At Our House

Crawling

2011-12-20T16:48:00.001-08:00

I don't have a photo or video proof to upload yet, but I promise it will follow. For the last 3 weeks Sam has been up on all fours rocking like they all do before crawling. He's not my first so I know what this means.... it won't be long till they crawl. However on Saturday when I looked up and saw him moving forwards to the tree, I thought I must have imagined it. This was supposed to be a long way off still right? I am excited that he can crawl, but after today I am already missing the stationary stage. Good Job Samuel!

Christmas is Coming

2011-12-20T16:48:00.000-08:00

Last night was our first school concert for many years to come. Due to size each grade got a seperate night, so last night was just the kindergarteners. Like the principle said, at the beginning of the year, just lining up and holding still is a feat. Last night the kids lined up and sang loud and clear for everyone to hear. It was short and sweet and very cute! The 3rd photo down is the french immersion classes with just a few extras in the shot. I personally thought they did the best.... of course. I still feel like I couldn't be prouder.

Tenting in December

2011-12-03T09:57:00.000-08:00

Bring back memories to anyone? I used to love building tents and could kill a whole day in them. I am really hoping the kids can kill a whole day in this one too!

6 months old!

2011-11-15T13:01:00.000-08:00

As I write this, I still can't believe our "little" man is 6 months old. In 6 months Sam has reached a whopping 24lbs, and 29.5". He is currently wearing 18-24 month clothing, and can often swap Luke for tops (Luke is only 29lbs). As a whole he is a very, very happy little boy, but is at the frustrated age of wanting to join the fun of Katie and Luke but can't crawl, at least can't move forward. He tries very hard to move, but only succeds in pushing himself backward. It will come and I know when it does it will make me happy and sad. At six months the real baby days are past, but it is exciting to watch him and his huge personality growing.

On the farm...kinda

2011-11-15T12:53:00.000-08:00

This past weekend, Red Deer hosted the largest agricultural trade show is Canada. It is actually one of the biggest in North America. We decided to visit and let Luke soak up all the tractors and combines he could handle. Apparently we underestimated him. The adults got tired way before him... I am still not sure if he would have gotten tired of it actually. We all had a great time looking at the equipement and climbing on them and taking a look. Unfortunately you won't be able to really get a grasp of how big all this equipement is, but if you look at some of the photos, you will see that many of the wheels are as tall as most men. We weren't able to see much of the show due to size and time of day for little people, but it was enough to hopefully get us by until next year.

Halloween 2012

2011-11-15T12:47:00.000-08:00

Pretty self explanatory, but here is our little mechanic, spider (the only time I will say a spider is adorable) and a bride (I know don't say it).

Victoria Weekend and Race

2011-11-15T12:45:00.000-08:00

I know... I am really behind on my blogging. I would love to use the excuse that I am just really busy, and I am... but I'm not. I'm sure that will make no sense to some of you, but to the other moms it may make perfect sense.

For the thanksgiving weekend, my cousin Carmen and her family and our family packed up the cars and travelled to Vancouver and Victoria for the long weekend. Carmen and I had been training for the half marathon here while Andrea trained for it in Vancouver. We had a good trip out and were able to stay with the Breedveld family the night before we caught our ferry. It was a great evening in a full house since they also had family visiting. The evening was way too quick, actually on that note, the whole weekend was, but I'm glad we got what we did. We met up with Andrea and family the next morning and were on our way to Victoria. We had a great weekend. The weather was great, the kids had fun without any fighting and the husbands seemed to have a good time even with 7 kids combined! The race was beautiful, and I must note this is my favourite race of all the 13 I have now done. Time wasn't great, but the whole point of this race was to complete it, have fun, and most of all do it with Andrea and Carmen. I am getting choked up just thinking about racing with Andrea again. It had been a long time since we ran side by side in a race. Ladies, I had a wonderful time and look forward to doing it again. Next time though I am dragging Carolyne along too!!!

Princess and the Pea

2011-11-15T12:37:00.000-08:00

A couple of years ago I made a quilt for Katie. In short, she doesn't use it. She has a baby quilt that is flannel that I also made for her and that is what she slept with each night with the appropriate size quilt bunched up at the end of the bed. Her reason, it wasn't fuzzy! So a few weeks ago I made her a flannel duvet cover that I sewed felt flowers onto. The pattern for that is HERE. Finally Katie is using a quilt that fits and she loves her flowers. Just a note if you try this, I placed a button in the center of each flower with ribbon and tied that thru the duvet so I can remove them when I need to wash the duvet.

Katie's 5th Birthday

2011-09-26T10:03:00.000-07:00

Friday was Katie's 5th Birthday. Like so many of you, I can't quite believe that we are there already (as with a whole lot of other things). Yesterday we had an ice cream social for her party. We also had beautiful weather for it as well, high 20's. This was great since we were able to take things outside. I did cringe a little though when I came outside and there are all the little girls in their fancy dresses, playing in the dirt under our upper deck! Ahhh... at least it was dry. Looking back I realize that almost all the outdoor pictures have the lovely dirt backdrop to them. Oh, well. Thanks to everyone for all the great gifts, every gift she recieved was met with, "this is my favourite, it is just what I wanted!" and she meant it.

To give due credit where deserved, I got all my ideas from other blogs. If you ever want to do an Ice Cream Social, I got the free downloads for the printable invites, food labels and other printables from karaspartyideas.blogspot.com and the mini banana splits from livinglocurto.com. My only warning with an ice cream social is that you really can't leave a lot out to snack on. It is a bring the food out and eat...now! event.

Sam

2011-09-26T09:43:00.000-07:00

Pouf... There it is.

2011-09-18T19:14:00.000-07:00

So, once again, I am goofing off doing things that don't need to be done rather than the things that I should be doing first. But, this was so much more fun! And yes, I know you should never start a sentance with the word but. I have wanted a pouf since I first saw them over a year ago, but I am too cheap to go and buy one. Recently I saw that Better Homes and Gardens had a link for a free pattern you could download to make one yourself. I used some outdoor fabric that I had leftover from another project, and then filled it with the help of my Mom's closet cleanout, and assorted fabric scraps. I will warn you if you decide to make one, it takes a lot of material to fill it, and it is incredibly heavy. This is good though since it can be used as a spare seat, footstool or side table. In the end it only took 2 evenings to make and I love the finished project. I really enjoyed doing this, and I don't regret doing it before the other list of to do's.

