Jenni and Maria

So, life with two kids.  Woah!!  It is harder than I thought it would be, but easier too.  It is hard to explain. 

First off, I hate Nursing.  It hurts!!!  And I now am being treated for Mastitis (an infection in a milk duct) and I get blocked ducts all the time.  Seriously.  I mean, I guess it could be worse, but, for reals.  Can't I just have a little easier time?  Please??

Second of all, I do believe I have postpartum depression (ppd) again.  With my first baby (Jenni, obviously) I wanted to run away all the time.  I didn't want to be around her at all, and so I just always wanted to leave the house, with or without her.  It was a bad syndrome of "the grass is greener" because I wanted to have a baby so bad before I had one, and then after she was here, all I wanted to do was give her back.  Hormones, eh?  This time though, there have been lots of tears (mostly about nursing) and I DON'T want to leave the house.  I have no problem with people coming here, but for me to leave the house is such a hassle, I would rather cancel all my plans and stay home.  Home is where I am comfortable.  This is not normal for me.  So... that being said, there are different symptoms, but I think that I am going to have to up my meds before Sean goes back to work or I am going to have a very hard time with adjusting to life.  And, of course, it just gets worse when I am tired... and when your baby is up 2-3 times in the night, that is how you live... tired!  So... here's to hoping!

BUT, it is easier than I thought too.  The biggest hurdle I thought I was going to have to jump was Jenni adjusting to her new baby sister.  This was not a hurdle at all, but more of a piece of string to jump over.  Jenni LOVES her baby sister.  She gets excited about seeing Maria in the morning, and she loves being mommy's big helper.  We have a chair by the change table so I Jenni can get up on there by herself (no lifting for mommy), and she loves to help change the diapers.  She is our little scrub nurse.  "Wipe, Diaper, Cream".  She is so helpful!  She also likes to bring me fresh "boobie pads" and my "boobie cream".  So, other than the fact that Jenni is 2 and likes to do things her way every now and again, Jenni is a lot less work to deal with than I thought she was going to be.  

Now, I figure, most of you reading my posts are going to want to see pictures of these two beautiful little girls... so here you go.  Pictures!  Enjoy!  

Jenni and Maria in their Christmas PJ's at Maria's first photo shoot.

What a little Princess

Us Three Girls

Sister Snuggles

Seriously, could you be more cute???

Mommy so proud!

Look at those eyes...

Love giving kisses 

Gorgeous lips

Jenni wearing Wings 

Maria wearing Wings 

So mischievous

Jenni holding Maria 

Mommy moning snuggle time

Daddy snuggle Time

Tummy time

I'm cute and I know it!

Lynn Dietz Christmas Bible stories with all their Grandbabies and their 3 boys.

Sister Tummy Time

So precious!

Happy New Year everyone!!

True Christmas

Today I was challenged about what I wanted to make Christmas for my family.  Yes, I know it is only November 8th, and this is not usually a topic that comes up until after Remembrance Day, but I was still challenged.  So, I decided to blog about it.

What is Christmas Tradition?

We spend our time, especially as mothers, making our December INSANE trying to make Christmas for our family.  We want to have our houses decorated nicely with a Christmas Tree, and other various decorations, we want to have our cupboards filled with yummy baking, we want to have presents under our tree for our children... and we make ourselves CRAZY trying to make the "perfect" Christmas for our family.

What is perfect?

Perfect is unattainable.  There will always be something that goes wrong.  Someone will get sick, one ingredient will be unavailable, vegetables will be forgotten in the microwave, cookies will burn, the family pet will get into the tree... there is ALWAYS something that can go wrong.

So why do we do it?

Back to the original question, what is Christmas Tradition?

Well, that really depends on where you come from.  Different Countries have different traditions, and each family has different backgrounds.  So, truly we make our own traditions.

