A few new pictures...

Well, it's a beautiful day here, but we're pretty much stuck at home since the front wheel on my stroller packed it in yesterday! (And that's a whole other story!) Brian brought Sophia over a little later today since he was catching a ferry over to the island to do some work. Nathan was in bed by the time they got here and Sophia went straight into bed as well though not straight to sleep! She was awake for about 45 minutes (which is good for her), but is sleeping now. Thought I'd take a minute to post some pictures from the day before yesterday of the kids!

These are two pictures that Kyle took! He loves taking pictures!

Well, gotta run since I just heard Nathan cry and I think that little cry just woke up Sophia too and she's only been asleep for about half an hour!

Cheers,
Colleen

TTT Cyber Crop

Well, starting the weekend of April 13th, the scrapping website Transparent TOuches and Tags (see link on the left) is having a cyber crop. I just thought I'd post some of the fun hints we've been getting for challenges!

HINT # 1 Find something to alter! Big or Small! A mini-book, a shoebox, a glass item.............anything your heart desires!

HINT# 2 SUPER STAMPING going on...............GOT STAMPS? and I do not mean the kind you LICK!

HINT #3 drag out your PASTELS! I mean Pastel Patterned paper. I am challenged by pastels and this is the season of PASTELS.............so bring your PASTEL MOJO!

HINT #4--------- PAINT and MORE PAINT!

HINT #5- FREE YOUR STYLE WITH RIBBON!

HINT #6 POCKET TAGS!

HINT #7 Sizing it up! One Large photo at least 5x7 and one smaller photo-wallet size or smaller!

HINT#8-----------------CLEAR AS A BELL!

#9- Pens and Needles!

#10- STAMP your Mark!

Now, I'm not sure what all these mean, but it sure looks like it's going to be fun. And the best thing is that anyone, anywhere can do it! Come and join us! There are some great prizes too! And if you crop by, make sure you tell them I sent you!!

Cheers,
Colleen

A busy Monday!

OK, so we'll start off with the fact that I had planned to take pictures today and that never happened! Maybe tomorrow... Today was the first day that I had Sophia here and it was also the first day that we walked Kyle to preschool. Needless to say, it was a logistical puzzle that still needs a little work, but we did quite well! Kyle got to school on time and we were back there to pick him up on time too.

Brian got here with Sophia at just after 7am. It was then that I quickly realized that I needed to get all 4 of us breakfast and all three of them dressed (I'd already had a shower and gotten ready) and be out the door by 8:45. Not really a problem, but being that this was out first day and I knew everything would take longer than I thought, I wanted to get on top of it. Got the little ones in high chairs with some Cheerios and then got Kyle some oatmeal. He sat in the kitchen with us and I got the kids their breakfast too. Didn't take too long, but feeding Sophia baby cereal and fruit is fun because she's really in that messy stage - roll up the sleeves and let her in there! Just a little while to wipe her down afterwards!

I actually put Nathan in the high chair that Tracy brought for Sophia because it has shoulder straps to help keep him in. I don't know what it is about our high chair, but he's like Houdini in it and can always seem to get out and likes to stand in it. Not a good idea in general and especially not when we have a very hard tile floor!

Anyway, we all got breakfast (even I got some oatmeal in!) and we got everyone dressed and were actually out the door on time. We had a really nice walk since it was a nice day and the two little ones seemed to like the ride in the stroller. It was funny to watch Sophia since she's never been in the double stroller. She was forever trying to touch Nathan's face, hold his hand and pull his hair. Nathan was very mellow about it and was sort of "Whatever!". I gave her the toys since she seemed interested in them (and Nathan never really is) and that seemed to help a bit.

We dropped Kyle off and school and headed back home. I put Nathan in bed as soon as we got in. Then, I tried to give Sophia a bottle, but she wasn't interested, so I laid her down. They had not quite an hour and a half to sleep before we'd have to go get Kyle. I know Sophia sometimes has trouble getting to sleep, but Nathan is generally out right away. Well, neither of them ended up sleeping!! That's the first time ever that Nathan's not had a morning nap.

