Is it really Saturday??

April 10, 2010 - Day 10

My days are all screwy.
It totally felt like a Sunday today.

I got called into work this morning.
BOO!
I only had to work from 8-12
but still.....that cuts into
"no-where-I-gotta-be" Saturday :)

My Uncle Todd, Aunt Jackie and cousins
Kendra and Hailey came to visit today!

They were the second set of Saskatonians
who surprised us with a visit
this weekend......

It wasn't long before Olivia had
crawled up on to Kendra's lap
for story time!
She is obsessed with reading books lately.

Olivia's new "cheese!" smile

Hayden doesn't seem impressed
to be outnumbered by girls :)

Hayden and my Uncle Todd.

I also had a great visit with old friends yesterday.
(They were the first set of people visiting from Saskatoon.)
I have known Angie since University
and I worked with her husband, Mike, at SportChek.
Even though they still live in Saskatoon,
we try really hard to stay in touch.

The kids had fun keeping each other busy,
and we squeezed in a little chat
between mediations :)

Even Ella had a turn reading to Olivia!
She was really taken with every move Ella made.....
and I know she liked having
another little girl around to have tea parties with :)

Angie and I with our babies.
Wow....life sure has changed from our party-filled
University days!!

Preston even scored a little squeeze
before they had to leave!

We're looking forward to our next visit to Saskatoon
so we can spend some more time together!

Freaky Friday

April 9, 2010 - Day Nine

I don't want to alarm anyone but
we may have cause the snowfall last night.....

We just bought beautiful new outdoor
cushions for our patio furniture.

Having said that,
I also put away all of our Winter coats.
After Jennifer, mind you :)

Rgardless, this weather is CRAP.
Outside in the sunshine with shirtsleeves one day,
bundled up inside the next?!


Gotta love "Spring" in Alberta!

I did not, however, take the Winter
tires off my car.
I have lived here long enough to know
that would be silly.

I do wonder when, oh when, will I be
able to actually use my new outdoor pillows
and enjoy a beverage
on the deck.
WITHOUT snow at my feet :)

a Minigo moment....

April 8, 2010 - Day 8

brought to you by the Expert.....

Hayden gave himself a Minigo moustache
and said; "look, I'm Grandpa!"

and the Beginner....

Miss Olivia is still learning the mechanics of a spoon.
It's pretty obvious she finds it much easier
to eat with her fingers.

I've heard of parents restricting finger painting
to a naked/tub activity only.
Maybe eating a Minigo should have the
same restrictions....at least for now :)

I should have known better.....

April 7, 2010 - Day 7

I think that the standard rule of;
"if it's too good to be true, it probably is"
is quite applicable in my children's playroom.

My Word To The Wall dots.....
AMAZING.
My bargain $8.99 pack of dots from HomeSense.....
CRAP.
TOTAL Crap.
1/2 OF THEM ARE ON THE FLOOR.
THE OTHER HALF ARE PEELING OFF!!!
Eff.

Back to the drawing board.
Time to call Janelle at WTTW for the GOOD dots.
(I only bought the pink ones from her
'cause there was no pink in the HomeSense package)
In this case, spending more money will be
well worth the result.
And longevity :)

I heart Kijiji......again

April 6, 2010 - Day Six

We are the proud owners of a 1998 Dutchmen
tent trailer.

We bought it from a couple
in Chestermere
who babied their trailer.
It is immaculate.
We got a great deal.

I can't wait for the camping adventures to begin!!

I also find it ironic that MY Dutch man
who, incidentally, is a 1977 model :)
bought a Dutchmen.
Hee hee.

Nervous much??

April 5, 2010 - Day Five

I hate it when the gas light comes on.
I start sweating.
As if the car will IMMEDIATELY run out of gas
when the light comes on.

I picked up Hayden from preschool on Thursday
and the light came on
during our drive home.
I didn't have time to stop on the way home so
I figured I would zip out and fill up
on Friday.
Nope.

I worked at 8am on Sunday morning,
and I have a hard enough time not being late,
so I drove with the gas light on.
ALL THE WAY TO WORK.
AND HOME AGAIN.

I have NEVER done anything this crazy.

Ralph's car has one of those gauges that tells you
how many km you can drive before E.
My car isn't that hip.
So I never let it go lower than 1/4 of a tank.
Just in case.

And because I'm that nervous about my car being on fumes......
I tried to make Ralph take my car today for his errands.
And asked him to go fill 'er up :)

That is only one of my many silly neuroses.
There are oh so many more....
but I have 30 days to fill :)

I think I'll keep him......

April 4, 2010 - Day Four

My husband is fabulous.
Not only did he spend the day with the kids,
do groceries,
and install the basement shower......
he made a delicious, and very creative,
Easter dinner for our whole family.

He loves to cook and it shows.
He made some really creative and yummy dishes
that blew us away!

The crowd favorites were the asparagus & prosciutto
and the cherry tomatoes & feta.
My mouth is still watering.

As if we weren't stuffed enough.....
Oma the Easter Bunny delivered more treats!

And the kids ran on that sugar high
for the rest of the night :)

Happy Easter!

April 3, 2010 - Day Three:

The Easter Bunny came to our house one day early this year.
He was very sympathetic to the fact that Mommy
has to work at 8am on Sunday morning.

We were up before the kids so I heard Hayden
open his bedroom door and say.....
"Mommy! There are Easter eggs at my door!
I'm so apprised!! (aka: surprised)
And look! They are all over the stairs!!"