For me, growing up, we always had Christmas Dinner on Christmas Eve at my Oma's house, and then went to church.  I don't remember when I was really little, but I do remember that my Grandpa would take us Christmas light hunting after Church so Santa could come and visit my Oma's house.  We would then have a lot more food, and open presents at Oma's house.  After everything was opened and our thank you's were said we would go home and put out our stockings.  Christmas Morning, we would be allowed to open our stockings (after we made Coffee for mom and dad) and go through the loot that was in there.  Then, my mom and dad, and I would start making breakfast of Eggs Benedict with Champagne and Orange Juice (I would usually only have orange juice until I was significantly older.)  After breakfast was done (and cleaned up) we would sit in the living room and my dad would hand out the presents one by one until they were all gone, so that it would last longer than a little while.  This was always very special to me.  In the afternoon all the family would start showing up again, and my mom would make a GIANT turkey dinner, and we would spend more time together.

My husband had a completely different Christmas Tradition.  First of all his birthday is on December 23rd, so that kind of got mushed into Christmas.  Sean remembers either driving on his birthday the 13 hour drive down to Yakima, WA, USA, to have Christmas with Grandma and Grandpa Whitehead (maternal grandparents)... OR... They did the 13 hour drive on December 25th because Sean's dad, being a pastor, would have to preach on Christmas Eve.  Christmas for him, was not about the traditional food, or the decorations, or anything like that.  For Sean the most important part about Christmas was to just be with his Family.  (Also, when his family did open presents, they opened them all at the same time, and Christmas was over within minutes)

So, then, what do I have to work with???  Do I make myself crazy to make a "traditional" Christmas for my children or do I do what I can with what I have??

Usually I start decorating for Christmas on November 12.  But, now, because my daughter Maria is going to be born on December 4 (planned C-Section), I will start decorating on December 5th so that she does not feel like her birthday is lumped in with Christmas.  We set up a small tree, and a small winter village and stockings in our house for decorations.
Christmas baking has never really been a priority for me.  I don't particularly enjoy baking, and I HATE the cleanup afterwards.  My mother-in-law does sugar cookies and gingerbread men, and so she has all her grand-babies over for cookie decorating.  I'm good with that.  Maybe next year when I am NOT recovering from major surgery I will re-evaluate the situation, but as for right now it's not going to happen.
As for Christmas dinner, I think I am going to stick with roast beef and mashed potatoes, and yorkies.  Sean LOVES that meal.  He gets turkey with his mom and dad, and so there isn't really a point in making a turkey for just two people.
One tradition from my childhood that Sean was MORE than willing to carry on was Eggs Benedict on Christmas morning.  That is something that we will always do.  We also have our own little present opening time together on whatever day we decide to do presents.
I don't think my kids, or my family is missing out on anything.  We go to Church on Christmas Eve, and we worship the One True God who is the reason for the season.

So... Do I make my house look like it was cut out of a magazine, or do I work to spend the time with my children and my husband??

Well, I think that we need to look at the big picture...

Why do we celebrate Christmas???

We celebrate the season of Christmas because of Jesus Christ.  Am I right?  Did the birth of Jesus Christ really bring along with it pretty decorated trees, fancy meals, special baking and extravagant presents??  No!!

Jesus was born in a cave in a manger, surrounded by smelly animals, and I am sure lots of poop.  What about the wise men bringing gifts to Jesus, you ask?  That didn't happen for a few YEARS after Jesus was born.  He was, I believe, almost 2 years old before the wise men found him and gave him the Frankincense, Myrrh, and Gold.  The picture below is even a romanticized version of what really happened.

So, that is where I am at about Christmas, and the "traditions" that we make for our families.  I enjoyed the times that I had with my family growing up, not because of what we did, but more because we were together.  I enjoyed Christmas baking as a child because it was something that I did WITH my mom.  We did it together.  So, maybe as my girls get older our traditions will change because of what THEY want their Christmas to look like, but not because of what I was to make it for them.  Besides, they are so young this year, they won't remember what we did this year.  Jenni will remember her baby sister, and Maria will remember... well... nothing.

Maybe next year will be a different story.

Eviction Date!

The title for this post sounds way worse than it is.

I have gotten a surgery date for my delivery of my sweet, precious baby girl, Maria Solveig.  December 4, 2012.  I am SOOO excited!

