it's all good.....(beware this is a long post!)

i can officially say that i am back on board with this motherhood thing, and you sure can tell the difference in my kids since i re-entered the race (though i came back kicking and screaming!).



Here are some of the highlights from the last few days.

Friday morning: still feeling ragged from isaac coming in every night needing to be re-tucked in, or hungry, or scared, and on and on....we got ready to go out--and i didn't care where, i was just packing a picnic while they had breakfast and we were going to get in the car cause mommy was feeling much cabin fever. We ended up at Christie's house (she and our friend faye exercise every tues and fri and watch eachothers kids while the other goes out for a run/walk--its a cool routine-i wish i lived closer...i would do it too). So we all sat outside together and watched 6 kids play. Sigh...just to be in another moms company was so great, i don't know why i wanted to be so solitary this last week? doesn't misery love company?? i'm weird.

So, we had lots and lots of laughs, ate such good food (Christie always has tons of fruit and she made some wicked deviled eggs)......so that morning was sort of my start back onto my 'thankful to be where i am in life' road on which i normal try to travel!!!

Saturday--there is something about saturdays isn't there? do you find this too? that though everyday you are a stay at home mom everyday should feel like saturday...you know--carefree, fun....why can't every day feel like that??!! Anyways....there was alot of beach playing, running around on the field....kids seem less overwhelming when they are being managed in a big space. Last night after dinner down there, isaac left with some of the new staff to play down on the beach and Elliot (get this)--walked over the to the playground and played on his own on the structure and in the sandbox for over 1/2 hour while i watched him from the dining room!!

This was the beginning scene of the summer and i am glad.

Funny things that happened this week:
Isaac found a feather on the beach, a huge eagle feather and then a robin landed on the lifeguard chair in front of us. i looked at the bird and back at isaac and said 'i wonder if thats his feather that he lost?'...and isaac looks at the feather and back at the bird and says 'hmmm.....its pretty big....' (like he was humouring me, but not wanting to tell me what a retard i was for thinking that...he's sweet)

Isaac likes to wear his buzz light year suit everywhere these days and he also likes to put his pants on his head when he is supposed to be getting dressed and run around yelling 'PANT HEAD! PANT HEAD'

Elliot has been bypassing meals these days down at the camp and waiting for dessert (grr). So, last night, he had the option to eat dinner, nope..so i let him down and he wanders around the playing 'peek a boo' with who ever will look at him and laugh. So, while he is occupied, i have dessert (the best white chocolate tarts ever!)....i eat it in secret, when he comes around, i hide it, and so on cause i want him eating GOOD FOOD right?! He comes around after i am done, sees the empty little mini pie plate...picks it up, looks at it and looks up at me with those little doe eyes like 'umm....you KNOW i like these!? where's mine??!

This kid, he takes the little tin and walks back up to the buffet table waving it around like 'anyone can tell me where my mom found THIS??'.....little investigator eh? He finally saw a crowd at another part of the dining room, put 2 and 2 together and wandered over with his tin and caught someones eye......my child had a white chocolate tart for dinner. After all that work, he deserved it, didn't he?

Here are some pictures from our last week - some of my favorites are of my boys throwing rocks in the water....i find it just captures them!

Marathon Mothering

i am going to be totally honest on this entry and say that i am finding the transition back into full time mommyhood really hard. It was nice getting up earlier than the kids and being out the door heading somewhere i would be acting, thinking and just being involved by myself with other adults!! Don't get me wrong, i found the transition OUT of full time motherhood tough too--but it seemed that as soon as i started to get into the swing of the routine (including getting home to a house where a bomb went off every single day), its now over and i am left feeling like a zombie wandering through the house methodically and continually picking up everyones crap, washing it, putting it away, making food i don't want to eay myself, but since these boys don't care too much for salad .. i am on full time duty and at this very moment in time, i am thinking it sucks.

