My life as I see it.....

Heritage Makers

2011-05-09T21:44:00.000-07:00

It's official, I have joined the Heritage Makers team of consultants. Now I can create beautiful works of art at the tip of my fingers! Check out a couple of the new art collections released this month!

Sign up for a free basic account here www.heritagemakers.com/524572 . This will allow you to view the products, play around with the program and get an idea of how easy it is to use with all the templates we have available!

2010 Olympic Torch Run

2010-11-02T22:55:00.000-07:00

Sisters

2010-10-15T23:58:00.000-07:00

2010-10-14T23:58:00.000-07:00

I took Eva to the pool tonight. I took a different route than she is used to and here is our conversation:

Eva: Mom is this the right way?

Me: Yep, Why? Are you lost?

Eva: No, I in the back.

Me: oh, right

Eva: did you know dat?

HaHa, I thought it was funny but maybe you had to of been there......

My little gymnasts!

2010-10-08T20:00:00.000-07:00

This little monkey is always smiling as she inches across the parallel bars. This is such an accomplishment for her. She has no sense of awareness when it comes to her body and is constantly tripping and falling. She should be proud of herself, I know I am proud of her!

This little girl always amazes me when it comes to sports. She was instructed to jump off the trampoline and land on her feet. That would be too easy for her though. She spiced it up by doing a flip off the end and actually came out of it in one piece!

The girls decided they wanted to try gymnastics this year and we decide ya, OK this could be fun. Well fun is an understatement. I have so much fun watching these 2 explore how their bodies move in this class. Aurora cracks me up, she was trying to do a summer sault out of a round doughnut style mat and every time she bent over to do it she moved her hands out of the way. Can you guess what happened? Yep, she landed on her face. Can you guess how many times in a row? Not more than once you would think after crashing on to your face but not Aurora, she did it 7 or 8 time! I was cracking up so bad! The coach finally saw what was happening and gave her a hand, after all we are there to learn right!

Our furry family is about to grow!

2010-10-07T23:54:00.000-07:00

This is our soon to be baby lionhead bunny. She is 3 weeks old right now.

I try to hold her everyday so that she will be used to being handled. I am sure my kids are going to love to play with her. It's super easy to visit her since she only lives across the street.

We can hardly wait to bring this little baby home. Not sure who is more excited, mom and dad or the kids? Dad has been busy building a hutch for this little cutie over the last week. I am starting to think we should move onto a little hobby farm!

Bring a friend day...

2010-10-07T22:00:00.000-07:00

It was bring a friend day at Eva's skating lessons. She had originally invited her friend Mia aka Maria but unfortunately Marie got very sick that day. It turns out its a good thing to have a big sister. Eva decided to bring Aurora along and told us all that she would help Aurora skate by holding her hand. You have to know that Eva has been skating since she was 2.5 yrs old otherwise you would assume it would be the other way around. Aurora was delighted to have her younger sister hold her hand so she wouldn't fall.

Photo Shoot on the fly!

2010-10-05T23:11:00.001-07:00

I absolutely adore this picture of the girls! Eva spontaneously plopped a big kiss on her sister, Aurora.

I had to run to the grocery store for a few things. I purposely brought my camera along to get some pictures of my girls. I bet you never would have thought these pictures are from the grocery store parking lot.

A friend of mine has asked me to take some pictures of her and her family and so here I am practicing with my own children. I just hope I can come up with some decent pics for my friend.....

West Minster Abbey

2010-08-29T22:00:00.000-07:00

We had planned on going to the Kilby Children's Festival today but when we arrived we found out it was way to expensive for the 6 of us and upon talking to my friend whom was already there we learned it was not worth it so.......

We followed the road through Harrison Mills and wound up in Mission. We could see a Monastery from the highway so we decided to check it out. It was the Westminster Abbey...

We found some wonderful paths to follow and some amazing photo opportunities!

This was the amazing view of the Fraser River from high up on the Abbey property! Too bad there was so much smog.

This is the view of the bell tower at the monastery from the path we followed to the look out.

One of the Monks at the monastery told Eva she was so colorful that she looked like a bouquet of flowers.

Cole also talked to a Monk and asked him if there was a cemetery. The monk asked him why he was so interested in it and he said it was because that's where the dead people are! The monk then asked him if he prayed for the dead and Cole's response was "sometimes" and then the monk blessed him. We wont tell the monk that Cole has no idea what pray means....

What a beautiful day to visit such a beautiful and peaceful place!

Down by the sea....

2010-08-21T22:25:00.000-07:00

I don't know what it is specifically about Crescent Beach that I am drawn to....I make sure I take my kids there every summer like my mom did with me each summer. It could be the the tradition I grew up with my family heading to White Rock every summer and we would watch for a train to pass by and enjoy some hot french fries with some good ol' ketchup to dip in... The rythmic beating of the waves as the tide comes in, or the ice cream smiles, or the excitement of discovery as you turn over rocks and discover crabs...
You can catch a glimpse of the pier in the distance behind Logan. We has wanted to walk to the end and look for starfish but the parking meter had expired so we chose ice cream instead! Eva loves to stand in front of the camera!

This is the cutest bunch of cousins around...cant believe I was able to get them all to sit together and look at the camera!

They were all in a hurry to get down to the beach and try to finds some little crabs. The only thing they found were empty shells and dead crabs but they still thought that was pretty cool!

Go Giants! Go Giants! Go!!