See, when I first found out that my due date was December 16th I was dead set on having my baby on December 12, 2012... or 12/12/12.  However, God had different plans for me, and the surgeon's office called me and said they would do the surgery on December 4th and if I didn't like that I could go to a different hospital.

So, December 4, 2012 it is!

I have never been so relieved in my life!!!  I get to meet my baby girl 8 days earlier than I thought I would.  How is that a bad thing?  I get to breathe sooner, and basically feel human sooner.

So, in exactly one month today, I get to become a mother of two.

And to top it all off, I will have either my Aunty Brenda helping me or my wonderful husband home for the entire month of December so I have some time to get used to it!

GOD IS GOOD!!!!!!

Winter

So, yesterday I was challenged.  While I was at bible study I looked outside and noticed that it was snowing.  My attitude right away went to GRUMPY!  And, it stayed that way for a while.  It was wonderful inside my nice warm house with a nice warm blanket but outside it was yucky!!!

Well, last night I had to run out to the van to get something, and it hit me.  The first snow of the year was BEAUTIFUL!!!  White everywhere, big fluffy flakes, and not too cold.  I couldn't help but fall in love with winter.

So, this morning, as I was walking to get Jenni out of bed, this is the view that I got to see.

Here's to a day of a GOOD attitude towards the beauty that is the 9 month winter season!

Grand Total!

So, the grand total of my grocery shop was a whopping....

$416.61

However... this is all my groceries for a whole month, and there are definitely two instances where we will be having people over to eat, and there is enough food for them too!  So, that being said... I think it is a pretty good total!  The meat was the killer... so expensive.

So, now that tomorrow is the first day of October, I will be (planning on, hopefully) posting pictures of each meal to keep myself accountable.  Please, if you are wanting a recipe, or anything like that, just ask, and I am more than willing to share!

Groceries!

So, I have more of a menu figured out for the next month.  I am really excited!  However, I did just make my grocery list for the month and I am a little frightened!  I will put the list here, and then put the grand total on tomorrow of how much I spent according to my list.  Here we go!  It is laid out according to how our local grocery store is laid out.  Hopefully I won't miss anything!

Stewing Beef - Family Pack
Ground Beef -  Family Pack
Roast Beef
Beef Sausages (We like beef...)
Chicken Breasts - Family Pack
Shrimp, Prawns and Scallops (For a pasta dish)
Pizza Meat
Milk
Eggs
Sour Cream
Chips
Lunch Snacks
Knorr Veg Soup Mix x2
Broccoli Soup Mix
Tomato Soup
Alfredo Sauce x2
Spaghetti Sauce x4
French Onion Soup Mix
Spaghetti Noodles
Linguini Noodles
Long Grain Rice
Instant Rice
Butter Chicken Mix
Canned Corn
Green Beans
Canned Tomatoes
Water Chestnuts
Tuna x3
Perogies
Frozen Juice
Frozen Fruit
Frozen Veggies
Frozen Spinach
House Hold Cleaning Supplies
Cereal
Bread Crumbs
Jam
Katchup
Miracle Whip
Cabbage
Fruit
Potatoes
Gravy Browner
Cheese
Margarine
Bread x4
Green Onions

(NEXT WEEK)
Swiss Cheese
Black Forest Ham
Green Onions

Any guesses to the final total???  Hope I have enough cash!  Until then...

The Menu

So, I still have a few more days before October starts and I have the first two weeks ready.  Also, I was given a GREAT idea today at the grocery store, by a good friend.

October at a glance!
1- Hungarian Goulash
2- Alfredo Linguini
3- Fried Rice
4- Perogy Casserole
5- Cabbage Rolls
6- Slop (It actually isn't gross)

8- Stir Fry
9- Spaghetti
10- Chicken Cordon Bleu
11- Soup & Sandwiches
12- Roast Beef Dinner
13- Beef and Noodles (Made from leftovers)

So far that is all I have!

And now, the GREAT idea!  So, last night I made rice, and I accidentally made WAY too much, so I have left over rice that I need to use tonight for dinner.  I didn't know where to start, and my friend (seeing me lost in the meat isle at the grocery store) suggested frying it up with some meat and whatever veggies I have, so I am making sausage fried rice tonight with my left over rice!  WAHOO!!!!

