr Paulson. This man has been the physics teacher for many years and is retiring in just a few months. (John is sort of being trained to replace him) He was John's teacher when John was young, and he is the kind of teacher that the kids all love. He's a pretty inspiring and creative guy and John has enjoyed sharing a classroom and learning from him this past semester.

Today John showed up and found this...







One of the perks I guess of team teaching with a man who is well known for his liking of...ducks! John and Mr.Paulson's room were filled with little rubber duckies!! Some students had hung them from the ceiling, lined cupboards and desks with them and pretty much scattered them everywhere they could-it was pretty funny. Not a small amount either. Over 1500 rubber ducks!!!!!!!! Seriously teenagers today. ....what quacks!!!

Truly Canadian Eh!!

Remember how I mentioned last week that I'd packed up all our winter clothes and put them out in the garage, thus declaring that winter was over. Uh...apparently not. Winter is back in full force. It's OK. This is what we love right?


Last week John pruned the trees in our yard. We soon after learned that we should have perhaps waited until the fall. Did you know that cutting Maple Trees in the spring will cause them to "Bleed" out? We didn't. Hopefully they will all survive, since the pruning was minimal. However we discovered something cool as we sadly watched moisture seeping from the wounds of these old trees. After collecting the liquid that was running, we then boiled it down slowly. Once all the water had evaporated...oi la! This is what we had. Beautiful, thick sugary maple syrup. All two tablespoons of it! We're fighting over who gets that pancake:)

(We took pictures of each step)


Shoveling in our Flip Flops and making homemade maple syrup...
Now is that not Canadian or what?

I think it's one of those weeks

I hit our neighbors cat. "Winky". ...killed her. It isn't like I didn't try to avoid her but she shot out onto the road so fast it was weird. I later found out she'd only had one eye, which explains alot. Poor thing just probably didn't even see me coming. It was so sad.

You know, nothing says "ridiculous" like showing up on your neighbors doorstep and saying, "So you know how I killed your cat earlier? Well...here are some Banana Berry Bran muffins...?"

For the love!
What could I do for them that would make this better?

A couple of reason why...

1. So Abby is five. For a long time now she's been able to dress herself, but only recently have I noticed the independance and determination she's developed to actually "CHOOSE" what she wears. This isn't what bothers me. I am thrilled that she is growing up and...even developing a mind of her own. What bothers me is that she CHOOSES to wear this:

 

...to school! So here was the dilemna. I was sitting there trying to be supportive all-the-while encouraging her to perhaps put on something different for pre-school. Abby is equally insistent that she's already chosen and darnit she looks GOOD! Crossroads. Do I be a good mom and respect her developing independence and decision making skills, thus allowing her to commit what I think would be social suicide. OR do I find her something more appropriate to wear perhaps sending the message that she isn't infact capable of making her own choices yet? ....I made her change.


2. Last night I went running with my sister...ok if I'm to be totally honest...it was more like walking. Before I left I put the kids to sleep and then John followed me outside to move the truck so that I could get out with our van. I grabbed my stuff, locked the door, hopped in the van and drove off. Had a great walk with Jewel-infact I ended up staying out longer than the usual thirty minutes. When I got back I was startled to see John sitting, smiling...sorta, on our front porch, without a coat. I asked him something like, "Are you crazy...what are you doing?" Apparantly he was waiting for me...to get home...because I'd locked him out and taken the keys!!! So there he'd sat, in the dark, in the cold for 40 minutes. He later said he spent some of that time praying that the kids wouldn't wake up needing him. He spent some of that time doing push-ups, and the rest of that time he spent rehearsing emergency procedures and pondering what he'd do if he really had to survive in the cold longer than 40 minutes. My bad. I couldn't help but feel humbled by his calm approach. I know I would have been M-A-D. Ugly. ...I may have even sworn.

3. Yesturday Jewel went to the city for a few things. I had her bring me back a small kids' bed from Wal-Mart. I've wanted it for awhile. John has felt it was pointless. Still... I was convinced that Jess would trasnsition to it well and that we'd finally be able to sleep a night without her little feet kicking us. Well I bought it...John set it up...and SAM and ABBY have enjoyed it very much. Jessica however, is still in bed with us, and our pockets are now $60 bucks lighter.

There you have it. Three recent reasons why... I suck

One GREAT Weekend!!

Good Friday was not just "good" it was the BEST! A friend of John's and his wife invited us out to Sparwood BC for the day to play with them and enjoy the holiday together. I was especially excited for this little day trip because I so rarely leave Alberta that any trip (no matter how small) seems like an adventure! We passed through Frank Slide which brought a tonne of childhood memories back to me. I remember going there with my Dad. As I was explaining to Abby how a giant chunk of mountain came crashing down on an entire town, I looked back at her, and her eyes were so wide with wonder you could just see the fear on her face. "That can't happen again though right?" she kept asking.




