Puddles

This morning I took Matthias, Callah and Gus (our dog) for a walk around the neighbourhood. What is it about puddles and ice that draws kids towards them? We were only gone about 30 minutes and yet we arrived back home soaking wet and covered in mud from head to foot (including IN our boots!!). Can anyone explain this attraction?

Mornings

I've never been a huge fan of mornings. Well I guess there was that one summer where I was obsessed with getting up early to run...boy was I young and foolish!! :) This week has been somewhat more challenging for some reason. Perhaps it has to do with Matthias running into our room and saying "it's okay Mommy, it's okay Daddy." And of course it never really is. Or the sound of a pitcher of water hitting the floor ... at 7:15 am. Or Matthias coming in and saying, "Callah's making a mess." These are examples of ways you don't want to be woken up with. Then there's the singing of theVeggietales theme song at the top of their lungs, which is cute...but not at 7 am. Sometimes there's the lighthearted sound of their laughter as they tell each other to "shush". Or once in awhile there will just be silence as one wakes up and silently leaves their bedroom, then the other wakes up some minutes later. That's a good morning. I like those mornings. There should always be mornings like that. Oh and I forgot this morning, Matthias yelled out, "I peed my pants!" at 7:20 am. Luckily he knows where all his clothes are and can dress himself, so I simply yelled back, "So get dressed." Then of course Callah came jumping into our room and yelled, "up! up! up!" wanting to get up on our bed and would not stop until she made it. Then my brother phoned at 7:57 am. We finally got up at 8:15 am.

I hate mornings.

p.s.

oh yeah I forgot to comment on my weekend to Strathmore. All the right spots were hit (IKEA and Krispy Kreme) and it was a super good weekend. The relatives were great hosts, the driving wasn't the best but we made it and the conference itself was...well the theme was dead on and they had some really cool visual aids to hit the point home. If you want to check out what is was all about click here. See ya!

Sunshine

I love waking up and seeing the sun shine through our bathroom window. For one thing, this time last year, we didn't even have a window in our bathroom, and for another thing it reminds me of summer and I CAN'T WAIT for summer. The longing for summer has finally hit me and I think there'll be no stopping it now till summer comes. Steve is gone this weekend at a hockey tournament in Saskatoon and he took the car, so feeling "summerish" I got the stroller out and loaded up the kids (it was a bit cool at -17 C windchill incl.) and we walked down to Shoppers for some movies to watch tonite. As we passed the ice cream shack, Matthias said, "I want some ice cream." I explained that the ice cream will open again once the snow is melted and summer comes. I think he's longing for summer too. He opened the sandbox cover to play with his toys only they were all frozen into the sand. Poor guy. So we'll wait. Patiently. Until then we'll push the stroller through the snowy streets, we'll play with our trucks in the snow and we'll sit in the sunshine...in our home and wait for summer to come.

This past week has been painful. Tuesday, at the urging of Steve, I went x-country skiing out at the Little Red. Being only the 2nd time on skiis this winter I took the shortest path I could find. However, I don't think it was short enough. My back has been in pain ever since and my chiropractor has told me to "take it easy" and "lay off lifting children". Right. Like either of those are going to happen! Every night Steve, being the good husband that he is (or else...) rubs Watkins on my back and then a heat pack is added. Man, does that feel good. Makes me wish it was night time all the time, that and the fact that sleep is soon coming. Tonite I'll miss my Watkin guy, it just won't be the same without him.

Next week at Mom's is a video day. On what? I have no idea, so come out anyway and it'll be a surprise for the both of us!! This Friday (the 31) is another Mom's Nite Out. If you live in the Prince Albert vicinity and would like a nite out away from the kids. Feel free to join us at Digger's Restaurant @ 6 pm. Otherwise, have a great weekend and enjoy the sunshine!!

Squeaky Farts

A few thoughts to end your week...

Last Thursday my younger brother, Kris and I went to see a movie (Just Friends) at the Rainbow Cinema in Regina. Something happened that I wasn't particularly proud of, but I learned something from it. There was a totally, and I mean TOTALLY annoying girl in the row ahead of us. She did numerous things that would have enabled her to be slaughtered (I think) in other countries. After the movie ended (which was funnier than I thought it would be despite the many annoying interuptions) I was kept awake with my own thoughts. A few weeks ago at our Ladies Retreat, the speaker Rosemary told a story of a time when she was in Trinidad. Every week she would have to walk thru a swamp to get to her bible study, so instead of getting her shoes muddy, it was easier for her to simply take off her shoes and walk bare-foot thru the mud. Another woman would see Rosemary walk thru the mud every week and wonder what was so important, that every week, this woman would take off her shoes and walk thru the mud to get to. Investigating further this woman found out that Rosemary was going to a bible study and eventually this woman became a Christian and started going to the bible study herself. The point of the story is that we should be aware that someone is always watching, so we should live our lives according to God's will. Last Thursday I did not live my life like God would've lived and I felt trememdously bad about it, so I prayed until I fell asleep. Something to remember...someone is always watching, whether it be your kids, husband, friends or a stranger.

