:: Absence ::

We've been doing this.......

......pretty much every day.

So if I'm not around these parts much, it's cause I'm out enjoying the sun.

A lot.

:: Slowly Picking Away ::

Sooo, it would seem that my four year anniversary passed by on Thursday and I completely neglected to blog or take any photos for that matter.

Boo, me!

Bygones.

Husby and I had a lovely dinner out at a small restaurant in a small ocean bay on the patio, in the sun over looking the marina.

We leisurely strolled the docks (and even got to *gasp* hold hands!) before heading back to town for a stop at Timmy's for a Coldstone dessert.

Some of you with a good memory (and who care to remember anything I babble about on here) might remember my quest to sample most of the Signature Creations from Coldstone Creamery over the summer. Not only did I get to try two more flavours but we did it for half price with a BOGO coupon we got in the mail a couple days earlier! Score, us!

My pick was the Cookie Mintster consisting of mint ice cream, two whole oreos and fudge. Trev ordered the Mud Pie Mojo that was packed with coffee ice cream, REAL peanut butter, roasted almonds and fudge.

Yum, Yummy, Yum-Yum!

So, I'm slowly picking away at my list and I think next time I'll be ordering something with peanut butter in it.

We came home and before we could even get the doors to the truck opened, we heard our sweet, precious two-year-old baby yelling for us from the house and were greeted with very big and excited hugs.

Pretty much the perfect evening.

And here's a big holla out to my momma who left a very gorgeous bouquet of flowers on our doorstep.....so now I have two vases full of color and pretty-ness in my kitchen! Thanks Mom!

:: I went to bed and said hello to week 30 of my baby bump and pondered life and family and the perfect will of God that brought me from marriage four years ago to being on the verge of being a mom to two children with a beautiful home in the most beautiful place on earth with a life I wouldn't give up for anything. ::

Happy Anniversary Hunny!

Now, I'm going to help myself to a glass of chocolate milk and go to bed......

{Cheers all ya'll out there and much love from me to you}

{Introductions}

A couple weeks back, whilst wading in the lake on a hot summer day, I look up to see a head of curly blond hair bouncing towards me. It didn't take me long to recognize one of the sweetest people I know.

Michelle and I used to work together and have kept in touch over the years and I even had the privilege of photographing them a few months ago.

We got to catching up and I was delighted to hear that she'd started a blog.

{Meeting people who read my blog, and despite being subjected to the bizarre-ness that is my life, and decide to start a blog of their own always make me feel a tinge more normal}

Blah,blah.

Anywhoo.....Michelle asked if I'd mind getting together sometime and showing her the ropes, so to speak, and help her navigate Blogger and get her site looking the way she wanted.

We got together earlier this week and spent over two hours playing and fiddling and learning together.

:: Michelle showed up at my door with a gorgeous bouquet of fresh flowers.......I love having fresh flowers in my house! ::

Sooo......everyone, meet Michelle.

Michelle, meet, everyone.......

The Baby Bump Chronicles :: 29 Weeks

I LOVE BEING PREGNANT!!!

Ahhh. Feels good to get that out right at the top of the post.

Last Thursday marked the 29th week of this pregnancy and I truly can't believe that I only have two and a half months left to enjoy playing incubator for this baby.

With only a couple finishing touches left to complete the nursery, I am l.o.v.i.n.g being able to just soak up the summer and spend lots of time in the sun with my little sunshine before another being joins this family.

:: 29 Weeks ::

I saw the midwife earlier in the month and I'm growing about a centimeter behind and again, the heart rate was in the 140's. It all became very real when I was given my Home Birth supply list, hospital pre-admission form (just in case), my preferences for birth form and signed various other releases.

Only 74 more days to go........I cannot, cannot get enough of the increasing movement and feeling tiny feet bump and kick.

Have I mentioned how much I love being pregnant?

Oh, and check out this link to see my belly at (approximately) the same stage with Denay.....

Love you Baby!