So, I packed them up again (after getting Sophia a bottle and nathan a drink) and we were off for another walk to get Kyle. He had a fun day at school and was excited to tell me about the picture he made and about playing with the toys. Got home and then we were into lunch. That went well too and we got everyone cleaned up and I laid Sophia down first. Nathan went down fairly quickly after that and he was asleep shortly after his head hit the pillow. Sophia was up for quite a while afterwards and I think her teeth were bothering her because she was actually asleep and then woke up. I eventually called Tracy (who'd called here at lunch to see how things were going!), to make sure it was OK to give her some Tylenol and that seemed to help a bit though she still had a bit of a fitful rest.

Kyle and I made cookies together after the little ones went down. We went and laid down in his room and made up stories about being on Deal or No Deal since that's what he wanted and then it was "rest time". Sometimes he sleeps and sometimes he doesn't, but had had a full morning, so he was asleep shortly after.

I then had a few minutes to finally get some lunch in me and sit down for a few minutes. I thought I'd be smart and put the main part of our casserole dinner together quickly as well, so that I could have a longer break after that. Well, I'd just about finished when I heard Nathan awake after sleeping an hour and a half - perfect if he'd had a morning nap, but I thought he's sleep longer than that. I nursed hm and laid him down again thinking he'd go back to sleep - NOPE! My "break" was over! Sophia was finally really just getting to sleep shortly before this as well.

So, Nathan and I played while Sophia and Kyle slept. She got up after about an hour and a half as well. In the end, Kyle had the best nap since I woke him up after he'd slept 2 and a half hours!! Tracy was here a little before 5 and we were playing in the living room with the animals when she got here. All was good!

The amazing part is that I actually had dinner done shortly after that and we had a nice dinner together and then I went out for a bit to a card making class at work. Had a fun evening there making 10 thank you cards (I'll post some of them soon) and it was nice to get out too.

A successful day all around! And I have to say that even though it was busy, it was fun and the day went by pretty quickly with all that action! Day 2 tomorrow, but no preschool to contend with so maybe we'll get out to the park instead!

Cheers,
Colleen

Sunshine!

It was so nice to see the sun out today even though it was mixed in with a few clouds and a little rain as well. I actually had to dig my sunglasses out from the bottom of my purse for the drive to work. It's funny, but everyone just seemed to be in a good mood today and I can bet the weather had something to do with it. I laughed when I got to work and the asst. manager, Tara, had her toes painted and was wearing sandals! Gotta love BCers!

It's been a good day even after my lack of sleep last night. Not sure why it took me a while to get to sleep, but it did. Then Nathan was up for a while cutting molars and I had trouble getting back to sleep again after that. Oh well, I had a good morning with the boys while George slept in a bit. Then, I had a bit of time to get ready and it was off to work for me.




I finished this layout last night that was inspired by an Ali Edwards layout. Love this picture of Nathan and it's about how you think you'll remember all the little things the kids do, but then it takes a picture to bring those things back!

Cheers,
Colleen

A rainy, quiet Saturday

Well, there's not too much going on here today. Kyle's music class is on "spring break" this week, so we don't even have that to do. I got to sleep in this morning (and George will tomorrow), so I feel great. Kyle came in at 9 and told me it was time to get up!

We might go and try and get a rain cover for the stroller today. We've decided that we're going to try going to one vehicle and that means I'll be out and about walking more with the kids in the rain! Kyle will still need to get to preschool whether we have the car or not! Nathan and Sophia can go in the stroller as long as it's covered and I got Kyle a rain jacket and umbrella yesterday. Nana recently splurged and got him some great Thomas rain boots, so he's got those, a Spiderman jacket and a Diego umbrella! The kid is a walking advertisement for kids shows!

Hopefully I'll get a little scrapbooking in tonight since I haven't been doing as much lately. I did get these two layouts done in the last week or so though.


These pictures are from Kyle's preschool skating thing a couple of weeks ago. George took the day off to be able to go and skate with him. Kyle was really excited about that and then they went and had a hot dog together after as well.


This is about the funny little ritual that George and I now have with his ring that I can't stop. He wears his ring on a chain since he can't wear it at work, but he puts it on if we go out as a family. I often end up taking it off his chain for him in the car and then sliding it in on his finger, but when I do, I have to say "With this ring, I thee wed" and now that I've been doing it for almost 5 years, I can't stop! Funny!

Well, better go see what everyone else is up to here and see about getting myself something to eat! Have a great Saturday!

Cheers,
Colleen

Wiggle It!

