tis the season?

After being sick for over a week it feels good to be feeling much better.  Hubby had the stomach flu last week then we all got it by the weekend.  Too bad that it hit the kids and me on the sleepover day/night at Amma and Ampas.

We have been busy buying gifts for birthdays and christmas already.   I think that in the next few years we are going to have to find a way to simplify things especially with my family.  We only get together with certain individuals very rarely and the large family get together thing is getting to be too much.

It has been unusually warm with no snow here.  November 25 and no big snow yet (except for a freak snowstorm at Thanksgiving)!

Kids and I have been busy putting up all the outside lights and getting things ready but soon we will have to do the other decorations.  Should be interesting if the cat want to climb the christmas tree.   We may do a real one this year, so I will have to see.

it has been a long week!!

Well this week I began it feeling really bad for a family and the turmoil of break up.   One of my big girl's friend has parents that are separating.  She came to school the other day crying after getting off the bus and I felt really bad for her.  I just cannot imagine what a five year old thinks and how they would deal with something like that.  I guess I realize that how truly sensitive I am to these things. I guess now in hindsight there were small signs. I have told the mom that if she needs to talk I am there.  I guess she is dealing with it.

I made a point of going to see my dad this week to see how he was doing and preferred to do it by myself.  He is doing really well and it is quite odvious that this is the safest place for him and get the best care.  He has Alzheimers, Parkinsons and diabetes to boot.   You don't really notice he is really sick until he says that someone beats him up behind the shed outside.

It is turning out to be a busy week with preparations for big girl's birthday bash with her friends tomorrow at the Children's Museum. It should be great fun. Made yummy cupcakes from a family chocolate cake recipe for family party on Sunday. Lets hope icing them is a piece of cake. Ha ha.

she is growing up...

Well my big girl told me today. "Mommy I am four years old and I can go to the washroom all by myself. "

I had to chuckle to myself at that comment. Here she is almost turning 5 next Monday and she is tring to learn how to read, write and understanding basic math. We had our parent teacher meeting last week and she is doing great. She is doing really well. She is beginning to learn French and doesn't really realize it. Her teacher is great and is really in tune with how kids learn. My big girl is smaller than others in her class but she is developing friends really well.

She is also learning right now how to skate, swim and curl as well. We are in a learning explosion right now in that she is willing to try stuff. As a parent you want them to to learn some basic skills but we you see them excel and really enjoy doing something is makes you feel great and soo happy.

I am so proud of her and happy that she is enjoying it. Both are in gymnastics as well. Not sure where she is going to go with all of this. But willing to let her try it.

My little one wants to do and try everything, but the doors will really open up for her when she is 3. I am excited to see what she wants to do and what she likes...golf, curling, swimming, singing? The possibilities are endless.

Halloween already?

My apologies on being a bad blogger. I have no idea where my days and nights go.

Here we are an Halloween is upon us. This time of year everything comes fast and furious..school starts then it is Halloween, birthday #1 and then birthday #2 then Christmas. Wham bang boom!

There is alot going on with other people, catching up with friends (had dinner at Fude) and dealing with lots of stuff.

I did the Run for the Cure even with being sick. It was hard at first but I kept pushing myself then I found one of my ladies and pushed her. I even felt not too terribly horrible most of the way.

My latest endeavor is Boot Camp. I mentionned to the lady who runs nursery school and is in great physical health that running for 30 min on a treadmill is not doing it for me. She suggested that I try her boot camp. I went the first night and pushed myself. I managed to keep up thanks to running. After I came home I was almost in a coma and went to bed. I was exhausted. For two days after, I had pain all over. Boot camp is cadio, weights, core, skipping, you name it and I will probably do it. I really do feel great doing it, pay for it for a couple of days and then give myself a rude awakening the next week. This week we did manmakers and played tag. I felt 16 again.

It is really tough to find time to exercise even with having free time 2 1/2 hours three times a week. That is it folks. No wonder stay at home moms start to lose it after 5 years. It is the hardest job I have ever done.

Anyways, Halloween is almost upon us and the activites are in full swing today..parties at schools tomorrow. My kids are going to be done on Sunday let alone the time change.

We had our H1N1 shots on Tuesday. Glad we have done it as it makes me feel a little bit better in that I taking precautions hopefully.

hack hack sniff sniff

So here we are, all of us in our family seem to be sniffling, coughing or hoarse voiced. I am just wondering is we are all suffering from swine flu or what. I think it is just a cold that is running its coarse because I have felt worse. Is all the hysteria surrounding this just mass hysteria for not?

Countless literature from school, places of activities tell you to keep you kids at home but what if you are fine except for a sniffle?

