Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

Not being online at home has certainly slowed me down!!! Add to that the busyness of working and the holiday season and it has been a LONG time since any news! All is going well and the girls and I had a great Christmas together!! Relaxing and getting spoiled by Santa!!

Just for Fun!!

This is a funny photo of the Jayds - even better with the story......whenever she's asking and asking for something I tell her something silly, and many times it is "Hold on to your nose!!" We had quite the chuckle over little miss comedian as she took me seriously!!!

Losing my Baby.....

My youngest is off to school this year. She would say "Finally" but she is still my baby no matter how big she is, ready she is, or independent. She was so excited and has been having a great time with "McNeil" as she loving refers to her teacher. Somehow the Mrs. part has been overlooked, but I love it!! Samantha started Grade one and is having a blast - Mrs. Burn is the best teacher and she talks about how much fun she has. It doesn't seem to have effected her, having to go every day - she loves going and learning. Hard to see them grow up but I am so proud of them and how they are handling everything in their lives right now. What wonderful blessings!!

Summer Days

We loved the summer days and enjoyed so much time at the beach, day trips and lots of fun things. But it has come to end and back to school time is here. I just wanted to post a few pictures of our summer fun before those back to school shots!! Thankfully we are still having great weather and I plan on heading to the beach again tomorrow - taking full advantage of every moment!! The pictures include Greeview Aviaries, a trip to Barrie and fun at the park.

Thank-You to All!!

Thank-you everyone for all the birthday wishes!! It was such a great couple of days!! The girls and I had a party and they had tons of surprises for me! When I told Samantha that the next day was my birthday she was excited that we were going to stay up all night long, but it wasn't much after that and she came to me with the concern "When are we going to get you a present?" I told her they could make me something, but even Jayden wouldn't go for that one, "But you will be here!" So we enlisted Grandpa's help.....they had a great time shopping and I was off in the grocery store. They stopped at the truck and wrapped them and everything. They found me in the grocery store and then toured off to do their own thing for a while, I did see them wandering and knew enough to keep my distance while they paid for and boxed something I wasn't to see!
The cutest was their excitement when they were able to surprise me. They sang and everything when bringing out the cake!! It was so sweet! Then we decorated the whole place with the balloons they got - it was so much fun!
The best birthday in memory to date!!

We Miss You Great-Grandma

I lost my grandmother on July 4 and miss her terribly. It is the best thing for her - no more suffering, no more tears. But it is a loss just the same and Jayden remembers her often, "I miss Great-Grandma" We used to take her for drives, go to get ice cream or just drive by the beach. Yesterday we went to the park where we used to go together, let the kids play so we could chat. It was sad to not have her there, but we haven't been able to take her there for months. Harder than missing her has been watching her slowly deteriorate. It was a good news, bad news day when we lost her.
The pictures of the girls riding horses might not make sense except that it was the same day as the funeral. We went to the horse farm open house where my sister works to check it out that morning. The girls had a blast and got to ride all on their own. It was a good distraction for the morning. The afternoon brought many tears and many more great memories of a woman who was more than just my grandmother, she was a roommate for a time, and even moreso a friend. I miss you.

Loving the Beach!!

We have been enjoying the summer and the girls love the beach so much!! I made sure I had some books and crosswords, and was well prepared as they love to spend hours and hours in the sand. I do have a thing for sand being in the wrong places. And I am very annal about sand on the blanket....just trying to keep it off of me really. But I have loosened up some..... going to just have to let it go and get sandy I guess!!!

Making Friends

We made friends with this little guy, he was trying to hide, but we knew he still wanted to be friends!!! If the girls had their way we would have caught it, put it in a jar and kept it to check it out. I'm not sure he'd fit in with the caterpillar and the firefly though!!

Water Works Day Camp

The first week of July was the day camp at church. Sam and Jayds had so much fun. They love the games and they got to be in a group with their friends. All week there were so many fun theme days. Crazy hat day, Sam wore two different hats and her sunglasses on upside down!! Most shirts day - Jayden had 10 and Sam 15.... they could hardly move!! Crazy hair day was much gel and ponies everywhere!!
They loved dancing to the songs and learned the actions to so many and have been singing them ever since!! I was there helping out, but didn't get a chance to be there for all the songs so the girls have been trying to teach me all the actions!

Happy Birthday DAD!!

Daddy turned the big 55 this year! We had a little get together to celebrate and wished him well! You can see that he is a hip 55, never giving up his youth, with cel phone in hand and eating the burger without the bun!! I thought that was just my 4 year old who liked to tear it all apart :) I guess she had to have learned from someone! He's certainly the best at teaching us all stuff and seems to always know best - how many times have I said, "Man, Dad was right!" I'm learning!
Special Father's Day wishes to the first man I ever loved!! Love you Dad!

