Morning Coffee

I love it when I am the only one awake in the morning and sitting in the eating area drinking my coffee.  It is so peaceful and quiet.  Of course, I love to sleep so these moments are rare.  The kids are my typical alarm clock.  

The view is what makes this room.  Even on a cold, gloomy looking day, the view is spectacular.  On't thing better would be a view of the lake, I think.

And check out some of these sunsets!  I swear, we take a picture of the sunset almost every night because everytime we see it, we are in awe.  God's glory in full display, I tell you.

We are very blessed to live here and to be here in this moment.

Splash Pad

If you want to find us this summer, I think we will be at our neighbourhood splash pad.  Not too fancy, but perfect for my little guy and the girls really enjoyed themselves as well.

This particular day we met a friend there in the morning.  I think that might be the perfect way to do things.  We got really wet, which is always fun, and then had a snack of oranges and cookies.  Meredith was done with the wet first and got dried off and went and played at the park.  Myles appeared to be shivering, so I changed him and Madelyn and off to the park we went.

There was a father there with his two sons so the the girls were happy to have another playmate.  Carter, 4, told me the jungle jym was a princess castle and spiderman was living there too.  I call that playing together very well!  It's always fun for me to watch Madelyn and Meredith interact with other children.

After a quick (not quick enough) trip to the grocery store, we came home, ate lunch and Myles went for a nap.  The girls were tired from a hot, fun morning, so we watched a movie...Ramona and Beezus.  And we also enjoyed popsicles on the front porch.  Well, they did.  I had my last piece of salted caramel cheesecake that my supervisor had made for me for winning a contest at work.  Holy Moly was that thing delicious!!  Very rich, I could only eat one piece at a time.

Since we are still lacking grass, I see days like this happening often during this summer.

Indecision

I just can't decide if I should keep my blog private or not.  I mean, really, isn't the point of a blog to share it with friends and family?  I had some people at work ask if I had a blog and I said no.   Not sure why I said no, afraid of judgement, I guess.

  But I really don't put much on here that I wouldn't share in real life.  So, today I am going to put it out there.  I will start on Instagram, since that is my least populated social media outlet.  We will see how that goes and then maybe twitter which has a few more real life friends.  I don't know if I will ever be FB ready.

Melt my heart Meredith

My little Merebear said the sweetest thing yesterday and I need to document it before I forget.

She was in her carseat playing with a long forgotten and newly found baby doll.  We all agreed on a name, June.  I saw her in my rear view mirror holding her tenderly and patting her back, and just generally loving on her.  We had the following exchange:

Me:  Are you taking care of baby June, Meredith?

Meredith:  mm hmm!  I making her happy!

Me:  you are such a good little Mommy.

Smiling she looks at me and points: just like you!

Madelyn

My first baby just celebrated her fifth birthday. I don't know how this happened so fast! I swear it was last week she was tearing her way into this world. How I loved that baby! That first night was just her and I, and it hurt too much to get out of bed and nurses were scarce, I just held her and nursed her all night. I was exhausted, but so happy.

A few days after her birth, I looked at that little face and knew that she was the reason I was put on this earth. God gave Madelyn to me.  My purpose in life, is to be her mom.  She is going to be someone great and I need to bring out her full potential.

My daughter is so funny. Last night telling knock, knock jokes and she had her Dad and I cracking up! Her favourite joke right now "why is six afraid of seven? Because seven ate nine!" I love that sweet giggle and smile!

She started junior kindergarten this year, and I just love all the learning she is doing! To see her blossom this year and how her artwork has come along is just amazing!

She LOVES chocolate.  Seriously, this girl would eat it everyday.  All day, if I let her:)  And she enjoys it while she eats.  Eyes closed savouring the moment.  She is very good at eating fruits and vegetables too, so I let the chocolate love slide a bit.  I remember when we moved into our house on Wiltshire and ordered a pizza, she wanted to have peas and corn instead.  Still doesn't like pizza all too much.

I also love watching her with her younger sister and brother. Meredith is her best friend and her worst enemy all in the same hour! And although Myles annoys her, she loves him and loves having him around. And he sure loves her too!