Running for the Cure

I am really happy to report that since I have decided to tell some folks in the running community that I am doing the Run for the Cure, they have generously donated.

The last few years we have not done anything due to Gary's marathons and it is a really important one.

When I first learned about breast cancer I really wasn't aware of it. Once you have dealt with experiences of having someone finding out, fighting and ultimately losing it changes you. Every year I remember those who lost the fight. Sue Helps was a very intelligent and sassy lady. Slowly though as things got worse with her health, we wanted to do something to help. Gary and I decided to take her kids to Boo at the Zoo. She was appeciative as it wasn't something that she physically had enough energy to do at that point. She said something to me that sticks out in my mind even to this day. She said "she was glad we were taking them out and felt bad that they had such a sick mom". I told her we were quite happy to do it for them.

So hear I am in full kids activities and life just trying to take some time every few days to get on a treadmill and run.

I will think of those people again on October 4th and hopefully the small part will make a difference for someone else.

Little sis' first dance class - Yay!

School has started

Well folks, school has started again and with it comes the various viruses that children transmit. We spent most of the night awake with our little one who threw up a couple of times. Rough night. Even when she finally did snooze the damage was done to both of us.

I have not been feeling great lately with a sore throat and today I feel even worse.

I realize that this comes with having children around other children but I hope we can get through this fairly quickly.

Just spending some "me" time with my little one as I did not bother taking her to nursery school after the night she had. Hopefully she is well enough for dance class tonite as she really has been looking forward to it. I remember how much my big girl enjoyed it when I first took her. She said "Thanks mommy for taking me to dance!" all by herself.

She is doing great at school and we are trying to get her to do more things on her own. Getting her shoes on and clothes . She is getting used to the school routine and I believe she is slowly learning French- not pressing her for info though. I wait for her to tell me or ask her "How was school today?" as she normally tells me bits and pieces through the rest of the day.

Running and how the tide has changed

Well I have taken the plunge and began to run again. It has been a slow and painful process but I am putting one foot in front of the other. I decided to start from scratch and I am not a group leader. I had decided to go through the Running Room but I have noticed that there are less people out doing it on regular run club nights. When I first began there were always many people out because the Running Room was the only place to go. Now there are other places and they are offering things like potlucks, etc. Wow how things have changed.



It is funny because most times that I go out running, I find myself cursing at how far back I have fallen. Running takes a great deal of not only physical but mental toughness. When you have one and not the other there is a great debate going on between your mind and body.



I love my girlies lots but I am going to be so glad when school starts again. 11 more days! A new chapter is starting for one with kindergarden. It is a bittersweet time because your little girl is growing up and starting school but you know that they love it.

where or where did our summer go?

As all Winnipeggers are experiencing this summer, where is summer? It is almost half over and we have not spent many days at the beach this year or outside enjoying the hot weather. My husband was off for the past two weeks and it was really cold and rainy. Here I was really worried when nursery school ended as to what I was going to do with my girls this summer. We have tried to make the most of our time by doing things even if it means going to the Forks or the Pan Am pool. Next week finally with some warmer weather (hopefully!) my girls are in summer camp at their nursery school and I know they need it.

We are planning to make our way to Twin Cities in August for a few days with my sister and her kids so that is something to look forward to as well.

This week I ran into someone I used to run with 6 years ago, Marilyn Fraser. I felt all emotional inside as she was my instructor in the "Womens Only Learn to Run". A couple of years ago, I heard that she had cancer. Well things sounded really bad for a while with feeding tubes, etc. We went to the 20 minute challenge at the Running Room at Kenaston and here she pops up and is doing really well and looks great.

I am toying with the idea of doing it again, however I am not in the same place I was when I did it last. Marilyn asked me to be a group leader as well, but I am not sure I can do it and it adds more pressure for me. I guess we will have to see.

Well, I have to admit I have been quite lagging in my keeping up my blog it seems like the last two months have become completely crazy with the end of school and all the other activities. Here we are in summer and I am beginning to think summer is going to fly by fast and furious. We are just trying to get things done and keep the kids busy as well.

We are planning on going to the beach as the girls really love it as well as Tinkertown, strawberry picking and various other things.

We are trying to do the playdate thing as well as we go.

Life gets crazy and it is not just my life any more....its our life.

the attack of the parent zombies!!!

One thing I have realized long ago is that I am constantly tired.

When my second daughter came home I forgot the lack of sleep was beginning again.

I accepted the prospect of lack of sleep and became a coffee addict. When I was a child I could not understand why my parents drank coffee, but now I finally get it.

When I reached my 35th birthday my energy is less and my body feels like it is fall apart. Luckily my kids don't get me up at night, but I still have an alarm in my brain that gets me up around 4 am or 5 am every day!