This morning at my ladies bible study one of the ladies brought up this thought. If we talked to our husbands as often as we talk to God, would they think we love them? Now for me this idea blew me away. Shamefully, I don't talk to God as often as I should, so thinking about all the time and effort I put into the relationship with Steve, and how my relationship with God should be way stronger really changed my perspective. I need to really develop my relationship with God. Of course this is something that I've always learned and I'm always striving to better that relationship, but putting it into that different perspective really made me think.

So now the kids are sleeping, Steve is eating lasagna and watching TV and I'm thinking about tomorrow and our trip to Strathmore with our youth group for X-treme Impact. I'll be taking the girls in our van and Steve is driving with the boys in another van. It's a 50/50 time, sometimes good, sometimes bad. The good is always hanging out with our youth, the bad is the cost to go to Alberta to do it. I'm also looking forward to Krispy Kreme's and a possible trip to IKEA. We'll be staying with Steve's cousin and her family. They have a large dog and shedding cats. They also recently had a baby girl, so should be a fun time!

That's my thought process lately. Maybe it'll give you something to think about too. There's no Mom's Morning Out on the 21st, so enjoy your week off and we'll see you later!

25 cent bouncy balls

We just returned from Old Navy here in Regina. Who knew you could get large bouncy balls for only 25 cents? My kids are having a jolly good time throwing these balls around my parents house and chasing them before the (vicious) terriers get to them. It's great!

So our adventures today consisted of going to Starbucks (for the delicious double chocolate chip frappuchino, which my sister, who just quit working there after 3 years, has informed me is close to 600 calories....yum!), then driving around Wascana Park looking for monsters hiding in the trees (Matthias swears that he saw them), going to Old Navy (where I bought a pair of jeans - for me jeans are SO HARD to find and the treasured bouncy balls were purchased), then going across the parking lot to the PetLand, where my daughter proceeded to scare the poop out of the kittens (who were let looses) in the cat adoption room. Ever see the Looney Tunes with Elmyra? My daughter totally reminds me of Elmyra. She would stop breathing and squeeze these cats, then she would pick them up in really awkward positions that cats should not be picked up in. It was funny, but I felt sorry for the cats so we left. Now we're ready for supper.

Otherwise my trip here in the "windy city" has been good. That's all for now!

So cute I could just...

This morning after Steve had left for church, I was still laying in bed and the kids were eating cheerios watching Dora when Matthias comes into the room and says "Callah's making a mess." Last time he came into my room and said that, Callah had dumped the bag of Ritz crackers (crumbs and all) onto the living room carpet, so I bolted out of bed to see what my dear daughter had done this time. No, nothing in the living room, I look in the kitchen and the pantry door is open. Peering around I see my "cute", "adorable" daughter elbow deep in the bag of sugar.
"Caaaaaaaa-llahhhhhhhhhhhhh!" I say.
"Yeah." she says in her matter-of-fact voice.
I pick her up, hose off her arms, take off her shirt and brush off her pants, all the while my bare feet are crunching on the sugar that is now all over my kitchen floor. Upon further inspection I found little clumps of sugar on the carpet in the living room. Yes, sometimes kids are so cute you could just....

This week at Mom's we'll be answering all those deep questions that didn't get answered last "Ask A Mom" day. So if you wrote something down, come and we'll see if we can find an answer.

As for me, I'm taking off to Regina tomorrow to spend a week with my parents. Steve is taking a reading week here at the church, so I thought I'd take this time to spend some time, maxin' and relaxin' in good ol' Regina. There's just something about that place that I love. Besides it'll be good to get away from the 35 cm plus of snow that has fallen here in the last few days. If I see any more snow flakes fallin' I think I myself will turn into a flake.

Have a good week!!

Sweet Hands of Goodness

This past Christmas Steve surprised me (I say surprised b'cos we weren't suppossed to get each other anything) with a gift certificate for an hour massage. I have never had a massage before, or should I say a professional massage before, so I was looking forward to it. After having a cold and being sick for most of February I decided that this would be my week to go for my massage. I went yesterday, probably one of the worst winter days we've had here on the prairies yet, but boy was it good!! I was a little self-consious at first, what with being naked on a sheet. But she talked me through it and actually said, that when she's giving massages, she doesn't see the person as a person. All she sees and focuses on is the leg, or back or arm or whatever she's massaging at the moment. Anyway, I cannot say enough, it was the greatest feeling I've felt in awhile and I totally felt rejuvenated afterward.