The First Day of Kindergarten

2011-09-07T20:54:00.000-07:00

As the heading states, today was the first official day of kindergarten. Yesterday we had an hour orientation to drop off school supplies, meet the teacher, tour the school, and get the whole rundown on what to do today. Katie was soooo excited.... and so was Luke. Much to Luke's dismay, he wasn't going to kindergarten. He had his backpack on and was all ready, and while kids were crying in the hall that they didn't want to go to kindergarten (not Katie by the way), Luke was crying in the hall because he didn't get to go. Her teacher this year is Madame Dahl (or as Katie called her "my dam doll")! Ooops. At the end of the day, Luke got to play in the pool at Grandma and Grandpa's and Katie had a great time at school, although extremely tired and grouchy by the end. I guess it will take some time getting used to everything. Oh, and I tried to get one normal picture, but she was only doing poses today.

A New Adventure

2011-08-23T21:18:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago, my parents decided it was time to quit trucking and turned in their resignation. Tomorrow they will be driving to Calgary and dropping the trailer off with it's new owner. I stopped by tonight to take a few photos of the truck and trailer together. I must admit, I got a little teary. For so long I have wished they were home and weren't on the road so often, but I have always been proud of them and what they do (not that I'm not just proud of them in general). There are so many memories of mine associated with them and the truck. While in Vancouver, may parents and the truck were often my trip home, and that continued when Katie was born as well. She loved riding in the truck as did I. The smells (that may seem funny to some of you, but all I can say is pine air freshener and diesel exhaust), the sounds and the motion. I'm sad that it is ending and so excited that they won't be leaving every or most Sundays after only arriving home on Friday. I'm sure that once the snow flies, (sorry to mention that) they will be even more relieved that they don't have to leave home as will I. I'm happy for you and this new chapter Mom and Dad.

Airing out the Laundry Room

2011-08-11T09:08:00.000-07:00

My brother and sister in law recently went on a trip to Peru with a bunch of family and friends. A few days before leaving they took possession of their first house. As a house warming gift, my cousin Ali, her husband Ben, Jen's (my sister in law) sister Jody and Aaron and I decided that we would redo a room for them. We had originally thought we would do the kitchen with new tile, counter and hardware, but the laundry room as you can see was just crying out for some help. It ended up being a big job, but it looks amazing now. We painted the walls, cupboards, replaced the flooring, redid the lighting, and accesorized. Ben put up the wallpaper which was great. He is tall enough that he didn't need a step ladder like the rest of us. Looks great Ben.

It was a surprise, so they had no clue it was happening. Those of us who did it love the finished product and by the sounds of it, Travis and Jen are thrilled with it too. I had a great time working with everyone. Great Job everyone, it was a lot of fun doing this together. I wasn't able to be there for the final accesorizing of it all, but Ali and Jody, it looks amazing! Thanks Travis and Jen for leaving us a key. I guess we'll know what they really thought by whether they ever leave us a key again.

Enjoying a night off

2011-08-08T21:36:00.000-07:00

The last few weeks have been mayhem at our house. Between the anniversary, the house warming surprise for my brother and sister in law (more to follow on that) and training for a half marathon we haven't had a lot of time together as a family to relax and have fun. Sunday evening we had nothing planned. It was great! We went to DQ for supper (well, actually we went for the ice cream after supper) and then headed over to Bower Ponds to enjoy a walk and the playground. The weather was beautiful and the mosquito's were not in attendance. I love nights like this.

Tut Tut Looks Like Rain

2011-08-08T21:28:00.000-07:00

We were at Curt and Marva's for supper on Saturday evening. At 6:00 we were enjoying watching sailboats, jet skis and such on the lake and the sun shining. By 6:30 this was the view out their living room window. Just looking at this makes me want a sweater and a cup of coffee. Gotta love prarie evening storms!

60 Years!

2011-08-01T11:55:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we threw a party for my Grandma and Grandpa McKay for their 60th Anniversary! About 50 people attended. We had great weather, great company and great food. My parents hosted the party at their place and I think I can say we all had a wonderful day. Here a few pictures we took of everthing before the guests arrived and also some of the fun during it all. Happy Anniversary Grandpa and Grandma!

Playing again

2011-08-01T11:43:00.000-07:00

For my Grandpa and Grandma's 60th anniversary party I decided to play around with some frames and cover the matts with gingham fabric. That proved to be more difficult than I thought since the fabric stretches. In the end some basic ribbon and a glue gun worked out great. We ended up using these as center pieces on the tables under white tissue paper poms.

I also found this idea on the blog beeinourbonnet.blogspot.com. I loved the look of them and they looked really easy. In the end I couldn't find the trim that she used but I did find some nice shaped beveled boards all ready to go and it made them even easier to make. I love how they turned out. If you want to find out how to make them go to the link above for directions.

The Dream

2011-08-01T11:36:00.000-07:00

Mom and Dad brought me home a package of these napkins the other day, and thought I might find them amusing. In case you haven't heard, we caved in. We fought a long hard battle against getting a minivan, but practicality won out in the end. Counting down the years until we don't need one now!

Another month gone by

2011-07-07T10:40:00.000-07:00

Samuel is officially 2 months old now (but you wouldn't know it to look at him)! On Monday I took him in to the health unit to weigh him. Any guesses? I bet 17lbs wouldn't have been your first. All the more to love though. He is a happy little boy generally with lots to say already. I guess he is learning that from his sister.

Caught

2011-07-07T10:37:00.000-07:00

If you ever se Luke with this expression, it is likely that you have caught him in the middle of something he shouldn't be doing.

Wee

2011-06-30T13:20:00.000-07:00

Tuesday morning we took a quick trip up to West Ed. We took in one ride at the amusement park as a last pit stop before heading home. Luke is obviously on the tractor, and Katie is in the blue helicopter in the back ground. I know, its blurry, but I like the shot.

