Not Over Yet

This has been the winter of the freak snowstorm:


The snow started on Wednesday morning and didn't stop! A little friend was here that day and after an unsuccessful attempt at taking the kids outside, I remembered an idea that I heard about from a friend on facebook.  Instead of bundling her kids up to go outside, she brings the snow inside to them. So, while Micah played outside by himself, the younger 2 each happily played with their bucket-full of snow inside. I added some food colouring to make it more interesting. I think they thought it was snack time...


Erik stayed home yesterday (Thursday) - not because he couldn't make it to work (he's been working at his parent's house), but because the one tool he needed for his day couldn't be transported to him. So, it was nice having him around, but it means sacrificing Saturday with him since he will have to work tomorrow now.




Erik spent the day entertaining the kids which allowed me to do a few things. Since I still have some room in my stocked-up freezers, I made a big batch of my mom's corn chowder. While I was cooking away, this is what Erik and the kids were doing upstairs:
(the kids never seem to stay fully-clothed when Daddy's in charge)



They also had a puzzle party and put together every single puzzle they could find.

We have been saying all winter that we should get some sort of sled for the kids, but we keep thinking that the snow will be done anytime. Well, finally we went to Canadian Tire yesterday and found ourselves a plastic sled. Erik took the kids to the park in the afternoon to test it out. He didn't feel like taking the camera, so there are unfortunately no pictures of that expedition.
That's all to report today. Tomorrow I will be 37 weeks pregnant and considered full term! As exciting as that is, I am totally preparing myself for a full month of pregnancy yet. At least I know that this baby will for sure be here by the end of March!

Ready for Church

This past Sunday we went to The Life Centre church so that Erik could play drums for his brother Doug. Instead of having to rush to be at our church for 8:30, we had until 11:00 before the service started. So, I took the opportunity to take pictures of the kids in something other than their "play clothes" :)

Keziah isn't complete without her "dee dee" (a.k.a. blankie) ...

This "shirt" is actually a 12-18 month dress. I really wanted Keziah to wear it for church but she complained that it was too tight. I knew it would still fit, so I told her she could have a chocolate kiss if she put it on. She was happy to oblige!

Yep, sometimes bribing is necessary for the sake of cuteness.








And I had to include this picture of what Keziah's hair looks like "post piggy tails". This is how she came downstairs after her nap yesterday (Monday). She had managed to get her own slippers on and brought with her a book and her stuffed mouse from Granny(which, by the way, is her favourite stuffed animal, mom!)

Spring is in the Air

I keep waiting for the return of winter. BC winter, at least. The weather channel always seems to show a string of rainy days coming sometime in the future, but so far all we've had is sun, sun, sun! The forecast for today is 15 degrees!


I'm really enjoying the anticipation of spring coinciding with the anticipation of this new baby. It's nice to be expecting a baby in a month other than Nov & Dec. With the days getting longer I can envision myself taking long walks in the evening to get this baby out :) - and enjoying family walks together once this baby actually arrives.

Grandma gave the kids a book a few months ago called "Franklin's Baby Sister". In the story, Franklin finds out that he's going to be a big brother in the spring and eagerly looks for some signs that spring is here. So, in the last couple of weeks, when Micah would discover a new tulip or daffodil blooming on our windowsill, he would exclaim, "I can't wait for the new baby to come!!"


A bit of spring indoors.


Some signs of spring outdoors.


A warm afternoon at the park on Wednesday...



Sporting some nice "nap hair".


My view looking down. It kind of looks like I'm standing in this picture but I'm actually sitting on a bench.