My oldest has been getting up at around 7:30ish daily. Goes to the basement to free the cat from her dungeon which gives me a few more minutes to lay in bed.

I need my happy drink or I do not function and my kids know it as well sad to say. Not looking forward to how things are going to be as I get older.....maybe a bit more?

getting ready for the road trip

Gosh life is crazy when you have two little girls running around and pretending that "the mystery gang" is following us around everywhere!

We are all feeling much better now in the house. We still have some coughs and sniffles but I think we are all feeling much better.

Our life has gotten more so busier with the start of soccer this week. I was actually surprised at how my big girl would get really upset with kids accidentally pushing her down. Lately she tends to get emotional over the most silliest things. I guess it is just another one of those phases kids go through and hopefully she can get past that so she can enjoy being outside and running around.

Took the girls to Costco today to pick up some things. I was also brave enough to get some food by myself with them as I felt bad due to casual care being a no go today (The nursery school offers it on Wednesdays for a couple of hours).

The issues we are having with the washroom are still ongoing. We no longer have constipation but we still have other issues that we are trying to work out. Hopefully we can get closer to a resolution because we have some travelling coming up.

Our first trip is a road trip to Fargo with my sis and my nieces this weekend coming up. We always enjoy going to Target! My hubby will be running the marathon there so it should be good. I always look forward to Paradiso and their Margaritas! Ole!

sniff sniff

Well here I am sicker than a dog. I have a terrible head /sinus cold that is finally coming loose. I had a horrible sleep last night so I am not too patient either. I feel like me brain shuts down on me often today. Here I am walking around reading headlines about the "swine flu" while I am sniffling and sneezing. I hope I am through the worst of it and am going to feel better tomorrow. Both my kids have gone through this and are doing better after a couple of days. The cold and wet rainy days is not helping.

Luckily Sally the cat is keeping us amused. Here is one of her favourite "springy" toys. She has taken really good care of my girls when they were sick. She especially loves my big girl.

dancing queen

Here is the ballet costume for my big girl's recital. Isn't she terrr-ific?

a busy week

We have tried the medication that were prescribed and it works very well.

Saturday was not a good day and made me sooo frustrated that we have fallen back. It is amazing how difficult a situation this can create on all levels.

We have decided that with the big dance recital this week we have to stop until after it. It turns out that this problem may take months and it is evident that we have a long way to go.

Here is a picture of our big girl dressed in her tap outfit for her song "No Way Baby".

no one is perfect

Finally, after dealing with a four year old that does not go to the washroom regularly, we think we have finally gotten to a point that we cannot deal with it on our own and need to address it professionally. This morning I went to the doctor's office and saw some literature about "constipation and your child".

Having never dealt with this issue myself (must be my hubby genes at work), we all were getting very frustrated and upset. Good news that I think we finally have the answer to our problem. This is something I have researched about, but didn't realize that it was in fact the reason to our problems. I spoke to our pediatrician and it is very common problem and he has given us a plan of action to deal with our problem. Phew! As parents you feel bad that you did not truly understand the problem, but having the right information is sometimes what you need. My hubby feels bad, but I told him we just have to let it go and move forward.

cat craziness and general life....urgh~

Well I am terrible at keeping up with the blogging thing. It just seems that my life with my two girls is just so crazy taking them to school, trying to keep them amused and on top of all the other little things that come up like appointments, etc.

The cat keeps attacking the cursor on the computer screen lately which is getting really annoying. The cat....hmmm....how come I have to feed and water the cat all the time. I hope the cat appreciates that I keep it living as I am always worrying about it getting fed.

It was officially spring yesterday when I witnessed a flock of robins. Finally we have had a few days of actual warm weather.

It was so nice to go out on the deck and hang out and paint this afternoon. In case you are not aware our screened deck becomes another room in the house when it is warm enough to go out. We want to "pimp it out" the this summer with a new dining table, chairs and a couple of comfy chairs for hubby and I to sit on and relax while the kids play. We still have a kiddie cottage and table, etc but we can make room for these things right? Urgh.....maybe we will have to wait for the cozy chairs.

Well my little miss four year old will probably be getting up before 7 am, so I must go get some sleep. I look forward to my two hours of freedom tomorrow as I am going out to spend some time by myself...no kids and no cat before I lose my mind.

the cat came back......

Big news in our house this week was the addition of a four legged feline named Sally from the Humane Society.

I was scratching my head at the beginning of Spring Break with what I was going to do with my little girls.

Suddenly on Tuesday I got hit with a stomach flu. I had to cancel play dates and other things because I just could not do it.

In the midst of this, my hubby brought our newest family member home. My kids were so busy running after her, playing with her.....Thank you cat!

