71 years and a very snowy week

This past week, John's Dad turn 71 years young!

We had a big ham dinner and celebrated with a Carrot Cake (albeit an ugly one;) and did our very best to convey to him how much we love him.    In truth however, words could never describe just how much we love this man.     

(Of course Nate had to be in the picture.    It's a far cry from last year though when Nate bawled until Grandpa let Nate blow out the candles on Grandpas cake;)

It was Music Festival week here, which meant that three days this week were spent dressing the kids up (often in sunday best) and sending them off to a day of performing.    Abby and Jess did great!   

Sam....?     Well, clearly he loved it too;)

Actually, Sam was miserable the entire day of his performance.   (He literally pulled the whole "This is the worst day of my life" bit.   Several times;)   All because he had to dress up.

  And he didn't even really dress up, he just felt like he was dressed up because his shirt had a few buttons on it, for goodness sake!!

  

All that "dressing up" for festival must have really got them going, because several times during the week the Halloween costumes were brought out.   Jessica wore her little Granny costume for hours!!!!

(I personally can't stand having a bunch of costumes around because the kids always make such a mess with them, but they enjoy it.  And hey- no computers involved!!!)

Speaking of computers - our kids have logged some serious hours on the wii and iPads the past few weeks.  So much so that John and I felt that it was time to reinstate our "no technology during the week" rule.   (The last time we did that - one of our kids learned to read!  Go figure;)   

Needless to say, by Friday afternoon Nate was literally waiting at the door for John to get home so they could "play puters" together.    I think it makes John feel loved to be welcomed home so enthusiastically, even if Nate does have ulterior motives.  

On one particularly boring day Nate spent an entire morning asking me if him and I could go swimming.    There was no way I had time that day, and I'd grown more then tired of telling him so.   I kept explaining to him that "the pool wasn't open" but he obviously didn't believe me (and for good reason. It was a lie.)  Soon he brought me my cell phone and asked me to dial the pool's number for him.   Of course I dialed our home number and when the phone in the kitchen started to ring I picked it up pretending that I was a receptionist at South Country Inn.    Nate sounded so grown up on the other end as he asked me if "he was allowed to come and swim today."     I'd barely hung the phone up in the kitchen before Nate came in sadly proclaiming that I was right - the pool was "broken."

Naturally, I felt a little bit bad.     So I made up for it two days later by waking him up and telling him to get dressed in his swimsuit.   We went swimming right after breakfast!!!  

He was thrilled, and my conscience was soothed;)

Abby and I got to attend the General Women's Broadcast together, which was a first.   

Abby had been looking forward to this all week, and I had high hopes of taking her out to dinner before it began.   Unfortunately we spent a full day at our old house cleaning it and getting it ready to turn over to the new owners, and was lucky to even make it to the meeting in time!

We did enjoy a treat at Dairy Queen together afterwards, as did the rest of the Mothers and daughters in this town.  haha.   It was a party down there for sure!

I was so proud of Abby that night.   She never once seemed bored or inattentive.  In fact, she said there with her notepad and pen in hand taking notes of all the thoughts she heard spoken...and sung.  

It was nice to spend an evening just with her, tough I am looking forward to next year when Jessica will join us.    

It's pretty much snowed every.single.day.this.week.    I'm about ready to take this winter and light it on fire!!   Here's hoping for some warmer days ahead.  I want to get walking!!!!

FYI- Welcome to Spring!!

Spring is officially here!!!   Isn't that great news?

Now if someone could just tell that to Mother Nature, we'd be laughing. 

Despite the confusing weather patterns we've experienced lately, we've managed to have ourselves a pretty great week.   On Wednesday, Abby joined the rest of the senior choir kids on a field trip to Calgary.    I almost didn't want to let her go (she had to be at the school at 5:45 for pete sake!;) but John was a trooper and got her up and to the school.   All I know is that at 5:30 I was woken up for a brief moment, did a little french braid in her hair, gave her a groggy hug goodbye, and then skunked back down under the covers into dreamland.  I'm sure Abby basked in the glow of my "supportiveness" the whole morning long.    