2010-08-20T22:36:00.000-07:00

Tonight was our first time going to the Chilliwack Minor Football Chilli Bowl Tournament. This was the night for Aurora to show off all her cheers she had worked so hard to learn. She was ecstatic that she got to put on her cheer uniform and has such a good time!
Tonight was also Coles night to show off his skills as a defensive line backer for the Giants Atoms Red Team! He had a blast and worked up a real sweat! It was also a big night for Logan. He is playing flag football this year and loving it. It was so funny watching as he was passed the ball and then he ran the wrong way, turned around and almost made it to the end before his flag was taken!

Sunny Days of May......

2010-05-24T23:30:00.000-07:00

Strike a Pose!

2010-05-24T23:24:00.000-07:00

Dad falls off his bike!

2010-04-19T21:59:00.000-07:00

Well this weekend we thought it would be fun to load the bikes into dad's truck and try out the bike track for the first time. It seemed like a good idea at the time....

The girls were all smiles! Eva was ready to take on the big hills but mommy thought she should wait until at least the 2nd time out! With a little coaching and positive talk Aurora even managed to complete the series of small hills. (She hates riding her bike)

Dad thought he would try the hill that his 7 yr old son had done a couple of times...This is how daddy came home from the track. We thought he had broken his ankle but after a trip to the hospital no break but possibly a couple of chips out of the bone... Note to kids: This is not how to ride your bike down a hill! His handle bars turned while his wheel stayed straight and needless to say he flipped off the bike...

A Sparkly Sleep Over......

2010-03-28T22:49:00.000-07:00

Aurora is in her first year of Sparks. I went with her for her first Sparks Sleep Over at the Cultus Lake Community School! The girls enjoyed watching The Princess and the Frog movie in the school gym.

We moved ourselves from the gym into the library.....it was much cosier in there! Here the girls are trying to get their sleeping arrangements sorted out...

After snacks and a story it was time for bed. The girls were all asleep by 10:30pm! A fun time was had by all and I cant wait till the next sleep over with the Sparks! Hopefully next time they will let the moms sleep past 6:55am....not likely.

Seven!

2010-03-20T22:04:00.000-07:00

Seven things I know about you:

1. I love you to the moon and back!

2. You have a great sense of humour...

3. You love to run!

4. You are 7 years old!

5. Ribs are your first choice for dinner!

6. You are well on your way to learning how to read and we are soooo proud of you!

7. Your favourite toys are Transformers and Ben 10

Happy 7th Birthday my big guy! I can't believe it's your seventh all ready.... I wish I could keep you little forever but it's still pretty cool to see you becoming you!

2010-03-08T10:07:00.000-08:00

What my kids say about me...Eva 4yrs 5 months....

Today at 10:06am

Get one of your children to answer these questions & post his/her answers.

1. What is something mom always says to you? No (so not true, daddy says no and then she comes to me for a yes)
2. What makes mom happy? give you kisses and hugs
3. What makes mom sad? no cuddles
4. How does your mom make you laugh? Tickles
5. What was your mom like as a child? i dont know, i didnt know
6. How old is your mom? umm I dont know, what is you?
7. How tall is your mom? bigger
8. What is her favorite thing to do? you loves us
9. What does your mom do when you're not around? come and get me
10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? for love me
11. What is your mom really good at? working at get some food
12. What is your mom not very good at? at eat worms
13. What does your mom do for her job? help me
14. What is your mom's favorite food? pancakes....(I think that is hers)
15. What makes you proud of your mom? making pancakes
16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be? Mom I want a brink (drink) I firsty...
17. What do you and your mom do together? dance
18. How are you and your mom the same? being kind
19. How are you and your mom different? ?
20. How do you know your mom loves you? kisses and hugs
21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go? ummm, go bye bye

All Geared up!

2010-03-03T23:45:00.000-08:00

Say it isn't so!

2010-03-01T22:38:00.000-08:00

I wish I could say she isn't growing up but she is!

I wish I could say she still had all her teeth but she has now lost her 2nd one!

I wish I could say she was still 3 but I can't...

I wish I could keep her at home with me all day but she must go to school.

I love you Aurora but you are growing up way too fast for me!

A Princess Tea Party...

2010-02-20T18:46:00.000-08:00

She's 6 so whats more perfect than a Princess Tea Party for a Princess named Aurora? She loved her Castle cake with none other than Princess Aurora at the front door! It took me about 5 hours to make including the 310 forget me nots that I cut from fondant but was well worth it for my princess!

I thought this flower teacup was so sweet....I found it at the thrift store for $1, how can you beat that!

This cute little bunny teapot was another score from the thrift store and she loved it!

Princess Aurora enjoying her tea with Princess Snow White.....(we served Iced Tea).

It was a great Birthday Party for my girl, I can hardly believe she is 6, seems like she was 3 just yesterday!

Feel the Spirit....

2010-02-18T18:25:00.000-08:00

The Olympics are here! I decided to take the kids out of school for a field trip to Vanocuver so we could check out the free stuff and see what we could find as tourists in our own part of the world.....

The kids were amazing all day....we stood in line for about an hour just to get into the Coke Pavilion located in Live City. I felt like I was jumping onto a plane just getting through the security to enter Live City. Our bags were looked through and our stuff put into bins for searching and we even walked through body sized security machines. I do appreciate the fact that we were kept safe though and it was really a quick process. Once inside we stood in line for about an hour to enter the Coke Pavilion, the kids were amazing, no one whined! The best part for the kids was saying "Hi" to the Coke bear!

While we were wandering the streets we came upon Fin the Canucks mascott. The kids were super excited to see this guy!