Abby came and played on the rocks with us for a bit. Brave Girl:)) If any of you come to visit us- we have a renewed determination to show you some of our favorite spots. Walley Beach...the Fay Wray fountain (hee hee)...and now Frank Slide. It was pretty cool- and I could picture all our little nephews getting hurt real good on these rocks!!! But oh what fun:)


We arrived in Sparwood, to be greeted by the most charming little town ever. Seriously can you believe the backdrop around this place? The kids had a blast! Isn't it funny how happy kids can be as soon as they get into a room full of toys that are different then their own? Of course- it helps that the back yard was a snow world complete with drifts, caves AND tunnels.

To say the least, our little ones...played hard. Shauna prepared an Egg Hunt, showed us all her scrapbooking (I shouldn't say this but I think John is hooked!), they took us to see the "Biggest Truck in the World", and cooked up a fabulous Easter feast complete with the yummiest Easter Buns I' ve ever tasted.


Shauna and Terry if you are reading this- Thank you Thank you Thank you! It was so nice to visit and you all were so good to us. On the way home we couldn't help but ask ourselves why we don't try to keep in better contact with good friends! What's our problem anyway?

We got home around 9:00 and carried the kids to their beds. I loved seeing them so exhausted. It meant they had fun. It also meant they'd sleep soundly so I could prepare things for the Easter Bunny to come. You see- the Easter Bunny comes to our house on Friday night. (Who wants sugared up kids on Sunday for church...not me!) We have a couple of easter traditions that I just love. When I was growing up my Dad would always create elaborate mazes (made of Jelly beans) beginning at our bedroom door leading us on to our hidden easter baskets. Abby and Sams trail of Chocolate eggs (I like them better than jelly beans ok?) led them around the living room and out the front door to a little bush that we'd covered with eggs. Under that bush was their basket full of games, treats and sandles. I have to admit,I copied the "egg tree" from my sister-in-law Sarah. She told us about this years ago and since then I've been doing it as well. I don't feel bad about copying her though. She does cool things like this all the time, and it's like they say, "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery."

So the kids found their baskets, filled their cute little faces with chocolate and then helped us make breakfast. Bunny pancakes and smoothies. It isn't breakfast in this house without one of Johns smoothies!



Now we are full...happy...and content after a fun couple of days. It's time to get to work. We plan to set up a fence today...prune our trees...and pack up all our winter clothes and gear. Yes-that's right- I've decided that it is time to bring out the warm stuff. By so doing, I've officailly declared that winter is over and we will not see any more of that yucky white stuff again. ...you can thank me later.



We are so grateful for the gospel and the promise of eternal friends and families. Especially as we've been so blessed with great ones! Happy Easter

HOPPY Easter!!!

We had so much fun visitng these little sheep that live down the road from us. Those little lambs were so darn cute! I want one!!!




We are looking forward to the long weekend. Tomorrow we will go to BC to see some friends, we plan to do a lot of yard work, set up a fence and enjoy the company of family and loved ones. Isn't the Easter season great? It is nice to be able to reflect on all that we've been blessed with. We wish you all the best this weekend! Hope the Easter Bunny finds you!

AHhhhhh!!

Ever feel as though you've bitten off more then you can chew? It's been one of those days for me.

Despite the cluttered feeling I can't shake, something really cool happened this morning. Our doorbell rang around 10:30 and when I opened it there stood one of the beehives in our ward. I was her primary teacher last year. She had her arms full with her painting supplies. Now, I was not expecting this visit from her, however I did know that she has recently begun art lessons. I thought to myself, "Self...she may have something to teach you." Boy did she. For the next few hours we painted together...sharing technique...giving advice. It was also handy to have her around as I was able to step out sans babies for a bit to take abby to preschool. (Wouldn't it be great to have a 12 year old?....one of those built in babysitters. Sigh ...one day) Anyways she just rambled off a load of rules...ideas...pointers that no doubt came straight from her art teacher. Like a sponge I just soaked it up. At one point she said, "Isn't it funny? You used to teach me-and now I'm teaching you."

Yeah...it was a humbling moment.

4 things.

1. We attended the local production put on by the Elementary School "Ei-Ie Ei-Ie OOPS." (I probably spelled that wrong, I know;) It was a darling little play about a bovine with self esteem issues that has lost the ability to MOO. The barnyard animals all work together in the cutest play I've ever seen. And might I add-that barnyard consisted of the BEST pig 'd ever seen. Good job Ava!

2. We took the kids to the local museum for the annual Easter Egg Hunt. Pretty much organized chaos. The kids cleaned up on chocolate and even got to see the Easter Bunny. That has pretty much solidified, for them, the notion that the Easter Bunny does infact exist. Therefore, we will likely use this to our advantage... in the form of manipulative bribery. (ie: "Abby the Easter Bunny skips right by homes of kids who don't share...") That kinda thing.