It sucks, it sucks........weather doesn't help, continually messy house doesn't help, shrieking 2 year old who can't talk yet but shrieks at everything enstead doesn't help, failing that first aid course doesn't help......don't get me wrong, i am honestly not feeling sorry for myself because i know i do have a charmed life with healthy kids, money in the bank, in one weeks time there will be meals provided until the fall, lots of friends and family whom i love more than anything, and i rocked that first aid course - 83% on my written, 100% on 3 of the 4 scenerios...i just made a poor choice on a crushed hand that led my scenerio to go downhill from the beginning! And who knew they could dock you 15 points per mistake??? 4 mistakes and i was a goner......end of story--re-test next thursday. But all this is fine in the big picture and as i write, i am feeling better...so i best be getting back to vacuuming since the 4th male in my life has shed his whole winter coat around my house and its starting to really gross me out. Do you think that too much treehouse for little eyes today is a bad thing??

Anyways.....i hear shrieking..better run.

Camp Qwanoes Open House

In hindsight, it was a great day! We saw some old friends, revelled in our old stomping ground where chris and i met and fell in love (noted the old make-out spots) and showed isaac where daddy proposed to mommy (and we tried not to feel hurt when he didn't appreciate the beauty of it all and would rather know why there was a bucket full of mud there where the proposal was!!). The boys were exhausted, missed naps and finished up a really long past 2 weeks....but chris and i vowed to stay and have a good time! (1 out of 2 isn't bad i figured....we stayed, but a 'good time' was a little elusive!)

Here are some of the pictures from the day! And it was a good day, we were a family together, with no itinerary except to visit with friends and just BE in our old space.

Burning the candle at both ends....

i have officially 16 hours left of this level 3 first aid course....and am counting down!! It has seriously been the most exhausting few weeks!! I took this course a few years ago and had a wonderful (though gruelling) first time through! It sure makes a difference when you have a couple of cool cats in your class that you can goof off with and don't mind being in their space and you can handle them being in yours.....but this time through, it hasn't been that way. don't get me wrong, there have been laughs and i have found one cool cat who makes me laugh and we have fun, but i am still sort of reeling from a scenerio done the other day where i was partners with a guy who was big and sort of made me feel uncomfortable, and i had to do HIP SUPPORT!! Arg.....so that included (for those not familliar with the lingo) tying up their hips with triangular bandages--so, ahem, being in very private spaces! i am pretty sure he enjoyed it (which made it sort of worse) but this also included a secondary body check, where i had to remove his socks and shoes (after a long, hot and sweaty day) only for it to reveal not one but two nasty nasty black nailed toes! i am totally squeemish just writing and re-calling the scene. So, by now, its almost over, i have gotten very quiet and am just trying to work as quickly as i can to finish this awful awful scenerio..i finish....and the teacher says (insert gasp) "Switch Around" (NOOOOO...) I know you have no choice of who you work with in real life, thats cool, i go into 'mode' when i am needed...but that was one of the nastiest things i have had to do on someone that i really didn't want to be doing it on. Hence, why taking these courses are way more fun when you can take it with people you don't mind touching...because as my teacher said at the beginning of the week "where else are you going to pay to get groped for 2 weeks?" (Chinatown was one of the answers, but i don't really want to grope or be groped by anyone but chris.....so, this is why i am happy this is almost over)

But to conclude, i am happy to report that i have been paired with the fireman for our last two days of scenerio practices to prep for the exam. He's a competent and nice person whos feet i don't get too grossed out having to touch, even though he too, has 1 black toe!!

Buzz Lightyear turned 4!!

A few pictures from the birthday party of little Isaac - who isn't so little anymore! But since he has turned 4, there have been moments in the last few days (yes, i am a little exhausted from the busy week and yes, i am a little hormonal too), but i have gotten teary a few times at the sweetness that comes out of this little guy! Anyways--we were rained out on june 5th (big surprise there!), so we set up the inflatable climbing wall that was bought for his birthday (yay grandparents!) - it's super cool! (i think i may start up a little side business this summer to rent it out!-but thats another blog entry).

He had some of his little friends over-which included some of my little friends too! They are amazing friends...one brought the cupcake mix and made cupcakes when she arrived, they all made sure they didn't leave my house in a mess, all very conscious friends that i am very thankful for! But isaac had such a great day:

The staff came over that morning to sing happy birthday to Isaac...very sweet.