What a great day! This was so much fun and very needed after us being sick again here in the last week. Mum and dad very generously got tickets for mum, Kyle and I to see The Wiggles. Now, for those of you that don't have little ones right now, they are an Australian "pop group" for kids! They've been around for about 15 years actually now I think they said today, but certainly didn't know who they were 3 years ago. Now, I think I've seen every video, heard every song and have now been to a concert as well!

Needless to say, Kyle has been in love with The Wiggles for quite a while now. They were here almost 2 years ago when he was just getting into them and it didn't seem quite worth it to take him then, but we knew he's sure be interested this time. We told him at the beginning of the month and every day since, pretty much the first thing he'd do in the morning is go and count the days on the calendar the way I'd shown him when we first told him!

Mum came over this morning from Tracy and Brian's and visited with Nathan for about a half hour or so and then we were off to take Kyle to his music class before we went to the concert. Mum and I did a few errands while he was in class and then we went through drive-thru for lunch at McDonald's after we picked him up.

We were lucky enough to park in the lot right under the Queen Elizabeth Theatre where the show was, so we didn't even have to get went on this very rainy day! We did quite well for time, so we had about 15-20 minutes to get in, find a washroom and then our seats. Of course, as soon as we sat down and Kyle saw all the other kids with their Wiggles "stuff" that they sell at the concert, he asked for something.

I knew he wanted the lightstick with the characters on the top and mum generously gave me the money to go and get him one. I was going to take him, but decided I'd better not since it was almost time for the show to start and I had to go back downstairs. It was a good thing I didn't take him because it was so disorganized that it took me a little while to get it. There were supposed to be lines, but sometimes it appeared there were and other times the people behind the counter were helping whoever. After calming myself and waiting long enough to get it, I quickly went back up to find that it hadn't even actually started yet. Kyle was in love with the lightstick, so it was worth the trip and a bit of frustration.

Now the last time mum and I took him to the Doodlebops (same kind of thing) in the same theatre about a year ago, he was completely enthralled the whole time and sat staring in amazement at everything. I thought maybe this time he'd want to dance a little more, but nope! Same thing! From the time it started I think, he sat with his mouth open and barely blinked. If you talked to him, you knew he was enjoying it, but it's like he was just trying to take every last bit of it in.

The show was about an hour and a half and then they said their goodbyes. As they were waving goodbye, Kyle actually got a little upset that it was over and started crying a bit. It was so sweet. He waved away at them until the very last second when they walked off the stage! He thank Nana numerous times afterwards. There's no doubt he had a fabulous time and that it was well worth it!

Cheers,

Colleen

Reminder to be thankful...

OK, so I've been a little bummed lately since we've had another week of sickness here (thus no posting!) with me having what we think was food poisoning first and then developing strep throat. Then, Kyle ends up with strep and Nathan is grumpy cutting 2 molars - still! Anyway, this wasn't at all the point of this tonight! This was a little reminder of all the little things that we always need to be thankful for even on those rough days!

Here's a little list of a few things I'm thankful for tonight out of the millions!
**The precious little boy sound asleep in the picture above
**Having access to wonderful health care and not have to worry about the cost of it
**Going for coffee and having a great chat with mum tonight
**Playing games with Kyle today and enjoying as he made up the rules as went along - most of them "game shows" of some variety since he's obsessed with them!
**Feeling like I got some thing accomplished around here today

So, what are you thankful for?
Cheers,
Colleen

Playing at Auntie's

Well, with the boys being sick for so long and then just being busy, Tracy and I haven't seen as much of each other lately as we have been! It's only a couple of weeks before Sophia will be here at our place 4 days a week while her mummy is at work too!

We managed a little get together and play at Tracy's today! She and I had our usual Tim's half cappuccino and half decaf as well as a breakfast sandwich without meat this morning. I'm going to miss doing these fun little things with her and am very thankful for being able to share our mat leave. It's been wonderful spending time together and watching the kids grow and play together. Well, maybe we can still get together for something fun on the odd Friday once she's back at work though I know she'll have a lot to do as will I with only 2 kids rather than 3!

Going to go and see if I can get organized and motivated to do some scrapping rather than just thinking and talking about it! Have a great weekend everyone!

Cheers,

Colleen

Calling all Scrappers!

Well, I know not all of you can get out to a Friday night crop for various reasons, so how about coming and trying a cyber crop at the Transparent Touches and Tags website (see link on left)!! On the weekend of April 13th, they're hosting a cyber crop with lots of fun challenges, games and prizes! All you need to do is log in and play! Hop on over to the Bunny Crop!