Red Carpet Glam

2011-06-26T21:55:00.000-07:00

Last night my cousin Ali hosted a 1940's Red Carpet Party. It was amazing! We had so much fun preparing and planning what to wear and I have been looking forward to this for weeks. As you can see everyone there really got into the costumes, there were false eyelashes and red lips galore! Sam seemed to enjoy the evening with all the ladies and came in costume as well. The decorations were amazing and the food as well! I really wish once again that pictures did justice. All the work that went into this makes me tired just thinking about it. Once again I will put the link to Ali's blog so you can read all the details. All I can say is wow and what a blast! Playing dress up as an adult is so much more fun than I remember as a kid.

http://petiteparisian.blogspot.com

What a Trooper

2011-06-26T21:44:00.000-07:00

On Fathers Day, we had both sets of parents and my brother and sister in law over for supper. I was set on making steak and lobster, but I don't BBQ. It scares me to death to do anything with fire, so Aaron being the wonderful husband he is took care of the steak for me. Unfortunately Sunday was touch and go for weather to say the least. The picture doesn't give a clear picture as to how bad it was. Most of the time it was pouring rain and coming in at a 45 degree angle. The wind was terrible! To top it off it there was also lightning and thunder. Like it says what a trooper. At least he could do it with a smile, and he was also entertaining the neighbours in their sunroom. Thanks Aaron, the steaks were delicious!

Played out

2011-06-21T14:46:00.000-07:00

A week ago, one of my best friends and her two girls came to visit for a week from Vancouver. Katie and Isabella shown above were so excited to see each other. I wish I had a video of them seeing each other at the airport and realizing who they were seeing and the running hug (I should say monster running hug) that resulted. Words will not describe it. It was so good to be able to catch up and talk whenever we wanted to. It has been very quiet here this past week. The two oldest shared a bedroom together and this was the last night. They were so tired! We aren't sure how it all worked out, but when we checked on them, Isabella was burried under the covers, you only knew she was there because of the snoring. To add to it, every stuffie in the room was around and on top her and the bed. Katie was at the foot of the bed on her toy box, just as pictured. It was quite the sight. I wish I had more photos of the week, but Andrea is the photographer and not me. Lets just end it with saying, I am so looking forward to seeing everyone at the end of August. Only 9 more weeks! Thank you for coming Andrea, Isabella and Abigail. We love you.

Lead Line

2011-06-14T15:58:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, Katie was priveledged enough to take part in a lead line class here in Lacombe. My cousin Haley asked if Katie would like to do this, and of course this was something Katie would love. We didn't tell her until that morning and she had a great time. There were 2 other entrants in the class (all 4 year olds) and they all won a red first place ribbon. She rode Duke who is also 4, and they were lead around a ring a couple of times. Her job was to smile big and stay quiet. I'm slightly worried that we are headed toward having a horse. We'll see, maybe a dog isn't so bad. Thanks for a great morning Haley and Wendy!

Unforgetable

2011-06-13T07:59:00.000-07:00

A little over a week ago, my cousin Ali planned and hosted a baby shower for Sam and I. As you can see, it was beautiful and I am still amazed at all the work and time she put into it. She planned it as a country chic baby shower with my favourite colours. I wish that many of you had been there to see it and to join in on the fun. I can't describe it enough so here is the link to her blog with all the details.

http://petiteparisian.blogspot.com

Lastly, thank you Ali. I had an amazing time and it meant the world to me!

What a Brute

2011-06-03T10:55:00.000-07:00

I took a trip to the community health centre today to see what Sam weighs at 1 month. What a shock when the scale read 13lbs 11oz! I know he is growing like a weed, but I was still slightly shocked.

2011-05-22T20:51:00.000-07:00

While posting new photos of Katie and Sam, I needed to include one of Luke who is no longer my baby, but my little man. I melt just looking at this picture of him.

Sam update

2011-05-22T20:48:00.000-07:00

Thought I would give an update and post some more photos. Sam will be 3 weeks tomorrow, and I am enjoying watching him grow (and grow he is) but I am also sad since he is growing so quickly. The bottom photo is of him the morning after he was born, and also he is only a couple days old when he had his first bath at home. Since then though he has chunked out a lot, he no longer fits the clothes he did when he was born and he is wearing some sleepers that Katie didn't wear until she was 3 months old. He is very alert when he is awake, and I love the cooing sigh he makes when he is content. We seem to have finally settled into a happy routine, and I am overwhelmed by how blessed we are.

Gardening 101

2011-05-22T20:40:00.000-07:00

For those of you who are gardeners, I must admit this is the first garden I have planted...that is at least since I was Katies age. My parents have a garden plot, but had decided not to plant one lately since they don't use enough of it due to being gone so often. I have wanted a garden the last few years, but didn't have the area to plant one, nor the know how of where to start. This year, we have a happy compromise. Mom and Dad helped Katie and I plant a garden which we will share. Dad will rotatill it and I will weed and care for it during the week, and then we can all use the produce. So on the menu this year is potatos (of course), carrots, peas, beans, zucchini, beets, onions, spinach and pumpkins which were planted at my grandma's due to lack of room. Katie was dying to help, I believe it was in January when she wanted to see the garden and we pointed to a corner that was covered in snow like everywhere else. She has been very patient, but still doesn't understand that it takes time to grow. I am very excited about this and will let you know in the fall how it has all gone.

2011-05-22T20:25:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday and Sunday Katie had her first dance recitals. She was in the future stars recital which was all the age 7 and under dancers from the studio. They all did amazing and Katie had a blast. She is definitely not shy and she thrives in the spotlight, but all of you who know Katie will not be surprised by this. Just a couple of photos one with her friend Isabelle. Oh, and yes, Katie has long hair here. They were all to have their hair in ponytails and curls ( not easy with a bob ). Thank goodness for hairpieces.

Introducing...

2011-05-06T09:49:00.000-07:00

Samuel Dwight Curtis Radke arrived Monday evening at 5:46. He weighed 9lbs 4oz and is 21" long. As many of you know I went in on Monday to be induced with him since he was 12 days overdue. We arrived at the hospital at 7:30 and they started an IV to get things going (or so they thought) about 45 minutes later. By noon we were at the maximum dosage and really no progress to speak of. At 4 the Dr. returned and broke my water and that was all it took, well not really, but you know what I mean. Tada... a healthy baby boy. As a whole he is very happy and alert, but he does like to be held all the time, that means even at night. And being as big as he is seems to make him believe he needs to eat every hour on the hour. I do hope this stage passes quickly. The biggest surprise was the head of dark hair. Katie and Luke had no hair to speak of. Katie and Luke are both doing great, and are still excited. Katie cried when my mom told her she had a new baby brother and that he was a big boy. She cried, that she wanted a baby sister and after that passed that she had wanted a little baby brother. Luke is finding all of this very novel, and has adjusted like Samuel has always been here. They love to hold him and are very affectionate. Katie is very much a little mother hen, and this will be something we are going to have to learn how to encourage but rein in as well. I will post a few pictures for now, but our computer has died and more will come after we replace it. Until then, here is the newest addition to our family. Thanks to all of you who were praying for us the last couple weeks.