I have been mainly a dog person in my adult life. When I was a little girl I had a little kitty named Patches. I was devastated when she was hit by a car. It didn't help that my mom didn't know how to be more tactful about the who situation.

Our new cat has a great personality and put ups with the kids really well. She reminds us all of Slinky Malinky. Hopefully less mischievous?!

festival of fools and snow forts

The family took in the Festival of Fools at the Forks today and got our faces painted. We saw some of the free children's entertainment and got a special balloon as well. It was lots of fun just walking around and looking at all the "bling".

Recently as the weather is warming, I have been taking more time to take the girls outside to play during the day.

Good ol' fresh air and exercise walking, sliding and climbing makes for a two tired little girlies and wonderful sleep for all. They help me shovel and follow animals tracks, watch the birds to name a few things.

We worked on our snow fort today that began as a snow drift from the winter storm this week. Check out the peep hole!

my facebook addiction?

So one day I hear about this new Facebook phenomena in the news a couple of years ago and decided to check it out. I got immediately hooked. It was funny I was signing up for all the junk applications and getting tons of people to " Add me as a friend."

People who I went to the same high school and haven't seen for ages were popping up here and there. I began to see that some of these people were glorifying who they were and what they were doing. Did I really want to be seen as that as well? My life is much better than when I was in high school. Considering where I came from and my growing years I think that I am doing really well.

One day I really thought about it and realized that they weren't really my friends as I never see them day to day or in the past year let alone in the past decade. I became selective. No offense to those I have left behind, but those days are lonng gone.

It is amazing how even doing "status updates", which most people do to let "their peoples" know what is currently going on has become something bigger. The "Twitter" addiction?

I refuse to get hooked on the Twitter network, besides I don't have a "crackberry".

These days I am content playing mousetrap and continue to let my few people know how truly I find the weather awful. I am not really addicted, I leave that term for my Starbucks lattes. MMMM.....coffeee!

Fix You

Recently, I bought tickets to see Coldplay in June here in Winnipeg. Last year, I was close to flying and buying tickets to see Madonna, but held off when I hear Coldplay was coming here. I always laugh when I hear saying "soccer moms in minivans" listen or like them. Here I am a soccer mom!

When I first heard them was when "Rush of Blood to the Head" was out in 2002. It was a difficult time of my life. I was faced with possiblity of death of my mother. In the fall, I was pregnant and lost it. I was very devastated on every level and not one of my friends, who were all having kids at this time, had experienced that. After my girl was born and the happiness we felt, we discovered the next year that our dog was sick with cancer. After watching him suffer for six months, we sadly put him down so that he would suffer no more.

"Fix You" was out as a single after all the sadness was all said and done. It sort of became my own personal anthem for surviving it all. Seeing Chris Martin and the boys in Ottawa in March 2006, I realized how personal that album had become to me. Driving to the hospital many times and being pregnant and listening to it in my car.

I feel truly blessed to be a mother of two wonderful girls and have tickets once again to see Coldplay.

Can I get some wine with that?

Today, I was thinking about how certain things, evoke certain memories such as a really nice red wine. To me that smell brings back memories of swaying fragrant eucalyptus trees and the vineyards in the warm breeze in the Hunter Valley of Australia. Another smell that evokes a memory is plumeria. The smell is so intoxicating and add a beach with an amazing view of another Hawaiian island as the sunset. In our city, we don't really have smells that evoke memories except for maybe lilacs or other flowering plants in the spring.

I always have a rush of memories return to me, when I pick up a bottle of fine Australian wine and that is mainly due to the fact that we took special point to book a trip to the Hunter Valley while we were in Sydney years ago. We also made a point of taking an additonal trip to Maui when we were in Hawaii.

I am so glad we did this before having kids and we hope to do these kinds of things with our kids in the future and so much more.

Another nice happy thought....

Today I was reminded how lucky a mom I am when both my girls came up to me at the end of the day after the make-up had come off and told me point blank "Mommy, you are beautiful!" I told each of them that they are beautiful as well and how much their mommy loves them.

cold winter blues

I have decided today that it really sucks dealing with the longest and coldest winter in a long time.
I could barely get my car to start this morning as it was a really cold night last night and didn't bother to plug in the car.
Getting the kids dressed for the cold every day is a chore that I can do without. It just requires too much time and great patience . Of course when it is time to get going, they hide or run in the opposite direction and think it is an amusing game. It is NOT! As most exprienced parents know, sometimes you have to adjust when you begin to put the pressure on to get going. Example being starting 10 minutes earlier just to make it on time.
We have been celebrating "beach week" at school and gymnastics, which makes you anxious for spring to come as well. Can't we just get this cold over with already!