Look can you see the fence, I mean the Olympic Flame from the Cauldron? The fencing around the Cauldron was a bit much and totally an eyesore but at least we had the opportunity to see it....

Afte 10 and a half hours on the streets of Vancouver this is exactly what I wanted to do. Eva fell asleep while we were walking to the Stadium Skytrain and stayed asleep during the entire train ride.....

Haiti

2010-01-30T13:06:00.000-08:00

I am creating a scrapbook as a gift to a friend who was in Haiti when the quake hit and is currently still in Haiti doing whatever he can. Frank was on his way to Haiti to check on the Rescue Houses that Kings Kids Worlwide operates. If you would like to Donate to Kings Kids 100% of the donations goes to the children. Although this is not a happy time for Frank and Esther this is a memory and life changing event that has occured in their lives. My hope is that one day they will be able to use the book to tell their story.....

December 16

2010-01-02T22:16:00.000-08:00

December 15

2010-01-02T22:13:00.000-08:00

December 14

2010-01-02T22:12:00.001-08:00

December 13

2010-01-02T22:10:00.002-08:00

December 11

2010-01-02T22:08:00.000-08:00

December 10

2010-01-02T22:06:00.001-08:00

December 9

2010-01-02T21:42:00.001-08:00

December 8

2010-01-02T21:41:00.000-08:00

December 6

2010-01-02T21:35:00.000-08:00

December 5

2010-01-02T21:34:00.000-08:00

December 4

2010-01-02T21:29:00.001-08:00

December 3

2010-01-02T10:54:00.000-08:00

December 1

2010-01-02T10:52:00.001-08:00

It's gonna be a challenge!

2009-11-15T23:51:00.000-08:00

I am taking a free digital class over at Jessica Sprague. The first assignment is to make a list of your values/goals for the holidays and put them down in ink or on your blog so you can confirm them to yourself. So the challenge to me is to actually make the list and follow through with the entire class!

My words:
-family
-traditions
-laughter
-friends
-rest
-friendship
-food
-memories
-hot chocolate
-baking
-ornaments
-crafts
-snuggles
-smells
-fire
-carols
-lights

At the end of the day it is her hair!

2009-10-24T21:07:00.001-07:00

Aurora has been asking to have her hair cut short like mine for quite a while now. I used to take her and get an inch cut off. Well after 3 long weeks of discussion about not being able to have a pony tail or braids she was still determined to have it cut off. I thought about it and decided its not my hair its hers and at the end of the day it will grow.....

This is how cute she looked after she had the 8 inches cut off! I bit my lip the entire time but once it was done I thought she looked so cute!

She's 4! Can that be?

2009-10-18T20:29:00.000-07:00

It seems it was just yesterday she was my baby. Today she is 4! Happy Birthday sweet girl!
Mom: You are the birthday girl
Angel: No I not, I just Eva
mom: Yes you are, its your birthday and you are a girl
Angel: No I just Eva, just Eva!

Here is another conversation we had while cuddling in my bed...
Mom: You are getting so big
Angel: I grow and grow and I not fit your bed
Mom: Yes you will, are you still going to cuddle with me when you are 30?
Angel: No
Mom: Why?
Angel: I be too big, I pop your bed

Her first Citation!

2009-10-08T20:39:00.000-07:00

We are very proud parents although her kindness doesn't surprise us. Aurora got her first citation for just being herself. A little Kindergarten friend was crying because there wasn't a swing for her so Aurora put her arm around her and said come on, lets go play on the slide. Off they went and the little friend was happy! Way to go baby!

You so happy?

2009-10-02T21:01:00.001-07:00

This cutie had a blast at her first skating lesson of the season. She is becoming so independent and it is amazing to see this transformation! She insisted she take her own skates of. In the midst of taking them off she turned to me and said "Mommy, you so happy me have fun?" Yes baby girl Mommy is happy that you had fun!

Back to School....

2009-09-11T12:35:00.000-07:00

All Smiles all the time!

2009-09-07T22:12:00.001-07:00

Paper is a freebie from Jady Day Studios, Journal spot is a freebie from Jennifer Edwards journalling challange

Monkey Motion!

2009-08-19T00:06:00.001-07:00

We are vacationing in Kelowna this week and took a drive into Penticton today. We took the kids for our 2nd annual family canal ride. Last year when we went Eva slept on me the entire way. This year, not so much....she decided to hop into the canal and then scream in sheer terror when her feet hit the weeds! Yeah, everyone looked at as and were probably thinking we were hurting her but what do they know anyways! I don't have any pictures of the canal ride to post because I didn't want to risk getting my camera wet. What I do have pictures of is these 3 monkeys at Loco Landing also found in Penticton. These particular pictures are of the kids having an amazing time on the Monkey Motion ride!

This little monkey thought it was pretty cool how high she could jump. She wasn't brave enough to try a flip on her own but the attendant was kind enough to help her flip over....

This monkey had No Fear when it cam to doing flips on the monkey motion! I think he managed to get 3 successful flips done. The funny part was the first flip he didn't grab back on to the ropes and wound up hanging upside down and eventually fell out of his harness! It was soooo funny to watch. He obviously wasn't traumatized because he got right back in and attempted a couple more!This little monkey was not so brave either. She did have huge smiles while doing her "high" jumps. You can always count on her to release shrieks of pure enjoyment!

On a treasure hunt!

2009-08-15T14:43:00.000-07:00

Bliss??

2009-08-13T22:07:00.000-07:00

Me so happy!