My sister Jewel however IS a supportive mother.   At 10:00 pm the night before, she decided that she had accompanied her girls on every Calgary trip for the past 6 years or so - she was not going to miss Mya's last one!!   So, she made last minute preparations to be a parent helper the next morning.   

 Oh, and did I mentioned that she chaperoned these kids all day long WHILE on crutches!! 

  (FYI: I felt pretty pathetic.  Well...after I woke up, that is;)

The next day was the first.day.of SPRING!!

Can't you tell?

Nothing like waking up to a freaking blizzard on the first day of spring to make you want to count the reasons you love Alberta.  (or pack up and flee to Mexico;)    I soothed myself with the knowledge that these spring storms never last long, and that by mid day we'd surely be seeing warmer temps and melting snow.    

...FYI:  It's still cold.  And snowy.    

But I still do love Alberta.

Despite my devoted love for this chilly province of ours, this morning John and I  loaded up the the kids, grabbed our passports and LEFT Alberta!    (...for all of 35 minutes!;)   We don't leave the comforts of our cozy little town very often, but a Babb run was in order.   The kids had been sitting in front of computer screens for way too long and so this became our weak attempt at prying their devices out of their hands, even if just for a morning.     Our van started making some crazy noise right as we were going through the US Border so I made John pull over and check under the hood.   (I don't think either of us knew what he should be checking for, it just seemed like the thing to do.)  When he got back in the van after an unsuccessful half heart effort (if I do say so myself;)  I insisted that we turn around and head home.   I surely did NOT want to have to tow our vehicle home from the states!   John however,  insisted that I was being ridiculous and assured me that the van was acting weird because, get this, ..."it was cold outside."     Uh...yeah...I'm sure that's what it was.

FYI:  I suspect his motives were slightly skewed at the time, seeing as he was desperately wanting one of the packages that we knew had been delivered.   Apparently wise judgement goes out the window under such circumstances.

 Anyways, to make a short story long....we made it!    I got a kick out of one of the packages we received.   You might not be able to see it, but it is addressed to "John Hoser Hardy."    I knew instantly, as soon as I saw that, that this package obviously came from one of his older brothers!  haha   (I've noticed in John's family, calling someone a Hoser, is pretty much an expression of Love.;)

Oh, and by the way, the package contained a new pair of minimalist style Nike shoes!!   

(FYI:  Minimalist Shoes are John's love language, so basically- this babb run helped John feel loved!)

Despite the initial protests from our kids about having to endure a dreaded Babb run, it ended up being a fun time for even them.    The snowy day made for ideal Eagle watching, they got to ride a giant stuffed bear, and they were each rewarded with giant lifesaver Popsicles.  

  (FYI: Artificially flavoured Popsicles happen my kids' love language;)

    

Before we went home, we swung by the local library and loaded up with a crazy amount of books.   Enough books to keep my kids off the computers for days!!!   See, the trick is to make them think that they are "choosing" to read instead of playing mindless video games.  That way, they'll still think you're a nice parent.  Works every time.   Bwahahahaha!!!

Oh, and here is one last snippet from our week.   Earlier in the month Jessica had a play date with her friend Jovi,  and apparently at lunch they ate grilled cheese sandwiches dipped in syrup.   

 In SYRUP!!

I'm not going to lie, it sounded kinda out there to some in our family, but Jess helped make for lunch today, and low and behold- the famjam loved it!!!   (FYI:  They also dipped their carrots, crackers, and apples into the syrup as well, but it really was the grilled cheese that tasted the best;)

Try it!!  You'll like it too.

Happy First Week of Spring!!!

Waterton Winterfest

This past weekend was Winterfest in Waterton, and I'd been looking forward to getting out there all week!!    (I know this picture looks like my kids are all excited, but it took a lot of arm twisting to get some of the to willingly get in the van. ;)

Lucky for them, wagon rides were being offered, and that was exactly the kind of thing we needed to perk them all right up!