Eclipse Review

WARNING: If you are new to this blog, be pre-warned that the writer of this blog (that would be me) is a fan of the Twilight Series. That is all.

I had plans with girlfriends to see the newest Twilight movie, Eclipse, when I got back from Ontario. I was super stoked when it turned out that there was nothing going on the Thursday night we were at my Aunt's, so all us girls went to see it.Unfortunately, I don't have many good things to say......to keep myself from going on and on and on, I'd have state that while Eclipse was, by far, my favourite book, New Moon would have to be my favourite movie.

I've chatted with my fellow Twilight-loving girlfriends and the consensus seems to be that, they feel the same about the movie being disappointing but liked it better after seeing it a second time.

I liked it, don't get me wrong, but it felt rushed and sort of thrown together. But I know it 's next to impossible to squash all that (awesome) book into a short two hour movie......so with the time they had, I guess they did the best that was possible.

Lemme know, you fellow followers, what were your thoughts on Eclipse??

:: Couponing, Again ::

While my SIL was out on the weekend, she helped me sort through my coupons, check the flyers, and see if I had any good deals to take advantage of.

I definitely still feel very inept with this whole couponing thing. I've had a few people contact me about giving them the gears on how it works but the truth is that I'm still trying to figure this whole thing out.....so a big shout out to my S* for helping me get these great deals :)

Here's what I came home with.......

- a Gillette Fusion Power razor (with extra cartridge)

-a 15 pack of Cascade Action Packs

-two bottles of Dawn dish soap

-an 84 pack of Pampers Size 1 Diapers

-a box of Pampers Sensitive wipes

The bill was more than just these items as I bought some birthday gifts and other small groceries at the same time but I saved $35.98 in coupons and only spent a total of $9.00 (excluding total taxes at $6) on the products in the picture (thanks again to S* for figuring out the math for me).

Crazy, right?

I'm hoping my next round, I'll be able to do it all by my big-girl self......but I'm sure that will be preceeded by a double check phone call to a certain sister-in-law of mine :)

Two years ago today......

......in the peace and quiet of our home we welcomed a dark-haired, 7lbs 2oz perfect baby girl into our lives and we couldn't imagine life any other way.

Today she turns two.

She can sing her ABC's.

She can count to 12.

She has an uncanny memory.

She can speak impecably well.

She loves sand and water and Oma's puppies.

She is beautiful, thoughtful, helpful and sensitive.

I love you Denay.

Happy Birthday.

:: Cousins ::

Trev's parents and sister and her family came over for the weekend for Denay's party and on Sunday we spent the whole day just hanging out and eating and enjoying the sun......just a couple shots from Denay's time with her big-boy cousins and grampy and grammie.......

:: I love watching these three play together! ::

~ Ontario 2010 ~

My week back east was a bit of a blur, but now that we are home and recovered, I'm so glad that Denay and I went.

Denay was such an angel on the plane and I was so grateful to have my parents for an extra couple set of hands and a couple extra laps. We spent the first few nights at my grandparents house and celebrated my grandma's 85th birthday while we were there. My mom had an amazing three tier cake made (in very Dutch form) as a gift.

:: Then it was off to my Aunt's (my mom's sister) house where we got to celebrate my cousins Brittany's grade eight graduation and her brother, James' grade 12 graduation. My aunt has fainting goats, miniature horses, sheep and lots of dogs (including four baby puppies) so there was always lots for Denay to do ::

:: We spent Canada Day at the fairgrounds in my Aunt's town. We had a pony ride (so proud of Denay), a wagon ride, enjoyed the petting zoo and made sure to get Denay a balloon and lots of Canadian flags ::

:: Our last day was finally warm enough to enjoy the weather and we all headed off to a lake for some fun in the water before heading back to my grandparents again for our flight the next morning ::

By the end of the week I was definitely ready to be at home and all together as a family again for the first time in three weeks. Denay was such a trooper.....between all the different houses and the time difference, she made it so easy on everyone!