Mom's this week was also really good. We watched a video on parenting. I think I've mentioned it before, this Marriage Unsesored stuff isn't that great, but this video had alot of "meat" in it and I'm not the only one that thought so too. I highly recommend it. The guy they were talking to was named ...of course I can't remember, but I will find out and let ya'll know.

Unfortunately I actually do have more to say, but my kids are begging for food, so I gotta go feed them. Later!

Pros and cons of a weekend away

This weekend is the annual Ladies Retreat for Gateway Covenant Church. I went 2 years ago and never made it to last years event, altho' I heard awesome things about it. So I'm looking forward to this weekend, if for no other reason than some time away from the house, husband and kids.

*Ever notice how hard it is to think of something when there's this really awesome song on and it completely engulfs your mind? (ie. If I Can't Have You by Yvonne Ellman)

Anyway, like I was saying...but at the same time, there's a bit of fear edged in there. For some reason I don't feel like I've really found a "place" in our church and so in regards to this weekend, I might be the lone woman out. I don't go to the ladies bible study, I'm not part of the worship team, or the Wednesday nite bible studies, I'm not part of the Covenant Women's group. I'm not really part of anything. I guess on the bright side, I should be able to get lots of R & R. This weekend is also the big weekend for the Winter Festival in Prince Albert. There will be fireworks (last years were awesome!) on Friday and all sorts of events off Marquis Rd. during the weekend. I'm a sucker for fireworks, almost made me decide not to go to the Retreat. My parent's also made a freak decision to come down for the weekend. I could stay back and visit them. I'm still not over my cold and am still having bad headaches.

I'm also fearful for my husband (or should I say kids). I don't know who will be worse off: Steve being home all weekend and watching over them or the kids having to live with their Dad for 3 days. On top of it all Steve has yet another hockey tournament this weekend and he's already tired and impatient. Thinking of it now, I might not want to come home Sunday! :)

I am excited to, hopefully, put my new x-country skiis to use. I bought them in January and haven't been well enough, or energetic enough to use them yet. I heard there's a couple of other ladies taking theirs, so that should be fun. Something to look forward to. The food will be good too. At least it was 2 years ago. Lauralea gives awesome facial massages, so hopefully I can talk her into one of those.

Pros and cons...as in most things in life I guess. You just have to decide what you're going for and make the most of it. Pray for us, especially my husband!

happy, happy...happy?

Maybe it's the impending time of the month, or maybe it was the frigid temperatures last week, or maybe it's the fact that I still have a stinkin' cold. Whatever the excuse I'm finding reasons to be mad. It's funny, I'm taking a bible study right now called Healing For The Angry Heart, and while it's nothing really new, it does make me re-think alot of things and how I can always handle situations better. I'm also realizing that I do have an anger problem, and it may be harder to get rid of than I originally thought and I have alot of apologizing to do! But I'm also having to deal with a lack of contentment in my own life. Like I posted earlier, there are a few others out there thinking about contentment and I can honestly say, if I were in their situation, I'd be pretty stinkin' content. We always think that our situation is worse off, that the other side is greener and we rarely take the time to think of our own blessings. I remember the first church camp I ever worked at was back in 2000 in Cypress Hills. We had to spend a whole afternoon meditating on how blessed our life was and we had to write down a blessing that happened every day we were there. It's something we can all do and it's so simple really. We have food (might not be what we want, but it fills our belly), shelter (again, might not be as nice as that guy's house across the street, but it keeps you warm) and general health (I'd take a cold over cancer any day of the week). So really, what haven't I to be content about? Why do I twist it about and grudge those who have more than me?

I don't know what to say to that. Any ideas? Anyone? I know it's something that I'll continue to struggle with, that I continually ask God for help with and I pray about and over all the time.

So until next time...thank You for this computer that I'm able to jot down my thoughts, even if I go away more confused than when I logged on.


This week at Mom's we're doing a magnet craft. Shouldn't take too long, so there will be lots of time for chatting and socializing with friends! Or bring your own and finish up an old project!! See you there!!

Another # Game

Take any number larger than one digit (ex. 57)

Add the individual number together (5 +7 )

Subtract that total from the original number (57-12)

Now take that number and add the individual digits together (4+5)

Your answer?

Nine.