And last night we went to the Burdges for dinner, and on the way home, we got a flat--which isaac promptly wanted to help with! Amazing kid: our little 4 year old.

Becoming an Outdoor Woman

Taking aim....

The wildlife Federation puts on these amazing weekends at a different location each year throughout BC..this year, i was lucky enough to hear about it from my mom and luckier still that it was just down the road at the Cowichan Outdoor Center!! I took 4 courses starting on the friday--map and compass friday afternoon, Falconry sat. morning, Trap Shooting on sat afternoon and Self Defense this morning (ahem, i took most of that last course, til i skipped out a little early to take a much needed nap in a really quiet sunny room before the kids 'swooped' in to pick me up!!)

Here are some pictures from the weekend--no time to discuss much as my bed is calling and i have to get up early for first aid!

Elton the owl and i hanging out....

Duckie the Hawk coming in to land on my arm on the Hawk Hike
Still coming in....check out his determined face! You can see the piece of chicken on my glove!
My mom.....such a blast!!
There was nobody else i would have rather have done this weekend with....seriously an awesome weekend..one for the books!!

Sunday Morning

A quick snapshot of our morning before church! I practiced the piano (a rare occurance, but both kids were strapped in eating breakfast, so i got in a few minutes without additional fingers accompanying me!). Elliot had a little try when he got unstrapped:



Elliot also played trains quietly in his room for a few minutes this morning and i caught it on my camera, but some how deleted it....whoops. But it was sweet because at the same time, Isaac was playing with his new race track...so i thought it was very cool that both boys were playing quietly on their own!

i know! i know!

Lately, the last thing i feel like doing is blogging......especially the last few days! Wow!! Have you seen this weather!!! Summer?? is that you???

i would give a review, but i want to go back and sit outside.....i just wanted to check in and say 'i don't feel like it'...and since i am not a kid anymore and nobody can tell me what to do..i can get away with it! ;-)

i am more about the face to face communication these days, its important.....so, thats me...will be back when the rain comes or when the mood strikes again!

Week in Review

i haven't written in awhile, and i am not sure where this post will lead me...but alot has happened in the last few weeks, so perhaps a summary.

Chris and i took the boys to the midway that was in town last weekend--Isaac and I loved the rides! I think i have a boy who is going to be a great asset to me in the future when rollercoasters are in front of us...as opposed to my husband who turns green just looking at them! Isaac and i did this airplane ride at the midway where the plane went up and down and actually ended up making me sick...but he was thrilled with it--"like starwars!" he said. Here is a pic of it:



My sister is having a baby!! And though everyone close to me knows that, not many know that she had an ultrasound this last saturday (which i missed-boo!)--and she is having a beautiful BOY!! Check out the little guy giving a thumbs UP! How cool is that?


I will do a full post on Court and Ryans wedding because it was an amazing weekend full of old friends that have become very important to chris and i. But here is a couple shots to tide you over til then! We had a big girls night (laughs, dirty jokes, boobs, food, fondue.....) (this was the shot just prior to the ta-ta cleavage shot!! maybe we'll show that later....we'll see!)
I think what made it such a great night was that EVERYONE was there....we all came back together and between all of us, in the past few years, we have 'traveled and lived in others parts of the world, gotten married, are having kids, buying homes, changing jobs'....seriously--between us all, it's been an exciting gauntlet of things! It was so great--but more on that on another post.

Well, its 10 pm, Chris and i ran tonight and my muscles are sore--so its time for a hot bath and the ritual of chatting with my sis while in the bath...i'm sure her muscles are sore from carrying that big boy in her belly!! This is the best part of pregnancy--right where she is--1/2 way--big enough to feel all the kicks, not too big to feel like a beached whale...sigh--i loved being pregnant..(but don't get me wrong, not enough to look at chris that way again!)

I am off to kelowna this week to stay with my sis....on my way through i am picking up the phil and ted stroller; red in color (not the lime green from the last post), and Rachel, if i don't love it, you get first dibs! ADIOS!

New Addition?