We essentially got a wagon ride all throughout the core of Waterton, and my kids sang and cracked jokes the whole time.

Jess of course was in her element, and even brought her wildlife identification book along for the ride.    Not that it came in handy or anything, but still, she likes to carry it around;)

Nate surprised me the most.   He was the one who bawled the whole morning any time we mentioned a trip to Waterton.   Then he cried as we all got ready to go.   He cried for part of the trip out.  And he cried as we waited for our wagon ride to begin.   

Apparently he warmed up to things as soon as the horses got going.    

He's still talking about the super fun time he had!  (He's such a little scammer)

After the carriage ride, we went down to our favourite family hangout at Pass Creek, where we enjoyed hot apple cider and granola bars in the newly built camp kitchen.     

John thought up a clever way to cool his cider down a little;)

Whenever our family gets out to do something a little special together, I always feel inclined to take a few pictures, you know...to capture the love and all:

And I'm always so thankful for my very cooperative loved ones who value the preservation of memories as much as I do.   (I was being sarcastic.   My kids hate me. I'm sure of it)

Fortunately, John learned a long time ago that when I say "look at the camera" it's really just easiest to do exactly that.   

It was a BEEEAUTIFUL day in Waterton.   Still a little chilly, but warm enough for things to be melting.   It is such a hopeful thing to see the cold and ice begin to dissipate, and to know that spring is just around the corner.  

It is also such a hopeful thing for me, as a parent, to see my kids happily playing together and enjoying the great outdoors.   At one point I looked at John in shock and said, "Look!  They do still know how to play!!"    Lately it seems as though if they aren't in front of a TV or computer, they just don't know what to do.    It would appear that the trick is to get them 30 miles away from the nearest internet connection and new life is breathed into them.  

It was the perfect way to spend a Saturday afternoon!!!

Our Week in Hashtags

We've officially got an 11 year old!!   

This past Tuesday was Abby's big day, and she was so excited.    

Jewel, Kendall and their kids came over to help celebrate which made things extra special for Abs.    Because really, how could you not feel special when "Happy Birthday" is sung with accompaniment?  

 And a flute nonetheless! 

Abby asked for a Duck Dynasty cake so that hopefully explains that mess of a picture in the top corner.   (Apparently a cartoon of Si saying "Happy Birthday Jack" was the best I could do.   Luckily- it was all Abby needed!!!;)   It's always fun to visit with family, and on this particular night we were entertained with the longest most ridiculous story my niece Ava has ever conjured up, AND she introduced us all to the wonderful world of #Hashtags.    Forgive me,  but I feel inspired to end my paragraphs from this point on in just such a fashion.   (#Just trying to be cool, #wannabelikemyniece, #11 years already!, #say what?!!!!)

Wednesday brought some warmer temperatures, which was such a relief!  

Sam attended cubs and they all joined their leaders on a nature hike to the "Hidden Valley."    Perhaps you didn't realize that there was a hidden valley right here within town limits, now did you?    Me neither.  Apparently such a place does exist, though the trek there required a jaunt across the frozen Lee's creek - which ...apparently is not so frozen anymore!    Sam came home soaking wet, which prompted me to go off on a 2 hour lecture about how you never... NEVER play on an icy creek in the spring.  Though I'm surprised I even needed to have this conversation again.

    (#isn't that common sense?, #Duh!, #keeping him alive is harder then it looks)

John and I are still in "move out mode", seeing as the new owners don't take pocession of our home until April 1st.   Turns out what we thought was going to be a laid back way to move is quite actually the worst arrangement in the history of the world!  We've spent the last two or three weekends conjuring up work there, and likely will spend a couple of more weekends there before all is said and done.  For the love, WHY do we always feel the need to leave a house better then it was when we got it?   I don't know, perhaps I'm just having a hard time walking away?   