So, keep the ideas coming, and tomorrow I will post a lot more recipes so you know what I am actually making!!!!

Zzzzzz

So tired... must sleep!

Menu for a Month

Hello all my followers.  I have a goal for the month of October, and I really would like to actually meet this goal, but I am going to need a little help.

For the month of October I am going to make a full meal plan and NOT go out to a restaurant for dinner for the whole month!!!  It is a pan for us to not only save money, but to eat healthy.  I have PLENTY of recipes that I will post for the month, but it would be nice to not have to double up too many times.  There are 31 days in October and minus the Sundays (we eat at Sean's parents' house) that leaves 27 days to plan for, and one snack for MAPS on Halloween.

So, here is my request.  If you could comment some recipes that I don't have on my list that I could add that would be AMAZING!!!!  There are a few days missing in my menu, and I just need some more ideas!

Butter Chicken:
2-3 Chicken Breasts (bnls sknls)
1 Onion
1 can diced Tomatoes
500ml whipping cream
2 Packages of Butter Chicken Mix

-Stir Fry the chicken and onion in a pot or deep skillet.  Once cooked, add tomatoes, whipping cream, and the butter chicken mix.  Serve with rice or potatoes.  Serves 8

Spaghetti:
1 lb of Ground Beef
1 jar of spaghetti sauce
Pasta of your choice!

-Scramble fry the ground beef in a pot of deep skillet.  While beef is browning, season to taste with garlic and onion.  Add sauce and cook on low for as long as you want.  Cook your pasta just before serving.

Perogy Casserole:
1 Pkg of Perogies
1 cup of Sour Cream
1 Can Mushrooms
1/4 cup melted butter
2 cans of Mushroom Soup
2 cups of Grated Cheese
Onion

-Put the melted butter in the bottom of a 9x13 casserole dish and add the frozen perogies.  Mix up the rest of the ingredients into a bowl and pour over perogies.  If you like, you can add cooked bacon as well, and you can top with more cheese.  Cook at 350 degrees for 1 hour!  Serves 8

So these are just some of my recipes, and I will post some more tomorrow.  Along with a partially finished menu... of course waiting for your recipes!

Today is my official last day of work at the Three Hills IGA.  My goal for the day is to finish well.  As a woman of God I am called to do my best to honor God.  It is very difficult though.  In today's day and age us young'uns are not respected because we don't tend to show respect!  Well, I am not going to fit the mold.  I am going to break it.  I am going to work with joy and I am going to work hard.  When I am done my shift tonight I am going to know that I have finished WELL!!!  So that is that!

Now for tomorrow... I am going to start going through all my baby clothes that I have from Jenni.  I have approximately 20 boxes of clothes to go through.  I am going to sell some of the clothes that I don't think I will use, and I am going to start moving Jenni into her "big girl room".  I have five cupboards full of stuff that NEEDS to be sorted through.  Most of it is clothes for Maria that just needs to be sorted into boxes according to size.  But there is some stuff up there that needs to be sorted and put into Jenni's closet for her to grow into.  I am so thrilled that she is going to have a proper closet.  Sean has to clean that out tonight too... lol!

But right now I am feeling VERY motivated, so I am going to sign off and put my get up and go into good use!

....

Two Hours Later

....

GUESS WHAT???  I actually got something done.  I got something from my list of stuff to do... DONE!!!!

Sean and I have been talking about moving Jenni from the Nursery to upstairs into her big girl room.  Sean painted the room back in May and she was never really keen on sleeping up there.  Mostly because it was too hot, and also because her crib was set up still.  Well, tonight Sean is going to put the toddler bed in the basement, on Saturday it will be gone, and then there will be no other option for Jenni but her room upstairs.  This is a very good thing.

I also managed to clean off my old PC computer that someone has asked to buy MOTHNS ago.  So, it is all ready for them to pick it up and call it their own.  One more thing out of my house that I don't need!  Wahoo!!!


Next on my goal list is to shower (sweet!) and then start de-cluttering the main floor... starting with this darn computer desk.  Nesting, here I come!!!!!