2009-07-27T00:09:00.000-07:00

This photo certainly shows her excitement when mommy brought home new jammies for her! Unfortunately it is impossible to find Wall.e clothing for girls so I didn't even think twice when I found this summer jammie set in the boys section for Eva. She obviously doesn't care if it was intended for boys!

Look mom!

2009-07-26T23:14:00.000-07:00

The other day Logan came out of his room after I asked him to get dressed and stated "Look Mom, I'm just like Dad"! He thought he was pretty cool having no shirt on just like dad! I thought he was pretty cool too!

Lazy Days of Summer!

2009-07-17T23:08:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderfully hot day for a wonderful Play date with some great friends!
All the kids had a good time being "Ice Archaeologists". This is a fun activity to do with kids of many ages. All I did was freeze water in layers while adding a variety of things for the kids to dig out. I gave them many tools to get the items out. Their favourite seemed to be the medicine syringe and warm water....
The 2 cutest girlie's catching some rays while soaking in the pool!

Happy 75th Birthday Nan!

2009-07-12T20:41:00.000-07:00

Today we celebrated my Grandmothers 75th Birthday. The whole family gathered together at my Aunt and Uncles place in Rosedale. There was lots to keep the kids busy. They started off the afternoon by cruising the property on the little tractor pulling the firewood behind. They quickly moved on to the chickens. The chickens didnt stand a chance with Logan and Cole around. After a bit the kids convinced Uncle Randy to catch them a chicken. Once they had that chicken in their hot little hands the kids packed it around for at least half an hour!

Eva sure had a fun time with my Uncle and her Great Uncle Randy! There is nothing better than sharing a good laugh together.

Some one forgot to watch the hot dogs! Everyone was blaming everyone else and no one owned up to the blackened wieners, ah well at least there was chicken and hamburgers....

Always an opportunity for this girl to pose even when its with a chicken....lol!

Happy Birthday! I can hardly believe Nan is 75! She certainly doesn't act like she is 75! She is still full of energy and always ready for a good birthday party! Looking forward to celebrating many more to come! Love you Nan!

Today we made art!

2009-07-07T21:11:00.000-07:00

This was a cool little art experiment I found over here. It was a boring, lazy, rainy day.....We had done nothing all day except watch movies and nap. I thought it was about time we did something fun and here it is!

I squirted the shaving cream into a glass casserole dish. I squirted paint onto the shaving cream and let the kids go at mixing it around. We then took turns putting our pre-cut papers into the dish.

Here we have our finished art projects! What a fun and simple thing to do!

Sassy!

2009-07-07T00:27:00.000-07:00

Taking a free class here with Jessica Sprague. Here is what I did on the first day.....I allready knew how to add the frame and word art but its nice to do it again because it reminds you of some keyboard clicks you have forgotten about!

This is my youngest monkey who decided it would be a blast to put the chalk all over her face rather than the sidewalk!

I just love Summer evenings!

2009-07-05T11:52:00.001-07:00

Tonight we were out gathering rocks at the river for my flower bed in the front lawn. The kids were having a blast running and playing in the tall grass.....I remembered I had my camera with me and was lucky enough to catch some great pictures of the kids!

Let's give spencer something to look forward to every day!

2009-07-03T22:18:00.000-07:00

I always read this blog and when she requested everyone to send a $1 Spencer, a boy with Cancer that is not expected to live through the summer, I thought what an awesome idea! Join me and many others in sending $1 to Spencer! The contest is over but thats not what its about anyways. Below is some information I copied from Lisa's blog.....

One of my sweet neighbors, Dana Lyman, has a dear friend whose son is in the final stages of cancer. He most likely will not live through the summer. She just spent the last week at his house in Portland, Oregon and since that time has been brainstorming to come up with something fun to do for Spencer. She finally thought of it. She's asking people everywhere to send an envelope to Spencer with a dollar bill inside. Think how great that will be--a mailbox full of envelopes containing a $1 bill. Do not include your return address. This will add to the fun and mystery. He'll know where all envelopes have come from by the postmark. And--if you live in a different country, please participate too. I think Spencer will get quite a kick seeing currency from different countries. This really is easy--no card or creativity required!Please address your envelope to: Spencer Hardy17968 NW Gilbert Lane Portland, OR 97229

The bravest kids oh my!

2009-06-24T00:22:00.000-07:00

When I was 3 I doubt you would have caught me trying to pull a 190lb Burmese Python back into my lap so I could snuggle with it! I betcha I would have been in tears, but not Eva! I don't know how many times I pulled this snake back into her lap but it was just too strong for her. The other python in the back ground is 140lbs! That's the one daddy held around his neck. I never would have thought I would even touch a snake never mind be in the same room as one that wasn't behind some sort of glass but I did it. I think the little ones brought out some bravery in us adults.....

This big 6 yr old is proudly holding a Caiman. Again no fear just smiles. This Caiman was very tame. He never opened his mouth at the children. He was just looking around checking out the scenery....

This blows my mind! I can not believe my 5 yr old wanna be Princess actually held a hairy and gross Tarantula! I couldn't even gather up the nerves to hold this one!

Going to School

2009-06-15T23:07:00.001-07:00

I have been taking Eva to the Montessori Preschool that Aurora currently attends. The intention is to give Eva a chance to practice going to school and being around other children. She tried going to preschool this past September but it was too overwhelming for her. I am finding her experience this time is much more pleasant. Eva loves any activity that involves using covering her hands and feeling various sensations. I could barely pry her away from this activity......As you can tell she thoroughly enjoyed herself and is well on her way to becoming a baker! Another activity Eva enjoys is transferring water from one container to another. This activity is really good for her fine motor skills. You can see the concentration on her face. I love the fact that the Montessori environment does not have any toys but only activities that will help the child with daily life skills. I also love that the Montessori method allows the child to decide what activity they would like to work on and for what period of time.