On our way....

2011-05-06T09:40:00.000-07:00

For those of you who kept asking this was the most pregnant I ever got! We took this just before leaving for the hospital on Monday. Yikes!!! Not my favorite photo, but o well.

Happy Birthday Luke

2011-04-11T20:16:00.000-07:00

Today our current baby turned 2. I can't believe how the time has flown, but he is definitley 2 ( in age and attitude). He is still fascinated with trains, cars, planes any type of automotive or transportation, but he is also a little soccer nut. I can't begin to guess where that came from! His vocabulary grows each day, as does his independance, and like many other parents out there, we just need to remind ourselves as well that this is a positive trait, even when it isn't directed quite as we'd like. Happy Birthday Luke, we love you.

Interesting....

2011-04-11T20:08:00.000-07:00

So, I hooked up the camera to the computer to blog a few photos of Lukes birthday, only to find that we have a secret photographer in the house. I don't know when these were taken, but I can certainly guess by whom.

10 Years

2011-04-07T21:16:00.000-07:00

If anyone can believe it, today was Aaron and I's 10 year anniversary. It is interesting to view how life has changed. 10 years ago we got married, this morning we were driving into Red Deer at 7:00 to pick up a car that 2 days ago was making terrible "clunking" noises and now there is nothing wrong with it, 2 kids in the backseat fighting and expecting a baby anyday. We didn't do much, since Mexico was our big celebration, and Aaron has a cold, but I did get roses, and I am still in love with my husband. I think that is the most important thing. Thank you Aaron for 10 wonderful years!

Finally ready?

2011-03-27T20:31:00.000-07:00

So here is the final room done. We are sorted, organized and ready (I think). Now I just need something else to nest with. I have had Aaron hang almost all the pictures I had held off on, the house has been cleaned from top to bottom, so maybe I will take on Katie's bathroom downstairs. It is a little bland and it may just fit the bill. I will keep you posted.

Killing Time

2011-03-23T15:42:00.000-07:00

The other day, I was killing time on Etsy and came across these really cute dresses, but they don't ship to Canada, plus I am too cheap. I figured I could make them fairly easily, and a couple of hours later here are the finished projects. They are called pillow case dresses, and probably were originally made with pillow cases, but I couldn't find fabric quite this fun in a ready made pillowcase.

Still Waiting......

2011-03-22T20:41:00.000-07:00

As you can see by the pictures, I am not talking about the baby. It is officially spring and this is crazy! Now I know not all this has fallen in the last 2 days, (only half of it has) but still this doesn't look like optimism to me. The picture above is taken with me on the floor looking straight out. The bench on the left is the guide, if you can even see the bench!

Katie's First Skating Carnival

2011-03-22T20:36:00.000-07:00

I had really hoped that I could upload the video with this, but an hour later and still no luck. O well. This was as you can see her first Carnival. She loved it to say the least. She is the epitomy of a performer. She loved wearing a costume as well as being the center of attention. She is the one in the front in the group picture. I have to admit, it almost made me cry watching her out there. They skating to Love me Do by the beatles and needless to say they stole the show as preschoolers often do.

Joy

2011-03-11T08:40:00.000-08:00

The other evening this was my view while I made supper. It was peaceful, fun to listen to and I can't help but smile when I look at Katie with her poker like hat on that she borrowed from her dad. She has really gotten into board games lately, and is quite good at them too.

2 Down, 1 In Progress

2011-03-11T08:35:00.000-08:00

So here is Katie's new room. This one prooved to be a lot more work since we put beadboard and trim up (around the same time Aaron had a run in with a table saw... whole different story). Anyhoo... we gave in to her greatest desire and she now has a pink room. She is also now a much bigger girl since she has the biggest room in the house and has moved down into the basement. It has gone very smoothly in all, and most importantly Katie loves it!

Enjoying the weather

2011-02-14T10:24:00.000-08:00

This weekend we have been out and enjoying the beautiful weather. It has been warm (+ temps) and sunny most of the weekend. On Saturday afternoon, we watched the cutter parade here in Lacombe. We were able to jump in the back of my parents pickup, enjoy the sleighs and teams along with some coffee and timbits. There were about 48 teams and it appeared to be a good turn out.

On Sunday afternoon we went to Cranna Lake here in Lacombe about 2 minutes from our house with Travis and Jen. They took Katie sledding for the first time (I know kinda sad that this is her first time). She loved it and so did Luke. It was so nice to just be able to get out. For a while here we have had too much snow for them to play in the backyard, and with me not fitting into any winter gear, it has been a lot of time inside. We also went skating for a bit after the sledding. We put Luke on his bobskates for the first time, but he is just a little too independent and didn't want any help. Needless to say, without a helmet that didn't last to long. Hope you were all able to enjoy the weekend as much as we did.

One Down, Two to Go

2011-02-14T08:16:00.000-08:00

Over the last week and a bit, we have redone Luke's bedroom. A month ago, I completed a quilt for his bed, something I am trying to do for each kid when they move into a big bed, and then the last week was painting and sorting through everything in his room. He has transitioned to the new bed far better than we ever guessed. I am glad another is coming soon, since I wasn't ready to take him out of the crib yet, but o well. On to Katie's bedroom this week.

Toot Toot

2010-12-29T08:27:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas

2010-12-29T08:26:00.000-08:00

So, I am ashamed to say that this is all we really took for pictures for Christmas this year. On Christmas Eve we had both sets of parents and my brother and sister in law over for supper. Raclette! Mmmm! Then we always open presents on Christmas Eve. It was a busy evening and we were so so spoiled! Unfortunately we didn't think about pictures until after. The next day we were off to my Moms side of the family for the big turkey dinner, and more gifts. This picture was taken just as we were about to walk out the door. Last minute thought again. O well. I hope you all had a great Christmas and it looks like a lot of you did. We have missed so many of you these last few weeks, I am so grateful for the updates, but they also make me miss you just that much more! Hug all those cuties for me.