Fresh Face

It is almost officially autumn, and I never thought I would be so excited.  Any other year, or time in my life, I will exclaim that my favorite season is summer, with late spring being a close second.  Unfortunately, this year I have found, especially the summer season, to be much, MUCH too hot.  As to why... here is photographic evidence.  Picture #1 is at 14 weeks, #2 is 20 weeks and #3 is 26 weeks!

For this year I am very thrilled to enjoy Autumn and Winter.  I have never in my life been so excited for snow.  I am excited for the cute outfits that come with the cooler weather, and the hats, scarfs and mittens that go with it.  Jenni will get to have a new snow suit, and I will have to pray that my winter coat still fits around my mid section.


So, in honor of my new found love for the cooler seasons I have changed my blog to reflect the beauty that is Autumn.  Please, enjoy!

BEST VACATION EVER!!!

BEST WEEK EVER!!!!

The whole thing started out on Friday morning getting up at the butt-crack of dawn to get into Calgary for my 20 week ultrasound.  Let me tell you that driving to Calgary with your bladder full is NOT fun, but it was worth it.  We found out that we are having ANOTHER girl!!!!  Yay for us!  Her name is Maria Solveig (Sol-vay).  We now have EVERYTHING we need except a double stroller.  Everything that Jenni wore that was super cute gets to be REUSED!!!  Wahoo!  You know how people refer to a family with a boy and a girl as a million dollar family?  Well, let me tell you, we will be closer to the million dollar family with two girls because we already have everything we need except diapers.  That will cost WAY less money!

Well, Sean took the day off to come to the ultrasound so we decided to make a date of it.  So great!  We went to the mall right after the ultrasound for lunch and then we booked it to Country Hills to go watch the new BATMAN movie.  We had a gift card so it only cost us $5.00 to get into the movie and get a bag of nibs.  Then after that we went out for a nice sit down supper and then Sean dropped me off for a wonderful pampering experience of a mani/pedi in Airdrie.  After that we went to Superstore and picked up Maria's first outfit.  So cute!!!  We got her a little sleeper to bring her home from the hospital in.  Then we stopped at Starbucks, got complimentary carmel fraps and drove home.

Sean packed up the vehicle Friday night because we were leaving the next morning early and didn't want to do it all Saturday morning!

Saturday morning we work up bright and early to get a move on with travel.  We did actually leave the house at 7:08am and it was awesome, but we also stopped in to see my very close friend in Airdrie and then had to get some breakie, so at 9:27am we were finally again, on our way.
Let me tell you, the drive from Three Hills to Yakima, WA is a very VERY long one!  Jenni did really well, but we had to stop in Radium, and that is where we met up with Sean's parents (now officially referred to as "mom and dad") and Sean's younger brother, Bryce.
After a lot of long driving, a pull over for vomit, and plenty of sesame street later we finally arrived at Grandma and Grandpa's (G&G's) around 11:26pm pacific time.  So it was after midnight in my brain.

Sunday morning we just kind of putzed around at G&G's.  Jenni and I had a great nap, Sean, Bryce, mom and dad all picked apricots from the tree, and when Jenni woke up Jenni and I set the pool up in the back yard to play in the water.  There was a big family dinner at G&G's and we got to see as many of the cousins as we could.  It was really nice.
After the big meal I worked really hard at getting all of our stuff together so that we could leave as early as we could on Monday morning to get to Easton Lake where G&G are members of a campground.  So sweet that we could stay there for $1.00 a night!  Normally it is $35.00 a night, so it is a pretty SWEET deal!  Around 9:00 Sean and I went with mom and dad to Fred Meyer's and we got some REALLY cute stuff for Jenni.  It was great!  Such cute clothes for such a low price.  We also got some food and snacks for camping.

Monday morning came all too soon.  After a lot of packing up and waiting around, we finally left G&G's to go to the camp.  Sean, Jenni and I went with mom and dad first (there were two trailers and only 1 pickup truck) and the old trailer to get it set up for us to use.  We got there, and mom took Jenni on an adventure around the campsite to know where she was going.  I worked hard to set up our beds and make the trailer a little house for us.  Mom and dad left shortly after dad got the trailer for us to get the rest of the stuff and G&G.  Sean and I went for a walk to get some lunch, and then we came back to the trailer for a nap.  So great being able to just sleep for the afternoon.