Who Said......

2009-06-12T10:02:00.000-07:00

Who said......My little boy could start losing his teeth and gaining adult teeth?

Who said......My little boy could be old enough to decide he wants a Mohawk?

Who said......My little boy could finish Kindergarten and move on to grade 1?

Who said......My little boy could get out of a car seat and in to a booster seat?

Who said......My little boy could learn to print his first and last name?

Who said......My little boy could keep growing taller?

Who said......My little boy could learn to ride a 2 wheel bike?

Who said......My little boy could make me so proud of all the things he has mastered this year?

Is this really spring?

2009-06-04T23:45:00.000-07:00

Aren't these bathing beauties super cute.....I can say that because after all they are mine! These kids are ready for some serious fun cooling down!

Seriously.....it has been sooo nice! I am loving it and can hardly wait for school to be out for the summer! We have had record breaking temps for this time of year....according to the Vancouver Sun Newspaper, Chilliwack was a Fraser Valley hot spot on June 3rd with a record high of 34.4, beating the old mark of 32.6 on the same date in 1989.

This boy captures everyones heart with that smile....my wish for him is that he keeps smiling always...

Sunscreen, swim suits, goggles, sister, pool and oh yes we cant forget the pose! They certainly take their pictures seriously.....

She just might break some hearts! Not so sure I want to see the teen years.....

We are going to the zoo how 'bout you?;'

2009-06-03T16:31:00.000-07:00

The kids were so excited to be going on the bus to the ZOO! Logan must have told me 10 time last night that we had to make sure we went to school on time so we didnt miss the bus. What was he trying to say? That we are always late....Well today we were actually early! Yay us! I think the bus was the best part of the day for Logan. This smiling face says it all. Ok well maybe the train ride was the best part of the day. Logan loves trains! We were in charge of taking 2 of his classmates with us around the zoo. Papa came along for the fieldtrip with us. Can you spot him calling out "All aboard"?

Not sure what this animal is but Aurora thought it was a good opportunity to strike a pose!

What better way to finish off the day than with a Lifesavers Popsicle.....Thanks Papa!

Island Fun!

2009-05-25T20:14:00.000-07:00

We went to Campbell River for the weekend. Relatives of ours were getting married and there was no way we were going to miss it! We decided at the last minute on Thursday that we were going to leave. By the time we left Chilliwack it was 6:58 pm and we were trying to catch the last ferry at 9pm. Guess what, we made it in plenty of time. We didn't get into Campbell River until almost 1am! The kids were troopers and everyone was happy even at that time! We stayed at the Anchor Inn. We enjoyed it there because there was nobody staying there! The kids loved the pool and the best part was the beach front view from our room! We also had beach access from the hotel.

The kids had a great time exploring the beach and discovering the sea creatures underneath the rocks. I convinced Aurora to hold a crab but Logan was too afraid to touch them. He however had no problems prying the starfish from the rocks!

Nothing like enjoying an ice cream cone while watching sailboats on the Ocean!

The girls had a great time showing off their dance moves and the guests at the wedding enjoyed watching them. It's amazing how confident you are when you are young that you don't care who is watching you....

I was surprised how much the kids liked the ferry. I remember being terrified when my mom took my sister and I on the Ferry, for some reason I always thought the wind would blow me right off the boat!

Catching up

2009-05-16T01:04:00.000-07:00

I am still working on pictures from last Summer! This is the camping trip we took in September. The kids were just 2 weeks into school and I took them out for one last piece of Summer Fun! (I will try and figure out what supplies I used and give credit at a later time.)

Cheam Wetlands

2009-05-15T21:55:00.000-07:00

What a beautiful day for a picnic at the Cheam Wetlands with our friends. The kids had a day off of school today so why not enjoy the sun! We packed our lunch, rounded up the troops and hit the trails. The kids called it an adventure and loved roaming the trails filling their pockets with rocks.

Eva invented her own juice box holder. Logan was so proud of catching this butterfly with his bare hands!

I did it!

2009-05-10T13:47:00.000-07:00

This year a couple of my friends and I entered the Envision Run for Mom. The run raises money for much need equipment in the maternity ward of the Chilliwack Hospital.

This is me and my girls doing the warm up before the race. They had a blast warming up to the beat of the music! My husband and son were there as well as my in-laws to cheer me on in my first ever run. I managed to run the 5km without stopping to walk! This is a huge accomplishment for me and I must say I am definitely proud of myself! My time was approximately 32 minutes but cant say for sure because I didn't realize the race wasn't being timed for the 5km event. Guess I know now for next year! Here I am with picture proof that I made it! I was sooooo tired and so very hot! What a great event for Mothers Day! Next year the kids will be doing the 1km event. They wanted to do it this year but I hadn't registered them, thought they wouldn't want to do it, silly me.....

Bingo Dauber Fun!

2009-05-06T21:29:00.001-07:00

We had a little craft time tonight before bed. This is something new for the kids. We used bingo daubers to fill in the dots on the pictures. They thought it was pretty cool! You can find the downloads here.

Stop and smell the Flowers!