Cheers,
Colleen

The Wiggles in Vancouver!!

Yes, the Wiggles are back here for another show and Kyle is over the moon because Nana and Grandpa called last week and told him that they got tickets so that Nana could take he and I to the show on March 17th!! Needless to say, there's a little excitement in our house about this!

I wrote it on the calendar after he kept asking if we were going today - every day! Together we then counted how many days it was, so now he goes back and keeps counting. Everyone morning, it's about the first thing he does as well! He also wants one of their movies to watch incessantly now. It's going to be fun!

It's hard to believe that I went to my first concert with my mum and dad at 13 I think (Lionel Ritchie and Tina Turner!!) and here Kyle is at 3 and this'll be his second concert! Lucky little boy he is! Of course, this whole thing with the kids "bands" didn't exist when we were little either and Sesame St didn't tour!

I'm sure Kyle will have a full review afterwards and we'll let you know how it goes! It'll be interesting to see the difference in his reaction this time and last being that he's almost a year older and has been to a concert before as well. Last time, I was worried he might think it was too loud through the whole thing and keep his ears covered like he did when it started. He was fine once it got going though!

Well, I'm showered and ready for the day and the boys are still in bed. I knew I wouldn't get a chance later on though before Kyle went to school, so I wanted to make sure I was up early! Nice to get a few minutes to myself anyway... Oh, think I might hear Nathan anyway! Better be off!

Cheers,
Colleen

Bog Walk

Well, we finally managed to get out for one of our Sunday walks again! George had a great suggestion this afternoon of getting out for a walk after Nathan's nap, so that's exactly what we did. We popped into Tim's for a coffee on the way and then headed down to the Bog. Unfortunately, when we got there, we realized that the front tire of the double stroller was pretty flat and didn't really want Kyle to ride in it. We weren't sure how far we were going to go, but once we got one the "bridge" as Kyle calls it (a wooden walkway) that goes around it, he wasn't stopping. He walked the whole thing!

Nathan's not much for sitting in the stroller anymore either, so it was fun trying to keep him occupied. George was pushing for most of the walk, so he was busy singing songs and things to keep Nathan happy. Towards the end, we got him out and carried him for a bit to make him happy and Kyle did get in the stroller for the last little bit and that was fine.

I have to say that though it was a really nice walk, the boardwalk was slippery! There's a metal grate thing covering part of it, so we walked on that and it was fine. For a while, kyle was walking on it and I was holding his hand and walking on the slippery part. After sliding a bit twice, I decided I needed to walk on the grate because I could catch him if he slipped, but we were both going down if I did! He had one good slip, but I caught him! He wanted to run on part of it and I had to sadly tell him it was just too slippery for his "Speedboost" that he likes to do!

A wonderful afternoon spent together! Hope everyone had a great weekend and here's to a fabulous week!

Cheers,

Colleen

A "normal" weekend...

Well, we're pretty much back to "normal" around here - whatever that is!! I got to sleep in a little, but mum and dad were here by about 9am for a visit since it's been a while since we're seen them. Let's face it, what with all of the sickness in this house, it's been a long time since we've seen anyone! We had a nice little visit and then they were headed off to see Tracy, Brian and Sophia as well.

Then, it was off to take Kyle to music class again. He was so excited to be going back to class and I think to be around other kids too. He sure seemed to have fun. I managed to run some errands while Kyle was at class too. It was home for lunches and naps after that.

I got a little scrapping done this afternoon while the boy napped and George played his video game. I got some of the boys clothes sorted first though since Renee and Mitchel (my cousin and her little guy) are coming to visit on Monday and I want to give her Nathan's stuff that's too small. After my sorting, I got going on some scrapping. I find it hard to get back into when I haven't been doing much and I really haven't with all of us being sick. Did the layout posted above with pictures of Nathan and Sophia from Nathan's first birthday party!

Well, we're going to be getting a visit from grandma and Opa here shortly as well! Everybody needs their "fix" of the boys now that we're healthy again! Going to have a "normal" relaxing evening at home too!

Cheers,
Colleen

**This is a little shout out to Joy who I saw on Friday with her daughter Maria. She told me she always reads my blog, so here's another layout for you Joy!