Nope-not pregnant--definatly!! But this or may not be my next stroller--what do you think? Any opinions? I have sold almost ALL my strollers - at least all of the ones that could carry both my children, so no long walks this week (boo)....


It's the lime one below and its in vancouver so i need to figure out a way to get it over here or use it as an excuse to go over....thoughts? Think it would be a good buy? i don't love double strollers they are huge, and this can convert to one or stay a single...

WHAT THE HECK IS THIS!!!!??????

i am honestly crying inside to have woken up to this awful sight! i know, i know....in my past life with no extended winters and grey blahs-this would be a delightful sight--but for a soul that is just holding on to the idea of a summer that may one day appear - this is horrible.....and its STILL snowing as i sit here to type....sigh.Somebody please tell me, lie to me, and say this long long winter will be over soon. i can't keep living on this lake with a jetski already in the water...just waiting to be riden....much longer...

Summer? Hello summer?? are you there??

The weather is seriously whacked out! i drove through a blizzard AGAIN on my way home from town this afternoon! But it was ok...i had a great day with my friends--this morning Amanda and i walked our loop together and i didn't need to stop ONCE to tend children - yay a little muscle burn! And afterwards, we headed out to see Christie and her place spontaneously was the meeting place for Karen, Faye and all their kids...so we had a blast this morning.

Here are some pictures from the weekend....the fountain in lake cowichan is a definate attraction (when the highschool kids don't put dish soap in it!).





We are just getting ready to head over to Marg and Gordons for dinner since chris's grandma is visiting for a few days and thinks the boys have forgotten her! But here is the greatest part---Christie made lunch this afternoon, Marg is making dinner, there is a group in this weekend that is being catered and we get to JOIN IN!! Know what THAT means??? Sharon does not cook til monday!!! Life, sweet life...its being sure to love where you're at, right Megs?

More Cautious??

I just read a friends blog and she has been real careful not to put pics on her blog of her girls due to creepy viewers. Now, i never really think that other than friends and family read my blog--but here in the last post i have 2 shots of little elliot bare bummed! Now i am starting to think that i should be protectiing them a little more from weirdo's out here in web space.....what do you think? I could always put a password on so you have to be invited to read my blog, or just be more cautious of what i post of the boys...but i would need to totally start over if that was the case?

I need advice.....

Little Elliot

For all you reading my blog lately and wondering if i have gone off the deep end, the answer arrived today to why i have been on this hormonal rollercoaster.....For so many years, i was on the pill and didn't experience the highs and lows of a normal girls pms!! Since deciding to get my body totally back to basics, i can't read the signs yet.
So, with this in mind, i am trying to appreciate the boys all the while thinking "Are they ALWAYS this crazy??!! Do i just cope with them better when i am not hormonal??" So, here are some shots of Elliot being totally adorable tonight...an escape from the bath and his hunt for his shoes since he knows he never is allowed out without shoes!! And being the good mom i am, he had wet hair so i made him wear a hat!

This is a shot of Elliot saying goodnight to all his family.....every night chris finds that Elliot settles faster if he has had a chance to say good night to all his grandparents and aunts, uncles, cousins and mom and dads pictures...awwww

The Ups and Downs.....

Having toddlers sure can feel like a rollercoaster ride sometimes--i saw my last post was 'my 2 favorite boys'...well, i was tempted to call this post something different...but we won't go there.

Seriously, i haven't been on coping mode for awhile now--i can normally last until their bedtime--but today from 3 onwards--i was a ticking time bomb and Chris was definatly their bodyguard!! Isaac just doesn't be quiet-EVER!!! And normally i can take it, and sometimes find it quite endearing......but this evening, he was more annoying than usual--loud, obnoxious and despite being yelled at and told to be quiet and behave every few minutes, he was still happy, singing to himself and hopping along..."WHATEVER MOM..."is what he is thinking i'm sure!!

Grrr....but now, they are quiet--i guess thats a sign too--when they crash before the door even closes behind you, you know its cause they were tired and begging in their own (totally lame) way "Put me to BED!"......

SIGH........i hear the couch calling....