Way to Go Daddy!

Well, it's been a long time coming, but this past weekend Erik walked the stage and received his BA in Biblical Studies at CBC! He did his first 2 years at Bethany way back before we were married, and after a few years of break, he went back to finish his BA here in Abbotsford. In 2004 he was diagnosed with Crohn's disease - the stress of school was not helping his health and so he dropped out for a semester and then majorly cut back on his classes for the remaining semesters. But, he was determined to finish and he did! In the end, he has become confident of his passions and giftings. What he really wants to do is work with his hands, using his practical skills and abilities. And he has discovered a passion to share his faith and walk alongside the everyday people that he works with. It's encouraging to see God's hand in all of this - the timing was not what we anticipated, but it has been a growing and stretching experience for us and so we're thankful for his leading on this journey. I love you, Erik and I'm really proud of you!

Simple Pleasures

Well, I've been tagged by Janelle and I'm supposed to list 10 simple pleasures. So, here goes...

1. Catching a nap on the couch in the afternoon while Micah's sleeping.
2. Singing in the car when I'm by myself (or with Micah - he doesn't seem to mind).
3. The 2 cheeseburger meal at McDonald's - yum!
4. Reading a good book.
5. Watching Erik and Micah play together.
6. Opening our bedroom window for night - it smells SO good.
7. Thunder storms - though we don't get them a lot here.
8. Slurpees & candy!!
9. Sitting on really soft grass in the summer.
10. Blogging!

OK, I guess the rule is that I have to tag someone else now - so I tag Erin E., Lisa, & Erin K. Have fun!

Playtime Pics

Do you like our matching t-shirts? Mine is size 6-12 months and it still fits me almost a year after Mommy bought it.


Hmmm, I wonder what channel Blue's Clues is on...


Catching up on my reading in the bathroom. Hey, is that the new MB Herald?


Yep, I'm recyclable.

Good-bye Ponytails!

On Saturday I took the plunge and got my hair chopped! I know the cardinal rule is that you should never get your hair cut when you're pregnant - you'll usually just regret it later. But, I think that only applies to the third trimester when you're incredibly "whale-ish" and swollen, and you can't seem to get your hair to look good no matter what you do (you realize later it's because your face has puffed up to twice it's regular size)... So, I figured that since I'm only in my 1st trimester and still feeling rather normal and "un-puffy", it was safe to go for it. Besides, I've been thinking of doing it for a while now and with Nathan & Rosanna's wedding just around the corner, I was in need of an update. Thankfully my bed-head hasn't been too bad since I can't just pull it back in a ponytail anymore. Anyone need some extra hair elastics??

Happy Easter Everybody!

Love Erik, Jamie, Micah & Baby Toews

Spring Has Sprung!

Micah and I took the opportunity to enjoy a beautiful BC afternoon. It feels like summer's definitely on it's way! He loves exploring in the backyard and always complains when it's time to come back inside...

A line's a line right?

Well, I have no new pictures of Micah to post this week. I have been mostly concentrating on trying to keep my breakfast down and therefore everything else has taken a back seat! What I do have is a picture of the pregnancy test I took almost 4 weeks ago. So, can you see the line? No, not the one on the right. I'm talking about the one on the left - in the window that looks like there's not a line in it... If you squint your eyes just right you might be able to make it out! At first Erik and I didn't see anything either, but then slowly I thought I saw something starting to appear - was I just imagining it? Erik and I went back and forth for a minute - "do you see it?", "I think so, do you?", "not right in the middle, but a little to the right?", "yeah, is that really a line??" We even left the room for a minute to clear our heads and then raced back to see if the line was still there. And it was! We were both pleasantly surprised and very excited. The initial excitement has dimished a little with the constant nausea and exhaustion, but it is still an amazing miracle!

Do You Like My T-Shirt?

Yes, that's right! Micah's going to be a big brother! We are all very excited - well, Micah will be once he figures out what's going on! We found out the news only 2 weeks ago and things are going well so far at 6 weeks along! The morning sickness is starting to kick in, unfortunately, as well as the exhaustion and all the rest of it. But we praise God for the incredible blessing of this new life! Please pray for a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby in mid-November!

Wake Up Sleepy-Head!