When your heart feels hurried

2010-12-16T12:11:00.000-08:00

This was read at my Mom's Group this morning. I am guessing some of you can relate today and almost every day this month.

"Tis the season to be busy. There are gifts to buy, meals to make, trips to take, decorations to be hung, songs to be taught, places to go, people to see...
It's Dec. 16th and I so tired. Anyone else?

I read the words... Be still and know that I am God. Psalm 46:10, but how can I be still when there is so much going on? Of course, the first answer is to simplify my life. Yet the kind of stillness God is talking about isn't just about my circumstances. It's about being still on the inside.

I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother. Psalm 131:2. What is a weaned child like? One that has learned to stop asking for more, more, more and instead simply rests in the arms of love, love, love.

My hurry and stress come from the want of more. I want to do more, be more, pack more in to these few short days. Then it seems God whispers to my heart, "Enough. You are enough. You have enough. In the middle of a busy day, make a quiet place inside and stay with me. My love is what you really need."

I settle, quiet down, breathe a sigh of relief. The miracle of Christmas? God came for us so we could come to Him. Even (especially) in the busy, broken, chaos of our lives.
Tis the season to be still."

by Holley Gerth

Christmas Photo's

2010-12-15T07:57:00.000-08:00

I don't know if anyone else has trouble with this, but we have been trying to take a family photo since we got back from Mexico. First Luke had a cold, then with Aaron putting a kitchen in for his parents after work, he is only home for supper and isn't at his best for photos. Plus there isn't anyone around to take one for us. I finally tried to just get one of the kids. Here is the summary.
"Katie, please just smile normal...Luke take your hands out of you mouth... stop poking each other.... no Luke come back!" Arghhh!!!!! Anyways, you'll have to wait for the finalist, but these were still cute in my opinion.

The 1st Gingerbread House

2010-12-11T10:41:00.000-08:00

The other day in the store Katie asked if we could buy a gingerbread house. All I could think was oh, what a mess! Needless to say we left sans gingerbread house. Yesterday Grandpa and Katie put one together that he had purchased. Thank goodness for grandparents or Katie would never have got to do one.

2010-12-02T20:04:00.000-08:00

A shot from the airplane window last night somewhere over Texas. The picture doesn't even do it justice. What an artist God is!

They really are everywhere!

2010-12-02T20:02:00.000-08:00

You all know Aaron and I, and the one thing we are still getting adjusted to is not having a Starbucks within 5 minutes of where we are living. Halfway through our trip though we discovered a Starbucks a few minutes walk from our resort. I am so glad that Caramel Machiato's are universal!

The Coba Ruins

2010-12-02T19:59:00.000-08:00

The third day we were in Mexico, we booked an excursion to go the Mayan Ruins at Coba. The day included a trip to the ruins with a guide who was actually Mayan. That may not sound that special but he was able to give us a lot more info about the ruins and their customs, some of which they still practice. Next year the largest pyramid will no longer be open to climb. Fortunately we have now climbed Chitzen Itza and Coba, one which is already closed. Coba is the largest of the pyramids. It is 42 meters to climb, but well worth the view as you can see from the photos. This area was home to about 50,000 people from about 400 AD to 1200AD. We also visited an actual Mayan Community which was very humbling. It really reminded me how blessed we are in how we live but more importantly that Christ has called me to be his, and that I was born to a family that were believers. While there I got to try my hand making corn tortillas. I did terrible when it came to shaping it, but it tasted good. At the end of the day we were able to swim in a senote and do a little snorkeling. It was a full and tiring day, but one I won't forget for sure.

Extreme's

2010-12-02T19:48:00.000-08:00

Last night Aaron and I arrived home from a week of rest and relaxation. We headed off to the Mayan Riviera last Wednesday just the 2 of us for a early 10 year anniversay celebration. Our anniversary isn't until April, but that wasn't going to work for a trip together. I had to title this extremes since the temperature in Edmonton when we left was -42 with the wind chill. Suprisingly we were still not the coldest place on the planet! The whole week we were in Mexico the weather hovered around +30, with only an hour of rain one day. It was amazing to say the least. I had looked so forward to time without the kids, but as most of you can guess it didn't take more than an hour before we were thinking how much they would have loved everything there. Here are just a few photos of the trip. Not only was the weather perfect, but so was the resort. Highly recommended!

November Update

2010-11-18T09:37:00.000-08:00

Well life has certainly been busy for us, and as I see with many of you, the same can be said. I still can't believe that it is the middle of November. Since the end of September many things have begun and are in full swing. Katie is now in Ballet/Jazz once a week in Blackfalds and is taking skating lessons again on Monday and Wednesday afternoons. I have also been asked if I can help coach with the school age lessons in Canskate. So once again I am back on the ice. It is a little weird after all this time, but I am glad to be out there and the kids are a lot of fun. As you can see from the picture of our backyard, winter finally arrived this week. Although I am enjoying looking out the window at the snow, shovelling it this morning wasn't a huge amount of fun.

I have also been busy attending 2 mom's groups, one in Red Deer on Wednesday mornings, and one on Thursday mornings here in Lacombe. It has been great to drop the kids off in the childcare and enjoy some coffee with other mom's. One of them does crafts and ussually a speaker, or some activity of sorts. The other one is more of a bible study. It has been a good opportunity to meet people. Luke and Katie have a great time, and it definitely breaks up the days. Aaron and I have also joined a couples bible study group on Sunday evenings with 3 other couples. This has been good for Aaron since he is finding that his life is all work and no play. You can keep him in your prayers that he is able to get involved in some things that interest him. It is hard with a schedule that varies from week to week.
We have also been attending a church here in Lacombe regularily (First Baptist). It is predominatly young families, and we have been very comfortable there.

Well that pretty much summarizes life, aside from me playing around with decorating the house (I will put pictures up when I actually complete things). I guess I should start thinking ahead to the end of December since that will be here before I turn around I am sure!

Trick or Treat 2010

2010-11-18T09:22:00.000-08:00

This year we had a black cat and a chubby spider joining us for Trick or Treating. Katie had planned to be cinderella until the night before when I dressed up as a black cat for a party. Fortunately it was an easy to adjust costume for her. Luke is the only spider I have ever described as cute, but I also think you can all agree that he isn't your typical spider. We had a lot of fun, and are still digging through all the candy. We only went to a few houses on our street before heading out to the country and going to family houses. The weather was incredible and it made for a really fun night.