This little girl has taught me so much about love and patience and I still have so much to learn! I am looking forward to the rest of this journey.

She is so beautiful!  Big blue eyes and curly, wild sandy brown hair.  She loves to wear dresses...even if she is just going out to dig in the dirt.  Must be her strong farm roots!

Five years! I just can't get over it.  If time isn't going to slow down for me, I am going to have to spend more time making sure memories are happy, and experiences are great!

Our first Family Home Evening

I have been on a bit of a spiritual quest lately ( the better part of a year ). I was baptized Anglican, brought up in the Catholic school system, found a place for me in my local Anglican Church youth group in high school. My family never went to church, but I would go, but I am not one for sitting by myself. Thankfully, I had a good friend who sat with me instead of his family. I even "taught" Sunday school ( ages 2-4). I have a relationship with God, but am looking for ways to strengthen that and also make sure my children know God. There have also been issues at my church that have led me to question things.

One religion that has been fascinating me is the Church of Latter Day Saints. Yes, Mormons. I know a lot of people will be rolling their eyes, but I have been talking with folks and reading some blogs and doing general research on their beliefs. I have lots to learn, and will continue to research and ask questions.

One aspect of the LDS faith that I love is the focus and emphasis on family. They encourage Family Home Evening where families make an effort to connect and study scripture together and, basically, enjoy each other. No matter the outcome of my spiritual quest, I live this idea.

We started this tonight. I knew I had a Children's Bible in a box for a future gift, so I dug it out and we began at the beginning. Only Madelyn was really interested, the other two had trouble sitting still. It didn't go exactly as envisioned, but Madelyn and I were able to have a conversation and it sparked her curiosity as she asked for another story. We also didn't have a planned activity, but we had fun running around and doing some trust exercises....we apparently need to learn to trust each other more, lol. We will definitely do this again, but with more thought I my part ahead of time.

Swim Class

Yesterday was a good day. So good it deserves to be blogged.

First we got up and actually got dressed. Most of our days off we are wearing Jammie's and comfy clothes, but not for today. Our first stop was the Ontario Early Years Centre. We used to go at least once a week, but since Madelyn started school, I guess you could say we have been busy! But we went and it was so fun! People marvelled at how big Myles has gotten and he really enjoyed playing with new toys and new kids. Especially loved the Cozy Coupe. I may take just him back so he can ride again! One mom and I discussed Myles' amber teething necklace and extended breast feeding. Nothing like bonding over mutual crunchiness.

The girls made new friends and it was fun for me to see them interact with other kids. Their social skills have really improved since the fall. At one point, Madelyn found a ball that she really liked and I guess she set it down and another boy picked it up and wouldn't let it go. She came over to me crying and as I tried to console her and reaffirm that the toys were for everyone, not just get, I saw Meredith get up and sit beside this little boy and talk to him. She didn't look angry while talking, but she got up and kinds stomped back to her toy while muttering. When I asked her what happened, "that boy's not listening to me!" She must have asked the boy to give the ball to her sister and he must have said no. Regardless of the ball, it was neat to see the girls sticking up for each other like that.

The kids also enjoyed circle time. And it reminded me of easy games we can play at home.

After our EYC adventure, we picked up lunch (McDonald's for the kids and Wendy's for me... A little in moderation can't hurt, right) and headed home. Myles fell asleep in the car, so his nap was short, but he handled it pretty well, all things considered.

We normally do some sort if art at the EYC, but we did mostly gross motor skills this day, so we did a craft of sorts at home. Just traced our handprints and coloured them into some animals. So easy, yet the girls had a blast! Myles, however, had an epic fit when I tried to trace his hand. Not sure why. I guess he just wanted to do it himself.

Then we had a quick supper and it was off to the girls' very first swim class! So hard letting someone else be on charge of them! I an glad they had each other totals to during downtime, but it sort of seemed like they were goofing off at one point! Although, I did see Madelyn put Meredith's hand back to the side of the pool, guiding her to do the right thing. They did very well and were the only two in their five person class that wanted to go down the slide! I have two fishes-- three if the way Myles loves his bath are any indication!