 (#welcome to the move that never ends, #still miss it)

The kids have had a great season of Champs, and this is the first year that Abby, Sam and Jess each got to participate.   I've LOVED seeing their improvement!    There is one week left and I'm not sure John and I know what we'll do with those extra two hours.    (oh wait- yes I do!!)   We're determined to keep the kids working on what they've learned.   Abby was asked to be a part of a spring league team but John and I reluctantly opted out.   She's gotten good- she really has, and I know this league would only help her get better, but we just aren't ready to start planning our schedule around basketball.   Not.just.yet.  Next year we'll put her in for sure! 

(#poor deprived child, #we lazy, #Ihaveaphobiaofoverschedulingmyfamily, #commitment issues much?)

Sunday is undoubtedly my favourite day of the week.   8:30 am church felt particularly painful this morning with daylight savings and all, but the afternoon was enjoyed in the most relaxing way.   We took a drive to look for eagles (the migration is upon us!) and then settled down to watch a movie together.   Can you believe it though- the kids tried to convince us that "NACHO LIBRE" should actually counts as an appropriate Sunday movie!   You know, because "there is a priest in it, and it's about an orphanage, and that one guy asks for forgiveness... "    (Those were my kids justifications, not mine;)    

 (#fat chance, #ifI'mnotcarefulthey'llgrowupdumb  #Saturdays warrior or nothing at all!)

We hope you all had the most fabulous week ever.

SPRING IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER!!!!!

Just Chilling!

Brrr....it is C-O-L-D!!!

The past few days have brought arctic temperatures our way, with windchill making it feel like a balmy -39 degrees!!   I'm not kidding- that is just too cold for any sane person to have to put up with.  

February is always the worst month for me, and I think everyone around me agrees- we are DONE with winter!  It's definitely time to move on to warmer days;)

After a week off of school, and a crazy move, it was nice to be able to get back in to a routine, which of course, leaves Nate and I alone during the day.   Apparently he has grown so bored of our every day interaction that he'd rather read the ensign instead! 

I seriously walked into the room to find him doing this.   I felt so bad for the poor kid that I immediately took him down town for a swim at the local hotel.   

On Monday night, our new neighbour Melanie stopped by with her three kids.  They didn't stay longer then a minute or two, but they left behind the most delightful FHE treat ever.  Crepes, creme and fruit!   So yummy;) 

 It was so thoughtful of her and such a comforting reassurance to me that there are good people all around us.  John and I are so lucky, we seem to "win the lottery" every time with great neighbours!!

(I wish they could say the same about us though;)

On Friday, John came home with a sheepish and confused look on his face.   He explained how he had pulled up to the house...parked in the driveway...realized he was not far enough over, so re-parked the truck....walked up the front steps...put the key in the door...and attempted to enter the house - all before realizing that IT.WAS.THE.WRONG.HOUSE!!!!

For the life of me, I don't understand it, but he swears that in the dark the two houses just look alike;)    Melanie and I were laughing about it the next day and she admitted that she was a little confused herself as to why John was just trying to walk into her house!    haha.    

It was pretty funny, yet despite the joke it has become, we have spent the rest of this weekend shovelling driveways and trying to reassure all who live on this block that we really are not creepy people;)     Well..not the rest of us at least!;)

On second thought...perhaps I should just speak for myself! ;)

HAPPY MARCH!!!

Adventures in Babysitting...Part 1

Six months ago, John and I put our house up for sale.    

A couple of weeks after that, at an evening Relief Society meeting, a member of our ward threw out the suggestion that we should sell our house and just buy hers, as her and her husband were getting ready to serve a mission.   (I think she was joking, but I kinda latched on to the idea and somehow within a couple of days that morphed into a house sitting arrangement.  It seemed like the perfect idea!)

So, for the past few months we have planned to do just that.  The Ridley's prepared for their mission, and John and I continued preparations to sell our house.   Only problem is - it wasn't selling.   

That might have something to do with the fact that NOTHING is selling in this town!

I tried not to worry about that small logistic too much in the weeks that followed, and I especially tried not to worry when Danny and Kay got their call and an official date was set.    As their reporting date approached though, reality began to set in and the prospect of being responsible for our home and their home began to overwhelm me.