Katie is 4

2010-09-29T15:25:00.000-07:00

It has been 4 years already! I can't believe how quickly the time has flown. On Sunday we had family over for her birthday. All 24 of us celebrated together. It is so nice to be able to share things with them in person again.

2010-09-29T15:23:00.000-07:00

Crosswords already! What a smart boy.

The big event

2010-09-29T15:21:00.000-07:00

Spa night

2010-09-29T15:19:00.000-07:00

Recently we were back in Vancouver for my friend Alexis' wedding. It was a busy but great week with lots of excitement and a wonderful wedding. The night before all the girls went for Mani/Pedi's. This included Katie and Hailey who were flower girls. They had a great time, and thought they were princesses and so much more.

Ready and Waiting

2010-09-10T08:17:00.000-07:00

This is a whole new meaning to shoveling them in.

Out of Touch

2010-09-04T09:57:00.000-07:00

First of all, so sorry for the lengthy delay in updates. So much has happened that now I don't know where to begin.
Lets start at the beginning. After saying goodbye to so many of you, we embarked on the adventure. The move went very well. We had hoped that the moving truck would arrive on the Friday but unfortunately it didn't come until Sunday. It worked out okay but with Aaron starting his new job the next day it made for a busy day, with getting the bedrooms in order, finding the neccesities and all for that was needed for the following morning. It did allow us a couple of days to have some fun though. It was Lacombe days so on Saturday morning we went to a pancake breakfast, followed by a great parade (Katie thought it was halloween I think with all the candy), a car show and all sorts of other activities.
That first week, I signed Katie up for VBS, and what a lifesaver that was. She was able to play and have fun every morning, and while Luke had a nap, I was able to unpack undisturbed. Most of the house was taken care of that first week. Since then I have done some painting, we have purchased furniture again, and all in all, it feels like we have been here a long time.
Aaron has jumped into the whole Albertan thing, and within 2 weeks, we had traded in the protege and he bought a Toyota Tundra 4x4. We love it, and are still shocked at all the room everytime we go anywhere in it. He has also seemed to adjust to the work well. It has been an adjustment not only with the physical side of the work, but often is working 10 hours a day and almost always, 6 days a week. This has been harder for me to adjust to I think, but there is no commuting, so when work is done, he is home in 5 minutes or less.
We have also been happy to have company come. We have had Aaron's parents visit, the Schunter family and Brad was over for supper. All of this has helped with making things not seem so far away.
The kids are doing great. Luke had his first haircut soon after we moved here, and now seems that much more a boy and not a baby. Katie is just as flamboyant as always, but it has been harder on her than any of us I think with her friends all so far away. I hurt for her when she askes for them daily! I can't wait for things to get back into the fall schedule and she can meet more kids. In a couple of weeks she will start ballet and then skating not long after that.
I promise to keep more up to date on everything from here out, but that brings me to the note that our computer crashed a couple of weeks and ago, and we have been wandering blindly without it until about a week ago. Hope you are all doing well. We think of you and miss you all!

Catching Up

2010-06-29T16:02:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, we drove down to Lakewood for a last visit with my roommate from college and her family before the big move. After lunch and some visiting we went to the Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma. It was a great zoo with lots of park area and animals to see. I highly recommend taking a day trip and visiting. The kids had a great time, and this was one of those visits when you realize that with good friends it doesn't matter how long it has been since you saw or spoke to each other, you feel like it has only been yesterday since you saw each other. Thank you Chris and Vanessa for the wonderful day. We loved hanging out with you and your boys!

Fathers Day Morning Soccer

2010-06-23T11:06:00.000-07:00

Fathers Day was also Aaron's birthday this year. We had a great time before church just relaxing and Aaron and Luke spent a little time practicing their soccer.

My first Wranglers

2010-06-23T10:17:00.000-07:00

Many of you may be thinking these are Luke's first pair of Wranglers... and they are, but they are actually my first pair of Wranglers! Who says quality doesn't last!

TuTu Cute!

2010-06-23T10:14:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, Katie and Isabella had their last ballet class together. It is sad for me. They had so much fun together, and although they didn't always listen as they should together, they did learn a lot. Here is a sampling of that last lesson.

It's Official!

2010-06-10T14:55:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, we will be moving to Alberta mid July. Today we finally removed all subjects from the house in Lacombe. So we now own 2 houses, but hopefully only until Saturday, this is when all subjects are to come off this house. What a whirlwind! It has only been a week since we listed this house, so it is an answer to prayer that things have gone so quickly and smoothly. I feel a comfort that God has opened and closed doors very clearly in all of this.

Vancouver Half

2010-05-06T15:13:00.000-07:00

Well it is that time of year again for the Vancouver Marathon. It was a cold and wet day for the race but we had fun. Once again, I only ran the half as did Andrea, and my friend Alexis. This was the first year that Katie and Isabella did the Marafun. They were so excited and they did a great job. This time Andrea and I didn't have to share our medals, the girls got their own and it was fun to be able to share this with them. They ran 25.2miles over 6 weeks (minus a few, Katie didn't get all of it done) and then they ran the last mile the day of the race. All in all, it was a fun morning!

I need to clean!

2010-05-01T09:39:00.001-07:00

I am sitting here trying to figure out how to clean my house. As many of you know, I can sometimes lean towards the fanatical side of keeping the house tidy (not neccesarily clean, but at least tidy). Right now, I have piles of laundry, toys, more toys, bathroom reno stuff and just a lot of junk laying around. I have 1 child who is terrified of vacumes, and another who is so enthralled with them, he is almost under it. Is it too much to ask for a clean, tidy house? I know some of you would tell me that in the overall scheme it doesn't matter, and that my time with my kids is short, but I am the type who won't relax if the house is a mess, and I am grouchy if they even think of making it messier. Trust me, I am not a pleasant person when my house is messy! How can we do it? How can I clean when kids are digging things out as quickly as they get put away? I need my house clean!

Ahhh.... Spring!

2010-04-20T23:06:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was such a beautiful day.We were able to take a little bit of time to enjoy it at the park. Today... it was cold. Oh well.