Starting Five

Well, I guess whoever shows up first for the games is the starting five!! So for Jane's wedding it was the five of us! She didn't really want to play, man she's just giving up on us entirely!! :) What a beautiful wedding and what a beautiful bride! (ok, I guess Bob looked good too)

Fun Fairs

We had a great weekend full of fun fairs! First was the school fun fair on Sat - with tons of games, prizes, horse and wagon rides - and of course face painting! Sunday was the MayDay at the church with more bouncers, good food and face painting. I was playing Gus Macker basketball at the same time downtown so it was some planning and travelling but I did manage to take it all in!! What a great time - but some tired girls by Sunday night!!

Miss You!!

Thanks so much for spending some of your last day in Canada with us!! And a special thanks to Jason for helping the girls learn to ride on two wheels - it added such confidence - what a great day!

Homework Again!

Back to school - the high tech way! I didn't think I'd be doing homework of my own again... but decided to take an online course or two. Going very well, one week in how bad can it get? I felt all nervous at first - am I going to be able to concentrate long enough to absorb anything? Will I be able to keep up? Can I do this and not neglect the kids? All my anxiousness was eased as I read through the text and it all came back to me. I feel good about it now, and sailing into Chapter 2. We'll see come the end of June for the midterm test!
I hope my brain can handle it!

The Haircut

This was totally her idea. I didn't even threaten with, if you don't like having the tangles brushed then you have to get your haircut. She just said it one day, I want my hair cut. So as we discussed length, she at first wanted as long as mine (shoulder or so) then decided nope, maybe middle of her neck, more like Miss Dawnelle's because it sways. I had no idea she watched such things! And there has yet to be a specific reason, just ready for it. I didn't even ask -are you sure? I just said, oh, you're ready for a change and her reply was, I'm sure mom.
The cutest was the excitement to show everyone! She was sure Austin ("we're in love, mommy" boy at school) wouldn't recognize her. He did, but liked the cut all the same! If she didn't look older than her just six years already - it's so easy to see her grown up. Just this morning sipping her tea from a Timmy's mug while waiting for the bus.....I could just see the teenager standing there. It is going by so quickly!!

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all mothers!! I am so blessed with giving children. Samantha brought home a necklace she had made at school on Fri and it started a giving frenzy! The noodles and Froot Loops necklace is super cute, and fortunately she didn't insist I wear it to church or anything - I fears of the cereal melting down my neck or else I may have considered it! When Samantha gave me her gift, Jayden wanted to do the same, of course. Next thing I knew they were going to their rooms and bringing me all sorts of things. It was so sweet, each of them waiting for the reaction and the hug. Then off they'd go for more. The night table became the spot for all of it to be placed and I couldn't resist the picture.
I enjoyed my lovely gifts and a great day with my precious girls - I hope everyone else did too!

Jayden is 4!!

Happy Birthday to Jayden! We had some friends over and had a blast! No one except the kids saw the presents opened, but they had fun! The cake was easy the second time around and the afternoon went great. It is so fun to get together with friends!The icing on the "cake" for the day was when Jayden got her presents from us - there was little stuff too, but the bike was the big event. As you can see from the look on her face she was stunned..... even fell to the floor in true dramatic fashion - twice! We took it directly outside and within minutes she was zooming all over the place. It took the oldest at least the summer to master hers....Jayden just picks that stuff up so quick. Although Samantha got a big scooter for her birthday and has gotten so good at it that her and went for a ride down the road the other day!
Growing up way too fast..... I cuddled on the couch a little longer today, just because they wanted to be with mommy.

WHY??

Why is that it takes 3 years to get a small project done? This wall has been plain drywall for 3 years. I finally had enougha and just did it!!! Why is it once I did it and had something there I wanted someone else decides that it should now have what they wanted!! Grrrrr
Why is it that when you think it's going to be a short laundry day, not too many loads, that somehow a pull-up sneaks into the washing machine and you end up with more of a mess?? (No pictures of that one!)
Just some wonderings for the week.....

Non-Itchy Chicken Pox?