2009-05-06T20:56:00.000-07:00

Sunday afternoon we took a little drive out to Seabird Island to have a look at the Tulips of the Valley. It was the last day so a lot of the Tulips had been cut but I must say there was still a million and a half to look at! The kids had a great time, the hubby not his first choice of family activities but he was a good sport.... The kids loved the flowers and spontaneously kept holding hands. It was sooo cute!

Vegas Vecation!

2009-04-26T20:36:00.000-07:00

We made a decision at the last minute to head to Vegas! It was pretty incredible in Vegas. Neither of us had been there before and this was our first time away from the kids since our adoptions 2 years ago. I must admit I struggled with leaving them behind but know we needed the time away together. I am so fortunate to have such a wonderful friend that took all 3 kids for the 5 days we were away.

My favourite site was this one from the strip in front of Caesars Palace! I found it beautiful, peaceful looking and to top it off there was an amazing fountain show every 1/2 hour.

We stayed at the Flamingo which was pretty much in the middle of the strip. We found the hotel a bit too old for our liking but now we know where we wont be staying next time. The good thing was we rarely spent any time in our room because there was so much to see and do in Vegas.

We made it a point to go the the M&M's Factory just so we could get the kiddo's some special treats. The place was huge, they had 4 floors of stuff! The M&M's were $11.99us per lb. We passed on those but did pick up some cute containers with M&M's for the kids.

This is a picture of the happy couple on their way up the many levels of the Venetian. The weather was great (34c), and we had an awesome time! We hope to go back again with the kids.....

Happy 6th Birthday Son!

2009-03-20T00:36:00.001-07:00

This little cutie turned 6 on Wed! He is growing so very fast. We had a party planned for him at the skating rink. Unfortunately the entire family wound up with the flu. We had to cancel the morning of his party:( I wasn't even sure we were going to be able to give him his present, a new bike! The tough part was he was no longer sick but mom and dad sure were. At the end of the day I dragged myself out of bed and got his bike out of hiding. I wound up sitting at the end of the driveway in my pj's just so he could try his new bike. The things moms have to do for their young! Love you Logan, wish we could of had a better day but we will make up to you some how!

These boots were made for modeling!

2009-03-01T21:23:00.000-08:00

Eva was lucky enough to get these pink Dora boots from her friend Keira. She found them in a box of hand me downs and once she saw them she just had to put them on! I am sure these will be a favourite for a long time....at least till her feet out grow them!

Pinkalicious good time.....

2009-02-23T21:33:00.000-08:00

What more could little girl turning 5 want than a Pinkalicious party? My baby is now 5. She is growing up so fast. I love how she smiles all day everyday. She talks with the kindest words and straight from the heart. This is a quality I hope she keeps forever. We had a few of her closets girlfriends over and we celebrated in PINK! Aurora absolutely loved her pink Angel food cake cupcakes! They were definitely Yummy!!

The mother of Aurora's pre-school friend, Autumn painted all the girls faces. They all waited so patiently to have butterfly faces. I must say this made the party!

Still 4 but almost 5!

2009-02-18T21:51:00.001-08:00

Wow! Is the time ever flying by. I can hardly believe we will be celebrating her 5Th birthday in 2 more sleeps! It feels like it was just yesterday we were adopting this beautiful 3 and a half year old. I can't believe how much she has grown not only physically but in height and personality. I love you princess and can't wait to celebrate your big day!

Valentine Brag Book!

2009-02-07T20:13:00.001-08:00

It has been a long time since I have added any new work I have done. Today I finally have something to share with you! I created this cute little album for my mom for Valentine's Day. I used a digital kit found at Studio Girls. It is super cute and super easy! I had them printed at Walmart and then put them in a little album I took apart and re-bound it with ribbon. I used both the front and back cover of the original album so it would be a little more sturdy. On 2 of the pages I added alphabet stickers to the picture after it was printed. Enjoy!

My New Adventure has started!

2009-01-18T20:48:00.000-08:00

My friend Carla and I have embarked on a new journey. We have created a Kit of the Month club! The best part is it's not only beautiful but it's affordable! I am so excited to share this with everyone. If you are interest in joining our club or just want to receive the monthly emails just sign up for our Newsletter on the right hand side of my blog!

5 Cardstock Sheets
6 That's Amore Double Sided Patterned Paper
2 That's Amore My Stickease Cardstock Stickers
6 Assorted Love Always Journaling Spots
1 yard of Ribbon
16 Assorted Brads & Buttons
1 My Acrylix Stamp
Spring 2009 Idea Book

Montessori at home!

2009-01-07T20:27:00.001-08:00

I am a HUGE fan of the Montessori Method. My 2 school aged children have been in Montessori preschool as well as Montessori Kindergarden. My youngest is not quite ready to go to pre-school so I thought I would bring it to her. I have set up the spare bedroom in our house with Montessori style learning materials. The children love having this special room for the learning activities. The best part is they don't know they are learning and it's fun!
Here you can see my youngest carefully putting her beads on her pipe cleaners to make a beautiful flower. I purchased the cheese shaker at the dollar store and had pony beads at home. I cut the flowers using my Cricut machine and laminated them for durability. This is my variation of the flower beading activity I found on one of my favourite blogs! This is the first activity my girls choose every time we go into the room.

2008-12-27T01:09:00.000-08:00

What a joy it was to see the smiles on the kids faces this year. We did Christmas a little different this year. We stayed home! The kids were actually able to play with their new toys this year. It was just the 5 of us and it was perfect!

Santa Train

2008-12-14T20:29:00.000-08:00

We took the kids on the WCE Santa train. In exchange for a toy you received a ticket for the train. The kids were looking forward to seeing Santa but he must have been too busy so Mrs. Claus came instead. Logan thought we were going on the Polar Express.