Sometimes I can barely get Micah to sleep an hour all day and other days I think he's going to sleep away the entire afternoon. Yesterday was one of those lucky "long-nap" days and I decided it was time for him to get up. It wasn't an easy task, though!

March Snowfall

Yes, snow is a rarity here in BC, so when it happens, we have to capture it on film! Micah was quite fascinated when the huge flakes began to fall this morning and I think he thought the white stuff was pretty neat when Erik took him out in it. Now as I type this a few hours later, the sun is shining, the snowing has stopped and already the warm BC air is winning out over the snow. It was pretty while it lasted!

The Weekend

I will attempt to explain the collage of pictures from the past several days... Our weekend started out great as we finished up a week with my mom. We enjoyed walking around Mill Lake on Friday (Micah loves the swings!) and ventured out to see where Erik is working on building a house. They have the best view of Mount Baker I've ever seen! Friday night and all day Saturday, Erik and I were terribly sick with the flu (Micah had it just a couple of days before) so we laid pretty low :( By Sunday we were all feeling more like ourselves and we were able to make it to a wedding shower for Nathan & Rosanna that afternoon. The sickness seems to be spreading through the rest of Erik's family here, though. Hopefully it won't last too much longer!

My Granny

My Granny Harder came to visit us this week all the way from Manitoba. Yesterday was her birthday and we went out to Boston Pizza to celebrate.


I love ketchup!


This is me signing the word "light" - Mom & Dad make me perform all my "tricks" when there's company around :)


Feeding my Daddy.

Who needs Fisher-Price?

Someone tell me why we've spent any money on toys when Micah would rather stick old tupperware on his head? He loves tupperware, pots & pans, photo albums, remote controls, etc. Maybe Fisher-Price should start a new toy line of clear plastic containers...

On another note, I'm happy to report that Micah has decided to sleep ALL the way through the night and lately we've been waking up at 6:30!! I never thought I'd see the day when 6:30 felt like I was sleeping in! Not only is he sleeping later, but in the last three nights we haven't had to go into his room once from the time he went to bed until morning. This is a big milestone for us and I'm not sure I know what to do with all these uninterrupted hours of sleep...

Heart Day

Hmmm... looks like someone's been into the chocolate.

Happy Valentine's Day!

My First Haircut

Today I gave Micah his first real haircut. I've snipped at his hair before - just around his ears, etc., but today I gave him a trim all around. I was surprised how long his hair was already. I guess it was hard to tell since he's so blonde. I definitely think the new style makes him look more like a big boy. He was a very good "customer" - sitting still and quietly eating his snack the whole time I was cutting. I think he liked the sound of the scissors "snipping" around his head.

Sick Again?

I guess it must just be the time of year or something, but I'm sure this is the 3rd cold Micah's had since his birthday. He slept late this morning (6:30 - hallelujah!) and woke up with a stuffy-sounding runny nose and a bit of a fever. He was really lethargic and ready for another nap less than 2 hours later. But there's also been lots of drooling and chewing, so I suppose it could be teething. I've never been good at telling when he's teething or not - not like other moms who just seem to 'know'. It's after the tooth pokes through that it all comes together for me (Oh, so that's why he's been crying all night...)

Got the Giggles?

Getting Sleepy

Micah has lately been in the habit of getting up at 5:45 every single morning. No matter what I do, I cannot seem to break him of this. I'm trying to change his nap schedule a little bit and put him to bed later but so far nothing has helped. Here he is the other day, desperate to go down for his morning nap. Maybe if he would sleep a bit later he wouldn't be so tired...




Let me just rest my head a moment...

Weekday Friends

Micah has two new friends that I take care of two days a week. S is a week older than Micah and K is 3. Here they are hanging out.

Sunday Afternoon

It has become a tradition that we Toews' all hang out as a family on Sunday. It starts with Sunday lunch and often ends up spanning for the whole day. Here we are yesterday hanging out at "Grandpa & Grandma"'s and also at the Apollo pool later in the afternoon.


Micah consistently provides great entertainment while we all relax.


Singing songs with Grandma.


With Uncle Doug & Auntie Elissa.




In the pool with mom.


Uncle Doug is weird.