Keeping Busy

2010-04-14T16:05:00.000-07:00

Lately I have been busy with a bunch of little things. One of the bigger little things is the church cookbook. Finally, it is at the printers and now all I have to do is wait for it's arrival. I have also been busy making a quilt for Katie's bed. I actually started and almost finished it in December, but I waited until I went home to tie it . So here is the finished project. Katie is happy and so am I. Now on to the next thing. I found 4 chairs someone was throwing away and I have decided to paint and reupholster them. I will keep you posted.

Luke's First Birthday

2010-04-14T15:37:00.000-07:00

I can hardly believe it, but on Sunday Luke turned 1. We had a smallish party, but lots of fun. Here is the small recap of the day.

Yum! Potato Bread

2010-03-17T15:58:00.000-07:00

Each year at St. Patrick's Day, my Mom's side of the family draws up it Irish side and we all get together for a potato bread bake. This year I was at home for the gathering. We had stew, salads, potato bread of course, pies, and green homemade ice cream! Potato bread is very easy to make. Take mashed potatoes and add enough flour to make a nice dough, roll it out, slice it and fry it on a griddle. Serve with butter and a little salt. Enjoy!

Can we use your bathroom?

2010-01-23T22:38:00.000-08:00

About 6 months ago, our ensuite shower stall began to leak... into our basement. Being the procrastinators we are, we chose to leave it until we had more money and we moved next door and began to use the main bath shower. About 3 weeks later, we had a much larger leak into the laundry room in the basement. Fortunatly we have a third bathroom in the basement. We meant to get at it sooner, but life continued, and Christmas came closer and we said, we will take care of them after Christmas. As you know it is now that time, so we have torn apart both showers and are now going to redo both with new cement board, plumbing and tile. So every day, I get to look at these two beautiful scenes. I do not do well with mess and scenes like this. I really hope this moves along quickly. I will post the after pictures very soon I hope.

Fancy Nancy... I mean Katie!

2010-01-23T22:32:00.000-08:00

I don't know how many of you have heard of the Fancy Nancy books, but we have a Fancy Katie. The books tell of a little girl who is always dressing up fancy. This is what we see Katie doing every day! Most often Katie is dressing up as a bride which is what is pictured here. She comes up with many different wedding outfits, with no help from us. Please don't ask us why she is so focused on being a bride. We just blame my brother and sister in law. Katie thinks that was the most beautiful day!

Crawling

2010-01-23T21:56:00.000-08:00

A little over a week ago, Luke began to officially crawl. Although he had been doing an army crawl (very slowly) for a while, he only just figured out the faster way to move. He also discovered in the last week, that he can not only crawl, but that he can pull himself to standing. I thought this would take longer to learn since the crawling was slower in coming. O well. This just means that I now have to remember that just having items off the floor is not enough anymore. I don't remember Katie being into so many things....ever! Is this just a boy thing?

Christmas 2009

2010-01-01T10:11:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone. We hope that everyone had a great time with friends and family. We had a great time in Alberta this year! We arrived there on the 21st and were able to stay until the 29th this year. We have found that the kids have actually caused us to slow things down a bit when we visit, so it was a relaxing trip. On Christmas Eve we opened gifts. Katie was the star of the night and was extremely spoiled. Actually, we all were!! Luke is old enough that he enjoyed all the paper and wrapping and he was very diligent in taste testing each of his gifts and the boxes they were wrapped in. On Christmas Day all of my Mom's side of the family got together for a turkey dinner. This year everyone was able to attend, it was great to catch up with everyone. Last year, my Dad and Grandpa rebuilt an old sleigh, and with a few last minute touches we were able to take a ride on it on boxing day. We didn't have any work horses so we made due with just plain horse power. It was a sunny day and we had a great time riding it through the field. It was surprising how smoothly a sleigh rides. Katie was also able to go for a ride on my cousins horses again. This time she was able to ride on Sugar and Duke and even rode alone a bit (of course someone was leading and holding Katie's back). Thanks Haley for taking her! Before we came home we spent a night in Calgary at the Sheraton which has two water slides and a couple pools. We had hoped that Katie would enjoy the waterslides like her Mom, but it isn't the case. She did go down once but that was not to be repeated. O well, we had fun taking turns. As you can see we are now back home. It is always a bit of an adjustment after Christmas for me. There is so much anticipation and preparing and chaos, and then it is over. I find I need to step back and remember what it is about, or else I get slightly depressed. It is now a new year and I wonder what this second decade of the 21st century will hold.

2009-12-04T15:46:00.000-08:00

November?

2009-12-04T10:00:00.000-08:00

It seems like November barely came before it was already gone this year. We have had a busy month since I last updated. The big thing that happened is we put Katie in skating lessons. We had considered putting her in preschool but decided to wait as originally planned. However we needed something that she could do to burn some energy and put her in somewhat of a lesson environment. That is where skating came in. She has already come a long ways. At her first lesson as soon as she tried to walk, she found she was wobbly and decided this wasn't what she wanted, but as you can see from the video she is doing great and having fun. There are 5 three year olds in her group and she is the only girl, but she hasn't noticed.

I have no pictures of Luke this month, since he has come down with what appears to be eczema. We initially were told it was a skin infection, and he was put on antibiotics. A week later with no improvement we were told it was eczema or an allergy. We are still trying to figure that out. This has caused his skin to be really raw and his face quite puffy at times. I really wish there was more to do to help, but it appears that things are improving and hopefully that will continue. Through all of this though he is a very happy little boy, and a very busy little boy. He has recently figured out how to get into the china cabinet and a drawer on our computer cabinet. Oh oh! I don't remember Katie ever being this curious.

Blessed

2009-11-03T18:48:00.000-08:00

I had to take a moment from washing dishes tonight to share how blessed I am feeling. Today has been one of those days with the kids that makes memories (good ones). Aaron came home feeling productive and happy with the day, and we had a great supper together as a family. I know that I need to remember all the blessings God has given me on bad days as well, but today it has hit me hard. I was washing the dishes and Aaron was on the floor in the living room with the kids. All I could hear was laughter from all 3 of them and the song Blessed from Martina McBride came to me. It is a good song, and so true. Thank you God!

Here are the lyrics to the first part of the song.