We had a 5hr wait in Vancouver so used up some of the time watching The Nutcracker in 3D. It was a good movie and the kids really enjoyed how close the pictures seemed to be.

We also took the Sea bus over to the Lonsdale Quay. Angelica enjoyed watching the candy maker make his candy.

After a long day the girls took a much needed nap on daddy! Ahhh can you hear the quiet?

The new do!!!

2008-12-04T22:37:00.001-08:00

This was a major event for Eva. In the summer I tried having her hair cut and she sat in the chair and cried. This time she was the 2ND in the chair after her brother and she was excited! She now has a new hair cut to go with the new Christmas dress with the cutest new Dora the Explorer dress shoes. Hope she co-operates as much tomorrow for her pictures with Nana and Papa!

Soccer is over

2008-11-29T23:51:00.000-08:00

Look at this cute Goalie. He loves the game of Soccer. He is pretty good at it too!
Today was the last game of Soccer for the season. The kids played on the new turf field at Townsend Park today for a special treat. It rained and poured but everyone survived! At least there was not mud!

My 3 Pumpkins!

2008-11-19T11:56:00.001-08:00

What a day we had at the pumpkin patch! The day before was absolutely beautiful so of course the day we went to the pumpkin patch with the school it had to rain like crazy! I still had a great time with my mom and kids picking out the perfect pumpkin.

Ready, Set, Shoot!

2008-10-29T22:48:00.001-07:00

I am happy that I decided to cancel our appointment with Sears Photography last weekend. I love how these pics of the kids at the park turned out. It's not hard to take good pictures when your subjects are happy and willing to co-operate!

Originally Logan wanted to be Spider Man. I bought him a Spider Man costume about a month ago and he has had absolute fun wearing it! He's been Spider Man at the grocery store, Aurora's soccer game and even used his spidey power to ride his 2-wheel bike. I found this elephant costume in my closet and he has now decided he would rather be an elephant. At least I got my monies worth out of the Spider Man costume and the pleasure of seeing Logan smile!

Miss Aurora decided she wanted to be a Beautiful Witch. She is definately beautiful! I call her my Enchanted Witch.

Eva picked out the Pink Poodle Costume on her own. She is the most cute and silly Pink Poodle I have ever seen! She calls herself "puppy" all the time so it's no wonder she chose this costume!

What we've been up to!

2008-10-27T22:18:00.001-07:00

We've been to the Pumpkin Patch with Global Montessori Preschool. It wasn't the ideal weather conditions with the rain pouring down but we still had fun!

Aurora got a Dora the Explorer hockey jersey and couldn't wait to show it off. Daddy took her to the bruins game that night and she couldn't have been happier! She even got her cute little mugshot on the the Jumbo tron during the singing of O'Canada.

We went on a trip to the Vancouver Aquarium followed by an afternoon dinner at the Old Spaghetti Factory in Gas Town.

Brother and Sister Love

2008-10-23T21:06:00.000-07:00

This is my final assignment in the Up & Running class I am taking. I can't say I liked the papers provided for this assignment but now that the project is done it's not so bad. Still not something I would have chosen! I loved the techniques I learned in this assignment. By the way, Jessica Sprague is offering a free class, check it out here!

How does your garden grow?

2008-10-20T20:53:00.000-07:00

This was the first Summer in our new house. There was an area in the backyard that looked as if it was a parking spot. Jeff's Dad helped us haul all the gravel out of the area and then Jeff and I hauled in dirt. What a job. The kids helped by filling up flower pots and dumping it in the new garden. The best part was digging holes and planting our potatoes!

She's 3!!! Happy Birthday Princess Angelica!

2008-10-19T22:30:00.000-07:00

She is very much into Wall E right now. She watched the movie a few times and has now changed her name to Eve. She pronounces it Eva. Since there was not a cake pan for the little white robot Eve I settled for Wall E. She was one happy little girl!

Can your daughter do this?

2008-10-12T20:34:00.000-07:00

Mine can! The first time she crossed her eyes we were out for lunch at a restaurant. Of course I didn't have my camera with me. It was sooo funny. Not sure how she learned to do it cause none of us can do it. She did it again tonight and she agreed to let me take a picture of it! I was laughing so hard on the kitchen floor that I was gasping for air! Angelica didn't quite know what was wrong with me.

Sweet Dreams Baby....

2008-10-05T23:44:00.001-07:00

This layout is of my youngest. She was so tired that night when I tucked her in. I went in later to make sure she still had her blankets on and there she was on the floor! When I picked her up she looked around dazed and I asked her if she fell out of bed. She nodded her head and said yes in a sweet little whiny voice. I put her back in bed and the next time i checked she had turned in her bed and her feet were hanging off. Must of had a lot to do in her dreams....
Quick template by Rhonna Farrer. The date stamp is from Designer Digitals.

What I did this weekend:

2008-09-30T22:39:00.001-07:00

This weekend I was off to BC Crop for Kids. It was a weekend Scrap booking fundraiser for BC Children's Hospital. It was a very successful event raising over $22,000. They are all ready making the plans for next year! Can't wait to go again!!! Jeff stayed at home with the kids and managed to take them to their soccer games, feed them, give them naps and even take them all to a hockey game. The most amazing thing was coming home to a clean house and happy kids! Way to go Daddy!

Here is a look at the mini album I made for my niece. I took old Cd's that we don't use anymore and altered them into this cute little album. Now all I need to do is fill in a little message for my niece and it will be complete!