We began to pursue the option of renting out our house and coming back to it in a year, but there were a few problems with that.  1.  The renting pool in town is pretty shallow   2.  John and I would not make good Landlords  3.  A year from now we'd still be faced with the same necessary renos that made us want to list the house in the first place.

What to do...what to do?  

 Luckily...just 10 days before the Ridley's were scheduled to leave, we received not one, but two unofficial offers on our home.   It felt like a miracle!  Proverbial Manna from Heaven!   Literally, an answer to prayer!

So here is where things currently sit: 
Five days ago, (the same day the Ridleys left for their mission) the papers were signed and an awesome young family from Edmonton will be moving in to our home.    I think that is the part that makes me most sad.   I realized this weekend that we are moving away from some of the most stellar and special people that I have known all these past 5 years!   I know we are still in the same ward and all, but what if our friendships change now?  And even worse- what if they end up liking this new family MORE?!!  The jealousy would seriously get to me!  haha

John on the other hand, has no regrets.   Not because he didn't love where we lived, but because he refuses to live "looking back."  Steady John is always hopelessly optimistic that we are exactly where we need to be and I love him for it!

This past Friday and Saturday we got rid of 1/3 of the junk we've accumulated and moved the rest of our stuff over to the house that will be our home for the next 12 months or so.  We look forward to taking care of it, and loving it as though it was ours.

Here's hoping for an uneventful and blessed experience house sitting!!

Let the adventure begin....

Poof! She's 7 :(

Jessica's birthday snuck up on us this year.   In fact, it really does seem like only yesterday that we were bringing this little girl home - and POOF...now she is 7!

It makes me a little bit sad really.

Jessica though, was thrilled, and made all sorts of demands last Thursday that she obviously felt entitled as the Birthday Girl to make.    Breakfast in bed...a cake decorated exactly according to her homemade diagram...the eating of dessert before supper....and a turtle!

Unfortunately, only one of her birthday request was actually met, and we all ate an incredibly sugar filled cake as a result:   

I know this is a horrible photo, but I loved that when we all started singing "Happy Birthday" to her, she stood up and began to conduct!  haha  (I guess if we are going to sing to her, she may as well make sure we do it properly;)

Earlier that day, this crafty girl kept coming to me asking me how to spell all sorts of words.   I suppose I should have questioned what she was up to, but I didn't.   Turns out- she had taken a black marker to her white shirt and written all sorts of celebratory birthday messages about herself! 

 (You know, just in case any of us happened to forget it was her big day!;)  

 This girl would be impossible to forget, and she was certainly spoiled by family and friends who love her as much as we do!

Jessica is such a Bright Light.  

She reminds us every day to simply "love everything about the whole world" and we sure are grateful for her influence in our family!

Ski Day!!

The kids didn't have school this past Wednesday, and John was accompanying several High School students on a ski trip.   We decided to take advantage of the opportunity and get the kids out there too so that John could teach them how to ski.    

It's sad to admit, but up until now, our kids had never downhill skied before, and given the gong show that was last months X Country ski event - I did not have high hopes they'd like it at all.   So I took a couple of precautions: 

First, I spent several days prepping and warning the kids that downhill skiing was hard.  Really hard. In fact, they probably wouldn't like it very much at first.;)   

Second,   I pawned our youngest boy off on my sister for the day.   (Ever tried to keep a four year old happy in a ski lodge for 8 hours?   Me neither, and I didn't want to!)    Besides, it's not like my sister had anything going on, what with her newly broken ankle and all!!! 

Note:  THIS is why you don't play basketball when you are old...ish;)

Yes, that's right.   I left my four year old behind to be babysat by my poor decrepit sister.   

What's the big deal?

Ahem.  Meanwhile, back at the hill....

we were quickly able to find John and within minutes the kids were all suited up and raring to go!   

I adore the confidence that they all had.    Jessica was initially determined to stay back with me, but as soon as she took a look around and got a sense of the excitement- there was no turning back.