Lisa it's your birthday

Happy Birthday Lisa!
You know how many times I've heard that? The best would have been over 10 years ago when this guy named Andrew (whom I secretly had a crush on, but he was my manager at McDonalds) sang it to me. That was a good time.
Today, on the other hand, is not. Not only do I still have cold, but the past few days have plagued me with monstrous headaches that WILL NOT GO AWAY. I don't know what to do. All I feel like doing is crawling into my head and pulling the covers over my face and dying. I don't know whether it's from taking cold/sinus medication for 3 weeks (but I still have a cold!) or whether it's from these new birth control pills. I've heard of women getting extreme headaches from certain types of pills. I have a friend who had these extreme migraines and I remember her saying that all she could do during the day was lay on the couch and open her eyes whenever a kid screamed to make sure they werent' dead. I thought at the time, that's terrible, but now I totally believe her.
So that's how I spent my birthday. Laying in bed, with the covers over my head for 4 hours, popping Tylenol like candy and putting Watkins canned ointment on my sinus' until I cry.
Happy Birthday to me.

My thoughts on other people's thoughts...

I haven't decided whether spending time with other couples is a good or bad thing. In many ways it can be seen as good, but there's always that little compare factor. Altho' I know I shouldn't be doing it, I do. I make note of little things and then I think about how my husband and I would handle the same situation. Lately I've been very happy and content with our relationship, but this past weekend we spent the night at a friends in Saskatoon. Maybe it's the fact that I've been sick for a few weeks now and our physical relationship has been anything but fruitful, but I became jealous of the little hugs, pats and kisses our friends were sharing with one another. I know lately in other blogs some of the topics have been about being content with what we have and looking to the future instead of dwelling on things of the past. You might think that you are content and happy, but all it takes is one little thing to put little doubts in our heads. Why is it so hard for our generation, our society to be happy and content with what we have and who we are? I remember this one Oprah episode from years back and she was talking about womens self esteems and how women in Africa are happy with their bodies. I don't remember the exact stats, but it was like 40-some % of Americans were happy with their bodies and 80-some % of Africans were. Is society really that influential that we can't be happy with who we are? I really like the new Dove campaign. I think it's awesome.
Anyway, so on the drive back to PA last night, I talked to my husband about these feelings. We talked about how we never were PDA (public display of affection) people and would we really want to be? After the hour plus drive, I felt immensely better about our relationship how it was and couldn't believe I was ever remotely jealous of our friends PDA.
I'm learning. Learning how to be content with myself as a mom and wife. How to be content with our "cute little home" and our summer "vacations" in our backyard. I think it's something that we could all get a lesson in once and awhile.

A Nice Family Moment

The past 2 weeks have been anything but nice and familial (if that's even a word) what with my being sick and Steve being so stinkin' busy with hockey, church and our stupid vehicle. But today, like a breathe of fresh air, something seems different. Just a few moments ago, Steve was practicing his songs for Sunday on guitar, I was sitting on the couch downstairs and the kids were dancing to the music. They ran over to Steve and wanted to "strum" the guitar (not quite as pleasant to the ear, but they're learning!). It's funny to see how entranced they are by the guitar. A good thing.

Otherwise, I'm REALLY getting sick of staying home. I'm doubting more and more that I actually have whooping cough. All that I've read up on it says that it lasts for weeks and weeks. While the symptoms I had/have are the symptoms of the cough, they've all been in the span of a 2 week period, and I'm feeling better every day. So the choice becomes mine, whether or not to go out into the world or sit here, bored, waiting for the test results from my doctor (who appears to be on holidays for the next week). Never being one to sit useless, I'm thinking I may take matters into my own hands and face sunlight once again. Of course, I won't be "smothering" myself onto other people. I'm not that stupid and carefree! Like I said, today there's something different in the air, I just hope it stays like this!

Sick

This is where it's at. The energy level had returned, unfortunately nothing else has come with it. I did a little organizing of the house yesterday only to stop a few minutes later in a coughing fit. There's nothing like not being able to breathe out of your nose (it's plugged up completely) or your mouth (tickle in the throat creates an instant coughing reaction with every single breathe) . So here I sit, barely breathing with lots of energy! Hooray for me! Not only did I miss a truly excellent weekend last weekend (I was looking forward to last weekend for weeks beforehand) but now it's carrying on into this week, which only makes it more depressing.

AND...if you can get more depressing, Callah has it now too. There's something that always breaks my heart when you lay down with your little girl (who also can't breathe) and she has such a fitfull sleep. You just wish you could take away all her pain with the "brush" of your hand as you pull back her hair from her face.