3. We have a budding artist. One of my favorite moments this week occurred when Sam and Jess were both napping. I pulled out some art supplies and Abby actually joined in the fun this time. She usually does not enjoy coloring, or anything artsy. So for 30 blissful minutes we painted together while watching Chicken Little.

4. We've seen the light!!! So we've finally decided to change every lightbulb in our house. We replaced the old ones with the newer energy efficient ones. What a difference that made. I love how un-DIM our place is now. Between that and the dryer we also replaced.. we're hoping to see a major decrease in our utility bill. Ok maybe I'm just dreamin. Atleast it is bright.

Heart attack!

So yesturday was a pretty good day. I got a lot done. The kids played with friends...all in all very productive. That is...until...the "episode" as I like to refer to it as. John came home from work and I began preparing dinner, as is the routine for us. Now, I have often said that bad things can happen in that hour before supper and today was proof of that. Minutes before eating I asked John to help the kids wash up and come to eat. Abby came...Jess came...no Sam. John went looking for him, but our house is not very big. It wasn't long before he came back to report that Sam...couldn't be found. Good Grief I thought- I do NOT have time for this. We looked and looked for him. Then we called and called for him. After several minutes of this I began to get frantic - we began yelling for him. ...Nothing.

It was then that I realized our front door was unlocked. Not open-but unlocked. Common sense told me there was no way he could reach the doorknob (as we'd purposely installed it several inches higher than on normal doors.) Yet...what if Abby opened it? What if it had been left opened? What if...

Panic hit. That is when I realized that one of two things happened. Either Sam escaped outside or he was somewhere in the house...hurt and unable to call out. A significant amount of time had gone by by this point. What if Sam had gotten all the way down the street and fallen down the steep hill...what if he was wandering the neighborhood lost and panicking...what if, well I know this town is safe but the worst possible scenario was going through my mind, and as I ran down the street in search of him, I felt certain that Sam had been kidnapped and was halfway to the border by now.

All the sudden a sweet little voice called out, "I found him!" John and I both ran to where Abby was and sure enough there too was Sam. In the house...in his room...underneath a big pile of stuffed animals...with a BIG grin on his face, a bag of cookies clutched to his chest.

You know that shaky feeling you get when you've been in a car accident? I felt that for the rest of the night. Every time I looked at that tiny little boy I had to take him in my arms and tell him I loved him and BEG him not to scare me like that again. Yet...looking back I can't help but feel a little bit nervous. There is no doubt that he heard John and I calling for him. No doubt...he knew he should answer us- yet he didn't. Infact, the whole experience was quite a delight for him. I'm afraid my son has a very twisted sense of humor.

Why is it that kids enjoy watching us sweat?

A SPRING in our step

Yesterday was a great day. For starters, the weather was gorgeous! Everything is melting and we are beginning to see patches of green grass creeping out from underneath the disappearing piles of snow. I LOVE spring! Something about this time of year that just makes you wake up a bit doesn't it?

I was feeling especially energized and decided to spend the morning re-organizing my cupboards. A major dejunking. Every cupboard. All of them. To me-that is a beautiful thing. I find it very rewarding to look into a cupboard and know that everything in it is stuff that we actually use. I have no difficulty parting with junk. (Mind you there has been a time or two when John has wished I hadn't been so impulsive that way.) I've decided that I'm going to spend one hour every day on some aspect of spring cleaning. (ie windows, spraying the house, steam cleaning...whatever) I'm enjoying the thought of it.

Oh yeah,....back to our beautiful spring day. We picked up Abby from pre-school as usual, only today we took the time to play on the playground a bit. It was slightly overcast and I thought that it might actually rain. Now that - would have been perfect! Abby and Sam loved playing, I loved feeling the satisfaction of knowing that the kids were actually being active again after the long winter months, and Jessica enjoyed...the Rocks.


Jess stood very happily in one spot and never really deviated from it. Those little pebbles sure held her attention. ...and apparently they tasted good to her as well.


After the park we stopped by the farm that is down the street from us. They have the most adorable little lambs right now and Sam and Abby can't get enough of them.
Seriously aren't those little things CUTE!!! And nothing says spring more than little lambs.

After family home evening we went outside to enjoy the perfect evening. The kids broke out their bikes for the first time, and Grandpa even came by and had homemade smoothies with us while we listened to two nearby owls. Grandpa tried to lure them closer by calling to them, and now Abby is amazed that she has a Grandpa who can "speak owl."




Today was one of those days where nothing could have bothered me. Teething baby?...piles of laundry? ...botched supper? -it's all good. I was just feeling some gratitude for the important things in life. My beautiful kids...my husband...spring....and CLEAN CUPBOARDS.

All Bugged Out!