I get kissed by the sun each morning
Put my feet on a hardwood floor
I get to hear my children laughing
Down the hall through the bedroom door
Sometimes I sit on my front porch swing
Just soaking up the day
I think to myself, I think to myself
This world is a beautiful place
I have been blessed
And I feel like I've found my way
I thank God for all I've been given
At the end of every day
I have been blessed
With so much more than I deserve
To be here with the ones that love me
To love them so much it hurts
I have been blessed

Look at me

2009-11-01T17:19:00.000-08:00

Luke is finally sitting on his own. Sometimes not so well if his pants are too tight, or if he is wearing something bulky like a skunk costume, but overall he is doing very well, and is quite proud of himself it seems.

Halloween

2009-11-01T17:16:00.000-08:00

Last night we went out trick or treating in our neighbourhood to a few houses and then finished off at home watching Charlotte's Web. As you can see Katie was a little clown and Luke was a little stinker (how appropriate for both)!

Remembering

2009-10-15T19:32:00.000-07:00

As many of you already know, today is National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day. Here are the candles that we have lit to remember the babies that we know personally. Sadly, we didn't have enough candles for all of them, but the candles here are for them all. I take great comfort in knowing that they are all in heaven and are being cared for by our heavenly father, far better than any of us could have cared for them here. However, I still miss and long for them.

21.1

2009-10-13T15:33:00.000-07:00

On Saturday our family headed over to the island for Carolyne and I to run the half marathon. After a lengthy and trying 6 hour wait we finally boarded the ferry to the island. On Sunday morning, Carolyne and I completed the Royal Victoria Half Marathon. We finished in 2:12:22, and did it without our usual walk breaks. We are both happy with our race and had a lot of fun. It was a whirlwind of a weekend with us heading home on Sunday afternoon, but looking back (with all the travel behind us) I am disappointed that it is over! I have enjoyed the break that running has provided and the shared talks that we have been able to have without interruptions. Thank you Carolyne for sharing this me. Also thank you for the photos you sent, since our camera had a dead battery when we arrived. I am already looking forward to more running. By the way to all you looking at the photos, we didn't plan on wearing the same outfits, but you can't blame us for both having good taste! :)

A Beautiful Fall Day!

2009-10-13T15:22:00.000-07:00

Katie has been good at reminding me of "the beautiful day that God made" lately. On Friday we took advantage of that and met my cousin Carmen and her two girls at Mill Lake. We played at the playground, walked around the lake and took in a few hours the mall. I love the fall it is truely my favorite season.

Katie Turns 3

2009-10-13T15:18:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we celebrated Katie's 3rd birthday with a small party. Fortunately she wasn't sick this year and was able to enjoy it to the fullest. I still can't believe though, that 3 years have gone by so quickly!

Teaching Her Students

2009-09-10T10:16:00.001-07:00

We aren't sure where this came from, but Katie has been "teaching her students".

Luke's First Tooth

2009-09-10T10:13:00.001-07:00

On Saturday, Luke's first tooth popped through, much to everyone's relief. He hasn't enjoyed the teething process and hopefully it will go smoother from here.

Aaron and Luke

2009-09-10T10:12:00.000-07:00

Making Jam

2009-09-10T10:10:00.001-07:00

I have fallen in love with making Jam. I never knew that it was so easy and so satisfying. I have so far made Strawberry Kiwi, Rhubarb and Blackberry Jam. Here is a photo of the first 2. I think I may try canning some fruit next.

Centennial Beach

2009-09-10T10:07:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, we joined Aarons parents for supper and then headed to the beach for a bit. It was a beautiful night and the perfect way to end the day.

A Day At Play or was that Work?

2009-08-20T21:24:00.000-07:00

While we were in Colorado we visited the Denver Childrens Museum. WOW! It was an amazing place and Katie had a blast. They had a fire truck area, Preschool area (too big to begin to explain), Vets office, Workshop, Construction Zone, Ant hole/Nature Area, Grocery Store, Art Zone, and so so much more. With Katie not quite 3, she would have been happy in even just one room for hours, but as you can see she played in several. Her favorite would have been the grocery shopping. This is rather ironic since she fights me everytime I try to take her for real. They even had an area for infants with Lily Pads to lay Luke on and mobiles above. If you ever go to Denver this is a must for those of you with kids. The whole time we were there we were wishing we could have shared it with so many of you.

Great Grandma Oster

2009-08-20T21:14:00.000-07:00

A while ago I posted a picture of Luke with 3 of his Great Grandparents. Last week were in Colorado visiting family and I finally was able to get a photo of Luke and Katie with Aarons grandma.

A Sunday Morning Run

2009-08-20T21:09:00.000-07:00

Almost 2 weeks ago, Carolyne and I did a 5km race here in Delta. It was a very last minute thing, and a small race but we had a lot of fun, and even got a medal out of the deal. We finished in 30:11. Next up, the Victoria half marathon in October.

Gull Lake

2009-08-20T18:07:00.000-07:00

Last month, the kids and I spent a week at home. Like here, it had been hot, hot, hot! One evening we went to the lake a couple of miles from home. The water was warm and it was a beautiful evening, so I thought I would share some of that evening with all of you.

The Bride and Groom

2009-08-05T13:52:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning Katie announced to us that she was getting married and she was the bride and George (Curious George) was the groom. We thought you all might want to see the official wedding attire of the momentous occasion! A couple of days ago, Aaron suggested that she may want to wait till she was 9 to get married, but I guess she couldn't wait that long.

Hanging Around

2009-07-30T10:43:00.000-07:00

My Ballerina

2009-07-10T16:47:00.000-07:00

This past week Katie took ballet classes at the rec center. She had a great time and looked really cute.

Luke

2009-07-06T22:33:00.000-07:00

Last Monday we met with Chris Monahan and had a photo shoot done with Luke. When Katie was 10 weeks we did this with her, and we wanted to do the same with Luke. Chris did an amazing job, but now we have the task of deciding what we want copies of. If you want to see what he took here is the link to our gallery.

http://www.chrismonahanphotography.com/Test/index.html

Long Hours

2009-07-04T08:46:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, Aaron spent the last 2 weeks of June working long, long, long hours, and I essentially was a single mom. They had to complete a project in 2 weeks that they really needed 5 weeks to do. In the end, they completed it and it turned out amazing. Here are a few photos of the finished work. The size of this project was 4'x8'. Oh and yes, it is supposed to be cut in half for the commercial. Talk about talent!