This was inside our trailer, and the only picture I have until Wednesday because there were so many other cameras around.

After we woke up from our nap we took Jenni to the outdoor pool.  It was so fun.  The pool was too deep for Jenni, but she wore her water wings, and had an absolute BLAST!  She loved being in the pool with daddy, and whoever else would come in with her.  Mom and dad got back to the camp just as we were going to the pool so they got to see her swim too.

Now, I do consider myself a veteran camper, but for some reason, in my head, it was going to be SUPER hot all the time like it is in Yakima... not freezing cold in the evening after the sun started to set.  Needless to say, Jenni only had 2 pairs of pants, and 2 long sleeved shirts.  Now, thankfully we did pack a warm coat for her because we didn't know if it would rain, but I only had 1 really lame flimsy sweater, and I was so cold.  Grandma thankfully had a sweater that I was able to use that night, and Jenni was warm enough, after she warmed up from swimming.  Note to self: camping in the Cascade Mountains is not much different than camping when I was a kid...Sweaters, hoodies, coats, and warm pants are a MUST!

Tuesday Jenni woke up SUPER early, and then climbed into bed with daddy.  She did go back to sleep, but not for very long.  Finally we did get up and head over to G&G's trailer.  Jenni got to have some breakfast and then we just kind of putzed around the campsite until it started getting warmer.  Jenni wanted to go swimming again, so we took her to the pool and sat there.  The water was FREEZING at this point in the day, so I just sat by the pool in my cute belly-showing swimsuit and let Sean and Jenni play in the water.  Now, one thing with this cute, belly-showing swimsuit, is that my belly hasn't seen the sun this summer at all.  So, I have quite the funny triangle shaped burn-turned-tan-line on my tummy.
After a while, I went back to the campsite to get lunch ready for our little family, while Sean got Jenni all dry.  We ate lunch and Jenni went down for a nap.  I went back to the pool side for about half an hour and then I decided it was nap time too.  Ahhhh, praise the Lord for nap time!
When I did finally resurface Sean's cousin, and my very good friend, Chantelle was at the camp with her two beautiful girls, Brookelyn and Nicole.  The five of us girls went to the little playground area and the little girls got to play together.  It was lots of fun!

So, one of mom's requests was that Grandpa would make his home-made clam chowder.  Grandpa, loving his children all very much, gladly obliged.  It was delicious!  Uncle Greg, Uncle Gary, and Aunty Debbie all came out for the afternoon and for supper.  Uncle Gary is really big into making animal sounds, and Jenni really took to him.  Tuesday was the last night that we were able to have a fire because a fire ban was going to take effect at midnight that night.

Sean and I went to bed around 10:00 and apparently Aunt Becky and Uncle Curt did come that night and set up.

Well, there will be more to come, but I do believe that this is enough for right now.

 So, Jenni is no longer in a crib!  She is officially in her BIG GIRL BED!!!!  It definitely makes for some interesting, early mornings, but she is doing really well.  Here are just some pics of her being super cute!


Also, on a completely different note, that doesn't really go with the pictures, I am missing some random pieces of clothing that belong to my beautiful little girl.  I am seriously considering looking for a laundry gnome.  That can be the only logical explanation.  I mean... REALLY!!!!

 

So, we are getting ready to head out on our long awaited VACATION!!!!  We are so excited.  So, I was working on packing up some of Jenni's things (which is why I realized there was a laundry gnome, because it seems like half of the stuff I was looking for has gone missing!) including Jenni's water-wings.  Well... let me tell you, Jenni did not like that these wings were being packed.  So, as I was in her room looking for random pieces of missing clothing she got up on a chair, took the wings out of the suitcase that was on the table, and put them on and tried to blow them up.  So stinkin cute!!!!  I just can't believe that she is so smart... well I guess she is a product of me....  lol!
 So, yes, vacation and other wonderful things are on their way for our family and I am so excited.