What am I up to?

2008-09-30T22:01:00.000-07:00

Other than dishes I am collecting pictures to document a week in my life. Ali Edwards has inspired my to join her in a project called A week in the Life. The basic idea is to capture bits of life to put in an album. So far I am enjoying this project and think the end result will be quite neat. I would like to repeat it again in a year or 2 to see how much life has changed. Join in if you want, you can start anytime. It's your project!

Quick Page to Share.

2008-09-24T23:07:00.000-07:00

This is a free quick page done by Lori Barnhursrt over at Little Dreamer Designs. This is my daughter and her friend during a Summer Dance program at Capella Dance Academy. They certainly enjoyed their 4 weeks of classes!

Digital gone camping

2008-09-20T23:26:00.000-07:00

This is a layout I did while sitting by the campfire. Who would of thought you would be scrapping on a computer at a campground? This layout is from the Up & Running class I am taking at Jessica Sprague. It was my first layout using a template. Love the template idea because it takes all the fuss out of cutting papers and photos down to the right size!

Camped out

2008-09-20T22:17:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love this tent. It is a bit of over kill but was such a good deal. It is meant to sleep 13 people but the 3 kids and I went camping on our own. Loved having the room to stand up straight and walk around the beds. We lucked out and made it home before the rains came! We had a great time at Cultus Lake for our first camping trip. It may only be a 5 min drive from our house but is a totally different atmoshphere!
This sneaky guy came and lifted the lid off my food box to steal out marshmallows as I sat by the fire working on digital scrapbooking. The kids werent happy to wake the next morning and hear the racoon had stole all the marshmallows.

Who can ride with two?

2008-09-14T21:34:00.001-07:00

Logan can, that's who!!! What an exciting time to see your oldest child learn to ride a two wheel bike. We are so proud of this major accomplishment. Daddy decided to teach him how to do skids. This is how he got the skinned knee. I had to pry it out of daddy by threatening to ask Logan....hehehe!!!

Digital layout

2008-09-04T22:39:00.001-07:00

I finally have a digital layout completed! I have been working on this one off and on for a couple of weeks now. This is an assignment from my class.
Here is the basic outline for this assignment:
Create a new blank document
Open and add a white paper (doesn't have to be the background)
Use multiple photos (practicing from Lesson 2)
Install and stamp at least one of our new Stamped Moments brushes
Add anything else you like from your "digi stash" to create a layout!

Our Soccer Star!

2008-09-04T20:40:00.000-07:00

Last night was Aurora's first soccer practice. She is so proud to be on her own soccer team rather than standing on the sidelines cheering for her brother. She was so happy to be kicking the ball and kept screaming "oh yeah"!!!! What a superstar!

Look who's going to school!

2008-09-03T22:06:00.000-07:00

I can hardly believe the day is here that I have to take my youngest to her first day of pre-school. As much as I didn't want to do it, I did it! Fortunately she has great teachers and both her siblings are in the class as well.

Look how big she has gotten! We still call her a baby but really she isn't a baby any more:(

What a great bunch of helpers Logan and Aurora are! They guided and helped Angel for her first day any way they could. They are so luck to have each other! I hope they love each other this much in the teen years!

What's your name today???

2008-09-01T21:21:00.000-07:00

Angelica has been so cute lately. She is not yet able to pronounce her name so she calls herself "E" because we call her "Jelly". Recently the kids watched the movie WALL.E Angel is now asking daily if she can watch the movie. She has even changed her name to Wall.e or Eve (pronounced Eva). We call her and she will say "No, I Eva or no, I Wall.e" We took a trip to Toys r Us this weekend looking for a WALL.E toy but had no luck. Daddy took her to Walmart the next day and she came home with a WALL.E and an EVE toy. She screamed in delight in the store and totes those toys everywhere!

Did you fall out of bed?

2008-08-23T23:58:00.000-07:00

Each night my husband and I tuck our children in to their beds. I am always the last one to bed and peek one last time at the kids to see if anyone has lost their blankets or fallen out of bed. So far no one has fallen out of bed until tonight! I went to peek in on the girls and this is what I found:

Jelly Bean

2008-08-19T22:26:00.000-07:00

Can't she just stay this little forever? This is my 2nd layout in the class I am taking. So far I am finding it takes just as long to do a digital layout as paper. I hope that changes with time and experience!

My 1st Digital layout!

2008-08-18T21:34:00.000-07:00

I held off trying Digital scrapping for as long as I could because I just knew I would like it! Here it is, my first ever Digital layout!

Going Digital!

2008-08-18T13:51:00.000-07:00

I am taking my first Digital course with Jessica Sprague. The class is called Up & Running with Photoshop. This is one of the quick layouts in the class. I am really liking the digital layouts but need to use up my supplies I already have!

A Penny for your thoughts?

2008-08-12T23:06:00.001-07:00

U-Pick Blueberries Mmmm....

2008-07-30T21:51:00.000-07:00

Follow us mom, it's this way! After reading that she could go pick Blueberries with 13 children I figured it couldn't be that bad with 3 kids! I was right, we had fun. The kids picked a few and ate a few and then ate a few more! We wound up with about 12lbs of Blueberries not including the ones in the kids tummies. Guess that means we will be making Blueberry Cornmeal Muffins for the next few months!

Aurora my Blueberry eater, oops...I mean picker!

Angelica: Look mommy, see, see
Me: Wow, good girl, keep picking

Just a minute later they were all gone and in her belly!