Despite having paid to have Jayden immunized against the chicken pox she contracted them anyway!! I didn't realize that she still could get them, when anyone warned me they were going around I would disregard it thinking, oh, my girls got the shot. I guess I put way to much trust in the shot!! While reading my What to Expect - The Toddler Years to determine what these weird spots were that kept appearing, I realized that it is only 70% effect! Now I had my suspicions.....but I was stumped because they weren't itchy! I had read that even after having the shot they could contract the pox but it would be a mild case, which to me meant fewer spots, but I guess it means decreased symptoms! Oh, I'm not complaining by any means!!! No fever, no itching, a little irritability, but it has slowed us down a bit for the week. I can only imagine that the story will repeat itself next week!!

Samantha is 6!!!!!

Happy Birthday to Samantha!! What a great day - it was so wonderful outside. With 8 children at the party I was quite happy for the great weather. We played outside and rode Stormy. Some of the kids said they had never ridden a pony before, it was an exciting afternoon. Especially for Samantha!! The day started at 6:30am - she was begging to go finish the cake, had balloons hung outside before 7am!!! She managed patience and was most excited when Austin arrived!! They are in love you know!! And to get married if they both have their way!!! It is quite a cute dynamic that's for sure - although I am in no way prepared for any of it!!
I was of course exhausted by the end of the afternoon, but it was worth it for the smile stuck on her face all day! The cake was a hit and wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be - I of course followed a recipe but did modify it to meet my needs. I fear I have started something that it going to be harder and harder to do every year. We have done horse cakes and butterfly cakes and even a cake that was a pool. I'm going to have to find some more resources for ideas - Kraft Canada website has become...... well we did that one, and that one too...
It is fun for all three of us because we work together on it and it's a special cake because they did it!! A great weekend and what a wonderful 6 year old!!

Equalization

Whatever you do for one....... So I had to brag a little about my oldest beauty. Samantha has been taking piano lessons and flying right along. There was some concern in the beginning from the teacher, she was only 5 and she doesn't usually start that early. We arrived early this week and I saw a little of lesson of the 8 year old before us. I couldn't help but listen in..... felt a bit bad but the competitive side seems to win out! She was quite a few songs back in the book and was having a hard time remembering where her notes were. I couldn't help but think - wow Sam has that down so much better..... of course reprimanded myself but she is doing so well. She has caught on so quickly and is upset if she doesn't do it perfectly. It has taken some convincing that she is supposed to make mistakes!!
The same problem arises with school work - she wanted me to do her newsplan this morning (an explanation of the show and tell item) Her words to me were - Mrs. Szicsak wants it to be perfect. We had a good chat about it being better from her, that she is supposed to be learning not expected to have everything perfect. I couldn't help but wonder if I have pushed for perfection (you know - wondering if the parenting was causing this) I have determined that is a part of her personality and being the oldest too recognize it as part of mine!!
I am proud of her and she sure feels good when she does a great job!

The Winning Poster

Had to brag.....She did so good for her age, I can't believe how fast she is learning so many things - I do think she'll be bored in JK - hopefully that doesn't mean she'll be getting into trouble!!
I couldn't resist adding the second picture - especially after thinking about her getting into trouble!!

A Great Weekend

What a fun Easter weekend - we checked out the optimist club easter fun at the community centre - there were games and prizes, crafts and a coloring contest. Jayden won first in her age group (1-3)!! She was so excited - her sister however was quite dissapointed that she didn't win. The loot bag of candy as we left helped calm her sorrows though. I do think Jayds had the advantage though because of her sister - Sam is constantly correcting her and telling her how to colour in the lines. That didn't help her sadness either because Jayden wasn't about to share the bunny she won!! Oh, rivarly - I know it will never end! There was lots of chocolate the next day and much excitement about the gifts - I miss the childlike excitement over those small things. I see it all from a parents view and understand my own so much better! I want to be that excited but when it was me hiding the eggs it loses something!!
A birthday party today to top off the weekend and then they will be officially exhausted!! Somehow that doesn't mean they will sleep in.....maybe I'll sleep better when they are moved out!

Happy Easter

We have been doing the usual fun things to prepare for Easter. Made some cookies and got out all the decorations. We were so ready for spring, even helped a couple of robins who had crashed into our window.... however the snow has dampened that spirit a little.
Yesterday at school the Easter bunny came to Samantha's class - however she is losing her innocence already - she was sure to tell me that it was really Mrs. Szicsak, had the explanation of how they were out for recess and Mrs. Szicsak was inside so it had to be her. Samantha said that Mrs. Szicsak tried to tell them that the Easter bunny had stopped by, but she wasn't buying it!!
I cannot believe how she's got this all figured out. At Disney on Ice she had to explain to me that Peter Pan wasn't really flying - she saw the wires! Of course she laughed at me when I told her I thought it was for real! Years are passing before my eyes!!
I hope everyone enjoys the Easter weekend while thinking of all it means to us.