I think that one of our favorite things is going to be the zoo that we are going to visit.  For me it is going to be SHOPPING!!!!  Jenni needs a bunch of stuff for the fall and winter, and since we are going to find out what we are having on FRIDAY then I can do some baby clothes shopping too!  Well, really I can only shop for baby clothes if it is a boy.  I already have MORE than enough stuff for another little girl.  Who knows what God has in store for us!

Jenni and Mommy's silly faces!

Just a few more pics and then this will be a done post and when we get back there are sure to be more exciting adventures on here.

Jenni is helping me fold laundry, and as you can see by her cute tongue hanging out, she is concentrating VERY hard!  And she is also wrapping up her baby in a receiving blanket.  What a good job honey!

Mommy's Little Helper

So, as of late Jenni has been really wanting to help mommy.  Now when I say help, I mean "help"... because she is two and really... she ends up making more of a mess than helping, but it is still REALLY cute!  I don't really have much more to say about it, but I do have lots of pictures to show you.  Enjoy!!!

Jenni helping me bake cookies

Jenni helping with eating the cookie dough

Jenni helping with dishes

What a good little helper

Jenni helping me mop

She doesn't realize it doesn't work on carpet

This is Sean at around age 5.  The pictures look remarkably the same!

Lessons Learned

This week was an interesting one.

I learned that I too am a pushover (not just Sean) to Jenni's cuteness and wanting.

I learned that Jenni is not perfect, especially when she is tired.

I learned that Jenni likes to do her own thing no matter what is going on around her.

I learned that being pampered is always a joy... especially when you are with the people you love.

So I am assuming that I should let you know how I learned all these lessons, and (let's face it) how I hadn't learned these things before.

I am a pushover.  So... My mother-in-law, Sean, Jenni and I went to Red Deer for lunch on Sunday and we also needed to get Jenni some new shoes.  Jenni LOVES shoes.  She really really does.  She will bring you the shoes that she really wants to wear with her outfit and will say, "shoosh, peesh, shoosh" which translates to "shoes, please, shoes".  Anyhoo...Jenni only had one pair of shoes that fit her and they were these little aqua colored flats...super cute, but not super practical in an Alberta winter.  So, knowing this, and knowing Jenni's love for shoes, we decided that we needed to get her a pair of runners, and a pair of white dress shoes and a pair of black dress shoes.  (I know that some of you are reading this and already think I am slightly crazy, but that is ok.  Just keep reading...it gets better.)  So the first place we went to look for shoes was Zellers...that was a bust... There was nothing there that was any good.  Then we went to The Children's Place.  Let me tell you, there are some cute things there.  If I had the money I could buy out that whole store.  It is ridiculous.  I have no self control when it comes to cute things.  Well...Jenni first off found this really cute pair of purple high tops, but they were not the type of shoes that we were looking to get for her, so I just kept saying, "Honey, we don't need those shoes today."  So, I'd make her try on another pair of shoes, she would walk around and then she would come back to me... with the purple high tops in her hands.  It would go the same way as before, and she would try on another pair of shoes, and then she would walk around and again return with the purple high tops.   It was like she was saying, "Yes, mom, but what about these ones?  I really, REALLY like these ones."  Finally I gave in and I let her try them on.  She was so proud of herself.  She had found a little white hat (she likes hats too) and had it on and her cute little purple high tops... and she was just checkin herself out in the mirror.  I couldn't say no to all that cuteness now could I?  So...I caved...I bought her the purple high tops... and we discovered that they give her blisters, but she doesn't care... they are her pretty purple high tops.

Jenni's Cute little Purple High Tops

So, you ask, how did I NOT know that Jenni is not perfect... especially when she is tired?  Jenni had her first public temper tantrum.  Let me tell you all about it!