As of today I am 36 weeks pregnant. My due date is exactly 1 month away - lucky for me, it's the shortest month of the year :) My doctor checked me on Thursday and said that I'm not dilated at all. It made me think that this baby may be snuggled inside me for many weeks yet, even though I get uncomfortable contractions all the time. It's crazy to think that this baby could come pretty much anytime in the next 6 weeks - that's a big window of time and I remember all too well how the last month went with Keziah. I drove myself crazy waiting for labour to start and she ended up being overdue. So, hopefully this beautiful spring weather will continue so that I can be distracted! The worst part right now is sleeping since I am afflicted with everything from heartburn and numb arms to freqent bathroom trips. I'm also battling a cold so I can't breathe properly. I feel like I've been awake more than I've slept in the last 3 nights and I don't even look forward to bedtime anymore :(

Yesterday I participated in a big cooking day. A friend of mine has been organizing these for awhile, but it's the first time that I've taken part. 9 of us worked for about 7 hours and we each went home with a freezer-full of meals! It was great and I'm so glad I was able to do this before my due date. Now we just have to try and save the meals for after the baby comes :)

Here's a bit of my stash in our garage freezer:


Well, I think it's time to get off the computer and go enjoy this beautiful day!

Sleeping Beauty

Keziah fell asleep after 9:00 on Sunday night, even though we put her down shortly after 8.

She woke up before 6:30 on Monday morning, ready to start the day.

She grabbed a 10-minute cat-nap in the van on the way home from Superstore but otherwise was awake ALL DAY.

We managed to get the kids to bed early last night, and this is what we found when we checked on her at about 7:30 ...

Valentine's Schmalentine's

Ok, not the best Valentine's Day ever. But, it's been a long time since I've had high expectations on February 14th anyway. The kids and I had fun doing V-Day things this week. Sugar cookies, making cards, having a party at playgroup and eating chocolate.

Playgroup party:


Chocolate from Mommy:


Some goodies that came in the mail this morning from the Manitoba cousins:


Erik was in bed pretty much the whole day on Saturday with a nasty cold/flu. When he emerged from his hibernation and heard about the chocolate we were enjoying, he said in a hoarse voice, "Oh. Happy Valentine's Day." Erik stayed home that evening while I took the kids to Grandpa/ma's for supper, heart-shaped jell-o jigglers and - you guessed it - more chocolate.

It's OK, hon. I know our love goes much deeper than a hallmark holiday :)

Comin' Down the Pipe

A few days ago Micah asked this inevitable 4-year-old question:

"Mommy, how is the baby going to come out of your tummy??"

So, I showed him this picture from my weekly Babycenter update as well as this video.

Then he said to me:
"Oh, so it just comes out that little pipe??"

Yes, that's right buddy.
What a clever kid :)

Feeling Ambitious

Erik and I spent the weekend finally re-organizing and getting our closets in order. The nursery upstairs was getting overrun with toys and all the baby paraphenilia, so we needed a plan. In the end, we made the crawl space under the stairs into a playroom and did some shuffling around to accomodate the extra stuff in the closets and attic. Unfortunately, we picked a busy weekend to take this on since we were on worship team Sat night and Sun morning and we had also agreed to host family supper on Sunday night. I know I went way too hard - climbing those stairs a few too many times and moving a few too many boxes. My body was aching by the end of the day. But we had a beautifully clean and organized house which felt amazing!

On Mondays I babysat a little boy, and since my housework and organizing was all in order, I figured we could tackle Valentine's cookies! Yesterday morning I mixed up the dough and gave the kids each a little bit. Keziah quickly figured out that this dough was edible, but I don't think her little friend caught on :) He was happy just to roll and cut while my kids pigged out!


Later, after naptime, we iced the cookies. I gave each of them a bowl of icing, a bowl of sprinkles, a plastic knife and a few tiny heart cookies. They were SO quiet.


We created quite the mess in both the morning and afternoon, and I spent most of the day cleaning up after them, but it was worth it!


After supper I took the kids out to Superstore since Erik was working late and we needed a distraction (and a few groceries). As I waddled through the store I realized how achy and sore and generally gross I felt. All I wanted to do was be home on my couch in my sweat pants! But I still had to get the kids home, get them in bed and unload all the groceries. By the time I finally sat down in front of the TV, I could barely get up again!