So today was the much anticipated day! Abby's first birthday party. You know, it seems to me that Abby's birthday has been the dominant focus in our home ALL week long. Thankfully - Sam still thinks it's been all about HIM.

Seeing as Abby turned 5, we told her that she could invite the five girls that she goes to school with. Of course we invited Mya too because my kids can't seem to BREATHE without seeing her daily! The theme: Spring Fling. Sounds easy right?

I tried really hard to keep the party simple, but boy is it easy to go overboard. I decided earlier this week that I needed to simplify and downsize in a major way before I exploded from the stress of my 5 year olds birthday party. Cuz you know that can be SOOOO stressful!!!!! Therefore, in efforts to simplify, we opted out of many of the games I'd planned, decided against the trip to the nearby farm to see the baby lambs, and of course it was good bye Pinata. Despite the (above)omissions from an already worn out mom, I think the kids still had a fun time. They planted flowers to take home...went on a "bug hunt"... played "Bumble Bee Bumble Bee, are you sleeping?" Mostly though, they just did what kids do best. Play. (It helps to have John around when the playing starts. He's so good at that) They were very sweet girls. I couldn't help but think that one day Abby will be driving "mainies" with some of these same kids. Ugghh...stop thinking about it Tanis.

The menu consisted of Caterpillars, Butterfly wings, Ant Sandwiches, and Ladybugs. Look at us, trying to be all healthy. Well..except for those blasted ladybugs!


All in all it was a pretty good time. Mind you, one sweet little girl couldn't help but ask..."But when are we doing the pinata?"

She's FIVE!!

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Today is Abigail's birthday! We have some family coming over this evening to celebrate and then she is having her first real "friend party" this weekend. Something tells me there will be a lot of sugar consumed this week. LOTS and LOTS.

I had fun making this video montage for her today. Looking through all of her pictures brought back so many memories. Since she is our first, she's had to put up with our early days as I learned how to be a MOM. I hope she'll forget those days that I didn't do so well;) Abby is such a spunky little girl and she is not really afraid of anything. One thing I love about her is her ability to consider everybody her friend. I remember one time when we took her to the park, there was a group of rebelious teenagers smoking up on the playset by the slide. I cringed inside as Abby went up to these adolescents and said, "Hey friends...wanna play?" We'll have to encourage her to be a little more selective in the future...but I do love how open and inviting she is to others.

Abby you really are a special little girl and one of MY best friends. Happy Birthday!

A year ago...

It was a year ago this weekend that I was preparing for a family dinner we'd be having the next day. Jessica was going to be blessed. ...It was Abby's 4th Birthday. It was a year ago this weekend that we got the call. My Dad had suddenly passed away.

I've been trying to write an entry about my Dad all day but I can't seem to be satisfied with what I type. Perhaps it is because nothing I could say would do justice to how much I miss him, or how great of a man he was. Thankfully, my sister Jewel wrote a very beautiful entry on her post and she really summed up everything I have been feeling. She included a slideshow of my Dad that included so many pictures of him with our kids. He was the BEST Grandpa. Go here to read what I wish I could have said about this man that was my Dad.:))

Mostly I wanted to give a shout out to my siblings and let them know how much I love them and that I am thinking of them this today. I'm so grateful for the knowledge I have that Mom and Dad are together! Love you guys!

Just singin along

So last night, as I was on my way home from running a couple of quick errands, I managed to get a little bit distracted. Just as I turned the corner and proceeded up our street about to pull into our driveway, a song came on the radio that I hadn't heard in a long time. Suddenly I was compelled to pass by my home, (sorry kids...sorry John...sorry dishes that had to be done), and I just drove, soaking up the memories that floaded into my mind as I sang along.

Isn't it funny how a simple song can take you back to a totally different place and time. Some songs bring back such vivid memories to me I can almost feel the weather or smell the odors of that moment. For example, hearing Whitney Houston's "I will always love you," will forever remind me of warm summer days, riding in my yellow jeep with my little sister, as we belted (or bellowed) that song at the top of our lungs. Hearing "Heart in Peices" by Chicago reminds me (for some reason) of christmas tree hunting in the mountains when I was ten. Nelly Furtado was playing on the radio one time as I fished along the North Saskatchewan river and now every time I hear "I'm like a bird", I go back to that same spot in my mind, the beautiful summer evening, mosquitos and all. My all time favorite memory comes to mind every time I hear Eric Claptons "Wonderful Tonight." John performed that on his guitar on our first date. Sure he probably sang it to lots of girls before me...but whenever I hear it now, I can't help but feel like it's my song, or should I say OUR song. What kind of songs do that for you?

It makes me wonder sometimes, when I turn on the radio, what music am I listening to today, that will one day bring back vivid and tender memories of little feet, a dirty van, piles of laundry, and a to-do list that is quickly reaching impossible proportion. ...I hope it won't be something by the Doodlebops;)