NO mom...
I am not going to smile for the Camera

Well, we went to the grocery store after bible study on Wednesday and we just had to get a few things so I let Jenni push the little cart that she loves so much.  She was doing really great... putting things in the cart, just being all around cute.  Well... then I got some grapes and I put them in her cart, but I wouldn't let her eat any grapes until we had paid for them.  Let me tell you, she was NOT happy about that.  Now, another thing I should mention is that Jenni has quite the little temper.  So, I was trying to get her to push her cart to the till so we could pay for our stuff, and she just had a royal FIT and so instead of getting mad or making a scene, I just grabbed her hand and we left the store.  She didn't get anything at all, and we just left.  Oh, that was embarrassing for her.  It was embarrassing for me too, but she was very ashamed of herself.  It was kind of cute... however the tantrum that she threw on the sidewalk after we got out of the store... well... not so cute.  I let her finish her fit and then we went home and she slept for at least 3 hours.  Gee... do you think she was tired???

I learned that Jenni likes to do her own thing.  On Thursday (February 9, 2012)* Jenni had her first swimming lesson.  She just loves the water and I am glad that we can do this together.  Sean and I have taken Jenni to the pool on quite a few occasions so she is used to being in the water and just doing her own thing... mostly going down the little kid slides.  Well, during swimming lessons you don't get to go down the slide whenever you want to... oh no... you have to be a part of the class.  I understand this, but do you think that my sweet darling 20 month old would understand this... NOPE!!!  So, we would be sitting in a circle, and she would get up and walk away... to go down the slide.  I would call her, and she would just walk faster.  I would go and get her, and she would get MAD!  So, instead of making a scene I would just let Jenni go down the slide once (maybe twice) and then we would go back to the class.  All the other kids were doing what they were supposed to do, but Jenni... oh no... she likes to do her own thing.

Last but not least... Friday night I got to go into the city (Airdrie/Calgary this time) with my mother-in-law and we met up with my sister-in-law, Lindsey.  We started off the night at a place called Jack's Nails.  It was an okay place.  Nothing fancy, but good prices.  The three of us each got Mani/Pedi's and it was wonderful.  It was my first real manicure, and so I felt a little bit like royalty.  We then went into Calgary for dinner at Applebee's and finished off the night with watching "The Vow".  I haven't cried that hard in a movie for a long time.  Good... oh so good!  100% Chick Flick!!!  We got home really late, and I had to work the next morning, but let me tell you, to spend the time just us girls... it was worth every second of lost sleep.

Well...today is the start of a new week, and I am happy to have learned these lessons.  I am sure that I am going to have to learn variations of these lessons over and over again, but to get to know my beautiful daughter every day is such a privilege.  She is a spit fire who has expensive tastes (bling, shoes, bags and hats) and keeps me on my toes.  PTL for my little princess.  She will forever be royalty in my world.


*I am writing the date down because I want to remember this in how many ever years and be like, "oh yeah... I remember that!"

In loving Memory

Today I am writing in honor of a good friend, Brian Welch.  He passed away early January 14, 2012 and will be missed by many.  

Brian was a special man for more reasons than just being a good friend, which he was.  He was friendly to everyone he met, and he was genuinely happy to see you, regardless if you were his best friend, or if you were just someone that he got along with and had laughed with once or twice.  

Today we remember Brian.  He will not be on your computer screen when you load it, the way that Steve Jobs was forever after he passed, but Brian touched more lives and was more successful than Steve Jobs could have ever imagined because Brian loved the Lord and it showed... on his face, in his life, in his heart.

Today we remember Brian.  Brian was not as well known as Ghandi, but Brian has a peace in his heart that Ghandi had never known or experienced.  Brian had the Lord's peace with him where ever he went.  God's peace is what got Brian through his sickness knowing that God's Will would be done no matter what path God chose for him. 

 

Today we remember Brian.  He was not a well known warrior for an army that changed the course of history like Rob Roy, but he was a warrior in God's Army.  Brian's life changed the course of history the way that no one else could, because no on else IS Brian.  Brian was an instrument of God and he helped change the world one person at a time.

Today we remember Brian because of the joy that he brought to our lives with his silliness, his laughter, his smile, his strength, his tears, his failures (he is human you know), his genuineness, his friendship and his love.  His love for you, his love for me, and more than anything else, his love for GOD.  That love is what got him through this, and now he is in Glory.  
May the Glory that is the Lord wash over you through the life and memories of Brian Welch!