I was impressed at how quickly they got the hang of it.    John said it took two maybe three runs before they each were completely hooked and loving it.   (See it does help to prepare them for the worst sometimes;)     How the chair lift didn't freak them out, I'll never know.  

Just watching them on the chair lift made me nauseous.  Yikes, there they go!!!

(I'm the one behind the camera, praying that the cable holds;)

Just a couple of minutes later, I'd watch as four of my favourite people would come zooming towards me.   Jessica was almost always leading the way.

John said Jess had some serious speed, and occasionally he'd have to kick into his fastest mode just to catch up to her!  She's crazy.

Sam was slightly more cautious, but mastered his stopping technique in no time!   

Without fail, Abby always came soaring past me striking some sort of celebratory pose, or proclaiming how much "she rocked!"    Like I said- I adore their confidence!  ;)

They all had so much fun it was virtually impossible to tear them off the hill.   It wasn't until the ski lift attendant shut things down (and not a moment sooner) that the kids sadly relented and headed to the van.   Tired, but so so happy.

During the hour and a half long drive home the kids shared stories of the day and compared highlights.    At one point Sam thoughtfully said, "Mom?  I don't know what it is, but I just kinda...I don't know...feel taller now."  haha.    He was one proud little man, and yes, he seemed a bit taller to me too.

 And how did I spend my day, you ask?

Sigh....it was pretty dreamy;)

January Blues

January is always a tough month for my family.    The excitement of Christmas has worn off, school is in full force again, and the winter weather is not going away any time soon.    I've got 4 bored little kids around here, and it doesn't help that we have made TV off limits on weekdays.    (They aren't sure they'll survive the torture, but I'm willing to take that risk;)    

To curb the boredom, Jessica has taken to odd and random craft projects.   One day she made a bouquet of flowers out of a Kraft dinner box, construction paper flowers, and uncooked spaghetti noodle "stems."   She had wanted to give this bouquet to her Aunt who was visiting, but it somehow mysteriously made it's way into the garbage before she had the chance to.    (I have no idea how that happened!;)        

This was a mouse she made one day after inhaling an entire can of mandarin oranges all on her own.     

She's taking our goal to "reuse and recycle" to a whole new adorable level!    I love her creativity!

Knowing that January is always a slow and sluggish month, I signed Abby and Sam up for Ultra kids (a running club offered to elementary aged boys and girls.)      This group actually began running back before Christmas, and though it has taken a few weeks for my kids to catch the vision of it, they have been running every day now!    On Saturday John even ran with them, and they doubled their miles!   (I've always known it helps to take a buddy along;)

And when all else fails-   when the crafts have all been done, and the kids have run their little hearts out - they have taken to dressing their little brother up in dresses and taking pictures.   

Say what!!!???   

I know I shouldn't be okay with this, and I do worry about what kind of permanent damage this might be causing....BUT...it brings the kids together on a common cause.  Not to mention the fact that Nate LOVES the laughter it invokes, and it buys me a few minutes of uninterrupted quieter then normal time.    Win Win!

It would appear as though my kids aren't the only ones suffering from a case of January boredom blues.    On Saturday morning, as we were having breakfast, our doorbell rang and this is what greeted us:

I seriously laughed until it hurt, as I clearly was not expecting this.    Apparently we laughed a little too much, because our poor neighbour went home upset, and came back later to tell us that "it isn't nice to laugh at people!"   And she is so.so.right!    I humbly apologized and tried to take her seriously from that point on.   It was pretty cute!

It has been a challenging couple of months as we have listed our house and then debated back and forth what it is we really want to do with it once we move.   Do we use it as a rental, or sell it?    I don't think I could handle the stress of being a landlord, but I also worry that I will regret giving this home up, and all of the neighbours that I love so much.    However, after a very helpful conversation with a member of my ward, (who conveniently happens to be a realtor) we have decided to stop being fence sitters and forge ahead.   

I'm already tired of trying to keep this house clean 24/7 and my kids think I'm the meanest mom ever, so here's hoping this home sells sooner then later!  

(sob...sob)   ;(