I feel lucky to have been able to take this trip with my great parents and spend the week with nothing to do except be with family that I get to see very infrequently....treasured memories for sure.

:: Happy Birthday Baby Girl ::

We have had an absolutely crazy, exhausting whirlwind past few weeks around here......Trevor left on the 13th of June for two straight weeks of work training in Vernon. He came home at 6:00 on the 25th and 16 hours later was saying goodbye (again) to his wife and daughter as we took off for a week long to trip to Ontario with my parents for my grandma's birthday and cousins graduations. We landed at 11:30 the following Saturday morning, got home just after 1:00 and welcomed our friends and family at 4:30 to celebrate Miss Denay's 2nd birthday.

I had so much help from my husband, mom and MIL and SIL to make this party a fun and happy celebration for my sweet girly. Denay and I and my parents were running on very little sleep after an almost five hour flight and a three hour time change but it was so nice be home!

:: Details.......purple, green and white were the simple theme....all Denay cared about was cake and balloons ::

:: Our growing family......in purple, green and white to match the theme ::

(continued in post below)

{Birthday Continued}

:: The fabulous and perfect cake done by my friend Alana of CAKE By Alana....gimmie a holla if you're in my area and need a cake for a special occasion ::

:: Denay loved her cake (thank you so much Alana!) ::

:: Presents.....we asked our friends to bring newborn baby items, instead of gifts for Denay, for a mom in my area that is pregnant and in need. We got Denay a new, red, shiny tricycle with a big silver bow on it......she was in heaven ::

With lots of help from my awesome family and amazing husband, everything was tidy and cleaned and put away and thrown out and put back together in no time.....with little help from this pregnant momma who was having serious stomach pain.

I couldn't believe how aware Denay was of the fact that everything was for her. I asked her just after the party started, who's birthday it was and she yelled "Oh, my birthday party!".

We were so grateful to be surrounded with family and friends to celebrate our Denay.

For All You Momma's

Came across this poem from a fellow blogger who cited it from this blog......all you mom's out there, read and know.

"My willingness to carry life is the revenge, the antidote, the great
rebuttal of every murder, every abortion, and every genocide. I sustain
humanity. Deep inside of me, life grows. I am death's opposition.

I have pushed back the hand of darkness today. I have caused there to
be a weakening tremor among the ranks of those set on earth's
destruction. Today a vibration that calls angels to attention echoed
throughout time. Our laughter threatened hell today.

I dined with the greats of God's army. I made their meals, and tied
their shoes. Today, I walked with greatness, and when they were tired I
carried them. I have poured myself out for the cause today.

It is finally quiet, but life stirs inside of me. Gaining strength, the
pulse of life sends a constant reminder to both good and evil that I
have yielded myself to Heaven and now carry its dream. No angel has
ever had such a privilege, nor any man. I am humbled by the honor.
I am great with destiny.

I birth the freedom fighters. In the great war, I am a leader of
underground resistance. I smile at the disguise of my troops,
surrounded by a host of warriors, destiny swirling, invisible yet
tangible, and the anointing to alter history. Our footsteps marking
land for conquest, we move undetected through the common places.

Today I was the barrier between evil and innocence. I was the gate
keeper, watching over the hope of mankind, and no intruder trespassed.
There is not an hour of day or night when I turn from my post. The
fierceness of my love is unmatched on earth.

And because I smiled instead of frowned the world will know the power
of grace. Hope has feet, and it will run to the corners of earth,
because I stood up against destruction.

I am a woman. I am a mother. I am the keeper and sustainer of life here
on earth. Heaven stands in honor of my mission. No one else can carry
my call. I am the daughter of Eve. Eve has been redeemed. I am the
opposition of death. I am a woman."

- Christianna Reed Maas, 2010

{A Little Girl & Her Pretty's}

We had some time between bath time and bedtime last night.....all I had to do was get out my bag of nail polish and Missy D* was ready......