Here's me at 34 weeks:


I thought I'd post a comparison picture from October when I was wearing the same shirt at about 16 weeks.


Sigh. I can't wait to look normal again.

My Do It

We had lots of plans last weekend but ended up staying home the entire time because of the flu. Micah got hit with it on Saturday and then Erik on Sunday. Keziah had already had it the week before. I made Micah a little sick bed on the floor and Keziah insisted on sitting this close to him. I think Micah felt too lousy to argue.

So far I've managed to steer clear of the flu, though I was certain I was getting sick on Tuesday. It turned out to be nothing and it actually felt more like morning sickness than anything else since I felt better after I ate. I remember having the flu at the end of my pregnancy with Keziah and it was NOT fun, so I'm hoping I'll stay healthy this time around.

We dug out all of our baby stuff this week and the kids have loved all the new "toys" :) Keziah, especially, has been enthralled with everything from the burp cloths to the soothers.


Cousin Caleb smiling at Keziah...

We've been spoiled with beautiful weather this week. I even wore flip-flops for the first time yesterday! On Wednesday, the kids and I finally checked out the playground in our complex and it confirmed my recollection of it not being very preschooler-friendly. There is sand/gravel everywhere and no real safe way for either of the kids to climb up to the top. And when Keziah tried going down the curly slide, she went way too fast and ended up flipping around and whamming her nose into the side.


We stayed for a little while and then decided to get in the van and drive to our regular park.


In the last month, Keziah has hit the terrible twos. Hardcore. She is SO much more stubborn and independent than Micah was at this age. I hardly know what to do with her. She is so insistent on doing things herself and I hear the phrase "My do it!!" about 100 times a day. The worst is when she can't actually do what she sets out to do and then whines even louder, "Mommy do it!!", so I try to help her and she goes back to "My do it!!!!" I find myself getting into verbal arguments with her and I have to stop and remind myself that she's 2! I need an extra dose of patience for her these days. Other than "my do it", the phrases I hear most frequently from her these days are "read a book Mommy!" and "Mommy, hold me!" I need to prepare her for the days when Mommy will be holding and feeding and caring for a new baby because right now I'm pretty sure Keziah thinks she's the only baby around here!



Cute bum crack.


I registered Micah for preschool last week at Mountain Park Preschool. We got to meet his teacher and he played with some other kids while I filled out the forms. I even met another mom that I know through a friend and we realized that our boys will be in the same class.

When we talk about preschool, Micah is cautious and quick to remind me that it's still 9 months away (I'm trying to explain that now it's only 8 months away...). But, judging by how much he loves Sunday School these days, I'm optimistic. The biggest fear for Micah seems to be new situations and new people, so once he gets into a routine, I don't expect him to have any problems.


Otherwise things have been pretty regular around here. This morning was the first rainy day we've had in... forever. But now the sun is actually peeking out once again!

Tomorrow I will be 34 weeks, so we're 6 weeks from the due date! I saw my doctor yesterday and talked to him about all the contractions I've been having - painless, but frequent. Even now as I write, my belly is tightening. He wasn't concerned but thought maybe it might mean I'll have this baby a little earlier. I really want to believe him, but I know how that turned out for me last time. I had lots of contractions with Keziah too and I ended up having to get induced. So, time will tell. I am seeing him every 2 weeks now and will get my cervix checked at my next appointment.

I've also signed up to have a TWU nursing student follow my pregnancy since my due date lands during their spring semester. I'll meet her for the first time next week. It won't involve much, other than meeting her once before and once after the baby comes, as well as having her accompany me to one of my prenatal appointments.

Micah helping out around the house:


Micah saw this picture of himself sitting in the toy box and decided to re-create it. This was taken in Nov/06, a month before his 2nd birthday:

He looks much bigger now!