I don' t know why we're always sick. It's not like we don't eat right. Steve is always making sure we eat all sorts of vegetables and eat plenty of Vit. C. I thought it might have something to do with a little mold problem we have (which we're looking into) but then I've been told that this is just life with kids. Kids play with other kids, who are sick, who inturn make your kids sick and it's just a vicious cycle. I don't know if I totally believe that. I know of families with lots of kids who don't get sick as often as we do. So I think there's got to be something more there.

So with kleenex and Lysol in hand, I bring this sickly post to an end. I pray that you and yours are all doing well. If you feel up to it, Mom's is doing a book review on 5 books tomorrow. All the books have to do with marriage and relationships. There will also be a Darla original Valentine cake given away as a draw. For me, that would make going totally worth while!

Until next time!

Chickens?

Taken from a friends blog:

Raising children is like being pecked to death by a chicken. (written on a plaque given to her by her sister-in-law after babysitting for a week)

Four Things

B'cos I'm bored (altho' my head really feels like it wants to lay down) I'll do this, but I'm changing it up a bit!

Four jobs I've had:
-McDonald's (for 4 years)
-Humane Society
-coffee shop server
-worked in a brewery in Ontario (by far the BEST job I've ever had)

Four places I've lived:
-Hornby Island, BC
-Peterborough, Ont.
-Les Cedres, QC.
-Regina, Sk. (and of course PA)

Four TV shows I love:
-Scrubs
-Survivor
-CSI (the original)
-Criminal Minds

Four places I've visited (been):
-Bolivia
-Florida (layover on the way to Bolivia)
-California
-Chicago (2 week bus ride down there)

Four of my favourite dishes:
-lasagna (with spinach & meat)
-chicken cordon bleu with wild rice
-good ol' Kraft Dinner always satisfies!
-a big juicy, cheesy burger with bacon

Four sites I visit daily:
-Vandermeander
-Randall Friesen
-Dooce
-Chez Gavin

Four places I'd rather be right now:
-Hornby Island
-in bed
-East Coast of Canada
-somewhere warm, not hot, not cold, but warm...

This morning at Mom's we didn't watch '10 Questions we ask about Sex'. We watched another Marriage Uncesored video about being a 'pain' to live with and how we can lighten up our home lives. It was alright, but honestly, I was looking forward to learning about sex.
Next week there will be a panel of 6 people giving book reports on books relating to sex/marriage/relationships. Could be interesting. See you next week!

Nothing

The day started out pretty well. For once I wasn't the first one out of bed. Trust me, those 5 extra minutes were totally worth it!! Breakfast was good, we got all dressed up to take Gus out to the Little Red for a walk. When we got out there the sun was still coming up over the trees, the snow was sparkling and the air was fresh. It was a nice moment. Then Callah fell out of the sled and scraped her chin (on what???) and Matthias' feet started getting cold. By the time we reached the van again, both were crying, Matthias was curled up in the fetal position. I was left wondering what had happened to the beautiful morning that was greeting us not that long ago. Never fear tho', nothing a Pepsi slurpee couldn't fix.
The afternoon was lazy which was nice, the evening was spent with Great Grandma eating her favourite KFC.
And tonite, I just have this feeling that something is lacking. Like I felt when I was 16 and wondering what life had in store. If I would ever get over this feeling of ... of... nothing. So right now I'm just sitting here at the computer listening to my music and feeling this nothing. I wouldn't say it's something bad. It could be thought of as peaceful. It's just nothing. Do you ever feel like that? I'm sure it'll go away. Tomorrow is a new day, with new opportunities and new ways to grow, new chances to enhance the life I lead. I just hope I'm up to the challenge and accept them.

I love being a Mom

There's times when I really love being a Mom, and one of those times was this morning at Moms. This morning we had an "Ask a Mom/Woman" segment. It was alot of fun, there were some really good serious questions and some funny lighthearted questions. Alot of information was shared and ladies really opened up. Made me really glad to be apart of something like this.

And don't forget! Next week we watch a video on S-E-X!!

Another thing happened today that made me glad I was a mom. My daughter, bless her little heart, got into our butter dish. Not just once, but twice! The second time she had this soft, melting butter all over her hair and face, down the front of her shirt, in her hands and on the back of the chair. What made me glad I was a mom, was that I was busy making supper when she did this, so her father had to clean her up!

What was that?

As I was sitting downstairs doing my blogging rounds, I suddenly hear a scream, "MOM!!!" So I bolt upstairs to my room where my son is suppossed to be sleeping and he's crying and sobs out a "there's a bead stuck in my nose." No problem, I quickly push it out and calm his shaking little body. "Don't ever put anything up your nose. Never. Okay?"
"Okay" came his timid reply.
"Okay, now go to sleep."

If only all problems could be solved that easily.