Gotta love a child's enthusiasm at 7:15am :)

Now we're getting somewhere....

April 2, 2010 - Day Two:

We began Playroom Beautification today.
After a trip to Ikea :)

And I must say, shopping at Ikea on a weekday
after 4PM is AWESOME!!
We arrived and got a parking spot at the door.
We had our cafeteria dinner.
We dropped Hayden off in the play area where he
could play for ONE WHOLE HOUR
because it was quiet.
Yes, that's right, Ikea was quiet.
Aahhhhh.
Ralph, Olivia and I shopped our hearts out
for storage solutions,
DVD cases,
the ever popular LACK shelves
scored some camping cutlery and plastic dishes,
and napkins.
I always get napkins at Ikea
because they have the funkiest patterns!

And, in a rare twist of good shopping luck....
my "please-pick-up-your-child"
beeper buzzed in my pocket
right as we pulled up to the checkout.
Perfect.

I have some sticker dots to put on the wall.
Ralphie needs to hang some shelves.
Soon we will be ready
for the big reveal!

Let's start the INSANITY!!

Alright, alright.....
I'm going to commit myself to the challenge.
I'm going to blog every day in April.
All 30 of them.....I think I'm starting to sweat from the pressure.
I can't promise the content will always be thought-provoking.
Or even interesting.
But I'm going to use it like a diary, and see how it goes.....

April 1, 2010 - Day One:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY
to my
31 year old
sister!

(This is an oldie-like me....but a goodie-like her!)
*photo taken in 2006*

I have an amazing sister.
She has a BIG heart and she never fails to be there for me.
And tell me when I'm being a jack-ass.
She has worked her bum off to get where she is today....
an become an amazingly talented lawyer.
A decorator extraordinaire.
Who I like to copy.
With incredible style.
Which I also try to copy :)

We have grown to treasure each others differences,
and become really good friends.
Wonderful.....considering she used to beat me up.
And still could :)

Love you, Kel!
Have the happiest day!

Thoughts for Thursday!

1.. I feel too busy to blog.....but there is so much going on that I really want to blog about. Hmph. I am also conflicted. Should I continue writing an honest blog? My husband thinks I am too honest. Should I switch to the fluffy blog of only sunshiney-good things? Maybe I should just make the blog private.....

2.. Olivia is WALKING. She took steps on her birthday. She practiced in Mexico. And now she is givin'er!!



3.. You know your house needs a good Spring clean when a certain 4 year old notices and tries to "dust, dust, dust" for you :)

4.. My children stop dead in their tracks to watch Telus commercials. Mesmerized. Must be the combination of the animals and the music?! Olivia usually starts dancing. Having said that, she'll dance to anything musical. Including Hayden's rendition of "Baa, Baa Black Sheep!"

5.. Ralph and I had a seriously shagadellic time at the retro Casino Night (Ralph's company function) last Thursday......groovy, baby!

6.. I wonder if I should stop listening to the radio....some of the lyrics that come out of Haydens mouth, that I can't believe he remembers, are hilarious! But taken out of context, some people might question my parenting :)

7.. My children are both obsessed with oral hygiene. Olivia wants MY toothbrush as soon as she sees me brushing. Then she'll cart hers around most of the day. Hayden gets up and brushes his own teeth first thing in the morning.

8.. Olivia's two front teeth have pushed through. And a molar. ALL AT THE SAME TIME. The smile she flashes, with her scrunched up nose....priceless!

Please excuse the early morning, pajama wearing, peanut butter toast face :)

9.. Olivia helped herself to a snack. While I was vacuuming upstairs......

I find it ironic that her shirt reads "Fun To Be Me!" It's NOT so fun to be mommy :)

10. Hayden and I played hopscotch today....



Anyone who may have been watching probably had a good chuckle. Trying to explain "hop on one foot and jump on two feet" to Hayden.....funny stuff.

Just a glimpse of our vacation....

Mexico was wonderful. Beautiful, sunny 30+ weather.
The perfect room location.
No one got sick.
We all had a great time.

This is all you get to see.
For now :)

Sunny Sunday

We went to the Zoo on Sunday......with the rest of Calgary.....and had a lovely afternoon.

The highlight, you ask??
The Dinosaur's Alive exhibit.....

I should have specified that it was a highlight for everyone
but Olivia!

Hayden took some cool shots from his POV too.....

And, by special request from Auntie Keri,
an elephant!

The elephants were inside
so this was the best Hayden could do :)

My Monkeys

Let me begin by saying I am NO PHOTOGRAPHER.

I bought the kids each a new
Paul Frank shirt.
Hayden chose blue and Olivia "chose" pink :)
You wouldn't know this because I SUCK at using our camera.
I like to point. and shoot. the end.
And, lets face it, with kids you gotta be quick!!

I hear words like ISO and SHUTTER SPEED
and WHITE BALANCE.....
I have no clue.
And to be honest, I really don't care.
I just want to point and shoot.

A great picture is something I cross my fingers for.....

....like this one.

I was WAY over-exposed.
Didn't notice until Olivia had wiggled away.
So, I did some un-educated tinkering in PhotoShop.
Ugly or artsy?
Not sure.

But I sure LOVE the smiles.

NEWS FLASH!!

My life will NEVER be the same.....

....and I thought I was busy before Olivia started moving!