I'd never painted her toes before and found it harder to do than her fingers but she was so good, as usual. When she woke up this morning, I showed her her toes while changing her diaper and she was so excited.....again.

{Two-year-old girls are so much fun!}

There Is NO Way.....

Yet another photo of our ever-growing (and moving, much to mamma's delight) wee babe.....

{this is for you Auntie S*}

I came across some newborn diapers on sale at Walmart and picked up a bag. I got them home and opened the bag.....I instantly regretted spending the money because, after seeing how tiny they were, was certain that there was no possible way that they were going to fit the baby.....they are way too small.....

To be honest, I won't believe that they'll fit until I see it with my own eyes.....there is also no way that my almost two-year-old was ever small enough to wear them.

Nope.

I don't believe it.

There is no way......

:: New Love ::

Just after Denay was born, we got some fabulous baby lotion given to us from The Body Shop called Buriti Baby. I recently ran out and was on the hunt for some good lotion.....I picked some live clean (baby) from Walmart and I am in love!

It's definitely not as cheap as Johnson & Johnson's (we're not big fans of their baby stuff around here) but it smells so amazing and in two days of using it I've already noticed Denay's skin is softer and more moisturized. It's full of natural botanicals and organic materials and is free of lots of the other stuff that's in cheaper lotion.

Holla, Momma's! This stuff is great!

A few weeks ago, I spent Denay's naptime outside scrubbing and power-washing the deck......so needless to say, ipod in and all, I didn't do any checking on my daughter in the fews hours I was out there.......I came inside to check on her and found this.......

......little turkey had obviously climbed out of bed during her "naptime" to read and ended falling asleep on her blankie on the carpet on her books.

In one word: precious.

Good As New

This project needed to get done.

We stained our deck last year but you definitely couldn't tell this year. It was faded and just didn't look good. The picture on the right is after it's been soaked, scrubbed and power-washed but it didn't look much better before......but the after, *sigh* of relief!

After weeding, reorganizing, adding new plants to and spreading fresh bark mulch on my garden this week, my back deck makes me smile. It feels so great to know it's all done and I'll be able to really enjoy our backyard this summer.......now I just need to repaint the fence........

:: Family Day ::

On Saturday we went down to Victoria to take part in some special events. The Navy was celebrating it's Centennial and we went out to Fort Rodd Hill to see a bay full of warships and navy boats from all around the world including the USS Ronald Regan, the largest warship in the world.

:: Hanging out at the lighthouse ::

:: Upper left-navy ships just off shore, Lower left-army helicopter fly-by, Lower right-Snowbird performance, Upper right-parachute demonstration. We also got to experience an F-18 fighter jet fly-by.......I think it almost liquefied my insides! ::
Afterwards we picked up a Subway lunch and drove into downtown Victoria. It was such a beautiful day! We sat on the lawns of the Parliament Building and enjoyed looking out over the inner harbour and soaking in the sunshine. Both Denay and I came home with pretty impressive sunburns!

:: Pictures with mum and dad ::

It was so refreshing to spend a warm summer day relaxing and being together as a family......and I can't wait for this family to grow!

~ Silly Baby ~

I was outside re-staining our deck on the weekend (post on that to come!) and I missed this Kodak moment.......

She's figured out that her books are sturdy enough to stand on :)

{the baby bump chronicles: 25 weeks}

Ahh, 25 weeks and feelin' good!

Saw the midwife last week and baby's heartbeat is staying true in the 140's and I'm was measuring about 23cm. She got the report back from the specialist that said what we already knew, baby is healthy and growing well! We also got into a great discussion of the right and wrong ways to adjust a toddler to having a new baby in the house and whether or not to involve Denay in the labour and delivery.

I'm well on the way to having house and home ready for baby to come.....and nice and early too so I'm able to really get out and enjoy the summer as best I can.

And go back in time here, to check out Denay's baby bump at around the same time in my pregnancy with her......